Jazz is not dead, never was dead, wasn’t even on life-support – Jazz has been ignored, skipped over, given lip-service, short-shrift and generally shoved into another room where it is hoped to die of old-age by those imbedded in the mainstream who just can’t see the life-giving energy pulsing through its veins.
Jazz is alive and well – walking and talking and keeping the message upfront. But rather than be considered solely America’s Classical Music – it has embraced the world; took bits and pieces and influences from everywhere and put together a mosaic of rich complexity and infinite beauty – a roux of souls, as it were.
And there’s a lot going on. It is a feast and we’re going to go exploring a lot in the coming months.
Not ignoring the milestones, the defining moments, the leading figures and the lesser lights of the past – that will always be with us as benchmarks because that’s one of the joys of history; going to the place of birth and feeling the inspiration.
But we gotta look at the new faces, hear the new voices, explore the points of view because that’s what keeps it all fresh, vital and very much alive.
So this week we have Xhosa Cole, one of the bright new lights on the British Jazz scene. Since winning the BBC’s Young Jazz Musician Of The Year award in 2018, he has been gathering a large and growing following among aficionados and peers, spilling out to the larger more eclectic audience.
Performing at this years International Jazzfestival in Münster, Germany on January 5th and broadcast live by NDR Kultur, it’s clearly evident Xhosa Cole is making waves and influencing eardrums. Together with his quartet, consisting of Pat Thomas on piano – Josh Vadiveloo on bass and Tim Giles on drums they give a memorable performance which bodes very well for a bright and enriching future.
Further evidence Jazz is in good places – don’t let anyone fool you.
Dive in:
