15TH ANNUAL FESTIVAL
2012

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2012
The Fifteenth Kirkcudbright Jazz Festival

For a list of accommodation providers in and around Kirkcudbright  who advertise in Festival publications, go to our Accommodation page.

 

Kirkcudbright Jazz Festival is a Company registered in Scotland - No. SC315747 & Charity No. SC038200

 THE 16TH KIRKCUDBRIGHT JAZZ FESTIVAL

will be held on 13, 14, 15 and 16 JUNE 2013

The 16^th annual festival in this unique small Scottish town promises to be even more appealing and exciting than ever by maintaining the high musical standards set by previous festivals. Visitors will have the chance to enjoy top class and highly professional artistes, some on a first time visit, as well as some old favourites,  ensuring that the festival caters for jazz lovers of all ages who appreciate quality as well as variety for their entertainment.

 

Guaranteeing that the weekend will kick off with a great start, Thursday and Friday will feature vocalist Mellow Baku Avstreih with Paul Munnery's Swing Street, and, from within this group, Rachel Hayward's Good vibes.  As a contrast, Jerry Forde’s New Phoenix Jazz Band from Edinburgh is a jazz sextet formed in early 2012 from a wide range of musicians active in the serious and diverse jazz musical traditions. The band, which focuses on the period 1899 to 1950 through arrangements produced by the renowned musician, composer and arranger Dick Lee, will be performing with the specific objectives of continuing this rich tradition of vibrant and refined compositions of the period.

 

New to the Festival and sure to appeal are the A7 Band featuring Thomas "Spats" Langham, Mike Lovell's Six in a Bar with Rosie and Laurie Cheskoe's Reunion Band, all three performing in contrasting but complementary styles.

Making a welcome return to Kirkcudbright  is  the great New Orleans style reed player Thomas l’Etienne from Germany, this year accompanied by his playing partner Uli Wunner, playing in a quintet as The Creole Clarinets and Friends  Additionally, the two clarinettists  will feature with several bands throughout the weekend. Also returning are the extremely busy Savannah Jazz Band with their popular brand of British New Orleans jazz, Bob Dwyer's Bix and Pieces, Frank Brooker's Happy Chappies and, after a long absence, Ken Mathieson's Classic Jazz Orchestra.

 

The fabulous quartet, Rose Room, returns by popular demand - try not to miss the experience of its live performances.

Festival chairman Leon McCaig with his local Sulwarth Syncopators will host a jam session for visiting musicians and perfom at the Parish Church service along with guests.

 

The Dave Donohoe Band will once again present the music of New Orleans both old style dance hall and rhythm and blues. The band will this year featurs renowned Edinburgh pianist Tom Finlay and T J Johnson, a pianist of world renown will, with his band, bring the Festival to a resounding close.

The restaurant Dine-A-Round this year will feature the following groups : Dick Lee and Phil Adams, Spats Langham and Jon Penn, Spats and Friends, Duncan McCallum and Dougie Harrison and as a solo pianist, T J Johnson

.

Held from Thursday, 13^th to Sunday, 16^th June 2013, it is a great time to visit this least populated area of Dumfries & Galloway, only an hour’s drive north of Carlisle. It is known as “the artists town” because, like St Ives in Cornwall, it has that special kind of light, particularly at sunset, which attracted and continues to attract may successful artists to live and work in the region.