Highlights:
- Jazz Jamaica All Stars presents The Trojan Story
- Avant-pop and minimalist, Penguin Café
- Brass in Concert returns to Sage Gateshead
- Two-times Mercury Prize nominee, Ghostpoet
- The GRAMMY award-winning, Soweto Gospel Choir
Jazz Jamaica All Stars: The Trojan Story
Saturday 27 June, 7.30pm
Supported by Arts Council England, innovative grass roots music and culture outreach programme, The Reggae Ticket, will take to the road alongside Gary Crosby OBE’s popular heritage reggae tour, The Trojan Story, performed by his 22-piece Jazz Jamaica All Stars.
Hailed by many as the ‘Godfather of British jazz’, Crosby co-founded the non-profit, Tomorrow’s Warriors, 28 years ago in 1991. Since then, through its development, outreach and recruitment, the organisation has directly impacted over 10,000 young people aged 11-19, largely from BAME and underprivileged backgrounds, away from traditional conservatoire education.
The Reggae Ticket has been designed to engage those from secondary school age upwards with established musicians, through a bespoke participation and learning programme in each city. This will include a series of inspirational sessions, workshops, mentoring sessions, development and performance opportunities for local community choirs and orchestras with members of Jazz Jamaica and the Tomorrow’s Warriors Music Leader Faculty. The programme will also train young people in recording ‘oral history’ interviews, allowing young people to create content that will feature in ‘The Trojan Story Exhibition’ curated by Mykaell Riley (Black Music Research Unit, University of Westminster), with support from BMG. The exhibition will consist of archive materials and artefacts from the recorded history of black culture in the UK and the ‘oral history’ interviews with musicians and fans will be donated to the national archives.
Book now: https://sagegateshead.com/whats-on/jazz-jamaica-all-stars/
Penguin Café
Friday 18 September, 8pm
Avant-pop from musician, composer, and producer Arthur Jeffes and his Penguin Cafe ensemble, performing music from their Handfuls of Night record and back catalogue.
Combining elements of folk, classical, and minimalism in a style distinctive to the Penguin Cafe Orchestra, Arthur Jeffes and his cohorts craft a vivid series of panoramic sonic landscapes, as rich in cerebral poignancy as they are in emotional depth.
Following in his father Simon Jeffes’ footsteps, and performing music from both the Penguin Cafe Orchestra repertoire alongside the new Penguin Cafe material, this talented array of musicians make use of a variety of instrumentation – gut-stringed violins, viola, cello, bass, percussion, upright and grand pianos, synthesiser, harmonium and more – to bring an effervescent and thoughtful sound.
Book now: https://sagegateshead.com/whats-on/penguin-cafe/
Brass in Concert 2020
Saturday 14 October – Sunday 15 October
Every third weekend in November, Sage Gateshead is alive with the sound of brass as it hosts the world-famous Brass in Concert Championship which features many of the finest bands in the land.
The 44th Brass in Concert Festival: The organisers of the Brass in Concert Festival are proud to announce that they have put together an outstanding programme of events on this the 16th occasion of its staging at Sage Gateshead.
The partnership between Sage Gateshead and Brass in Concert has been successful in offering access to outstanding facilities and giving opportunities to bands and audience to play and listen to music in its many forms.
Pace and vision have been at the heart of its activities with opening day focussed on youth and education with taster sessions, a concourse by elementary players, the 3rd Youth Brass in Concert Championship, a master class, an international showcase with Krohnengen from Norway and a Gala Concert featuring Tredegar Town and Foden’s bands with guest soloist, Philip Cobb, principal trumpet, London Symphony Orchestra.
The 2nd day sees 11 top class bands in the world competing for the 44th Brass in Concert title in 7 hours of music making of the highest quality.
Full programme: https://sagegateshead.com/seasons/brass-in-concert/
Youth Brass In Concert Championships
Saturday 14 November, 2pm
Book now: https://sagegateshead.com/whats-on/brass-in-concert-2020-youth-brass-in-concert-championships/
World of Brass In Concert
Saturday 14 November, 7.30pm
Book now: https://sagegateshead.com/whats-on/brass-in-concert-2020-world-of-brass-in-concert/
The 44th Brass In Concert Championships
Sunday 15 November, 9.30am
Book now: https://sagegateshead.com/whats-on/brass-in-concert-2020-the-44th-brass-in-concert-championships/
Soweto Gospel Choir
Tuesday 27 October, 7.30pm
Winner of the 2019 GRAMMY Award for ‘Best World Music Album’, the world’s most critically acclaimed choir brings their Freedom concert to the UK for the first time.
Hailing from the town of Soweto, the birthplace of South Africa’s democratic movement’s struggle for freedom, Soweto Gospel Choir inspires audiences around the world with their powerful blend of African gospel, freedom songs, and international classics.
Don’t miss the spectacular Soweto Gospel Choir
Book now: https://sagegateshead.com/whats-on/soweto-gospel-choir-2020/
Ghostpoet
Wednesday 18 November, 8pm
The two-time Mercury Prize nominee Ghostpoet (aka Obaro Ejimiwe) follows up 2017’s acclaimed Dark Days + Canapés with a record which couldn’t feel more prescient, a dystopian snapshot of the universal unease and anxiety we feel as we enter into this new decade, an uncertain future distilled across these 10 vital tracks.
The bluesy, gritty Concrete Pony is the perfect entry point to the record – in Obaro’s own words; “It’s a snapshot of where were at as a society I feel, we seem to have everything and nothing at all. Infinite possibilities and choices galore but we seem set in stone, frozen in place, oblivious to the storm clouds in the distance…”
Recorded in London and written, arranged and produced by Ghostpoet, I Grow Tired But Dare Not Fall Asleep incorporates a myriad of sounds and styles but is anchored by the more alt-rock sonics presented across his last two records.
It features guest vocals from an eclectic mix of artists; Art School Girlfriend, Skinny Girl Diet’s Delilah Holiday, SaraSara and Katie Dove Dixon. Obaro has always had a keen ear for collaboration, having worked with the likes of Massive Attack, Nadine Shah, Melanie Di Biasio, Maximo Park’s Paul Smith and Damon Albarn’s Africa Express amongst others across his distinguished career.
Ghostpoet will debut songs from the new album at BBC 6 Music Festival where he plays London’s Dingwalls, March 8th.
Book now: https://sagegateshead.com/whats-on/ghostpoet/
ENDS
Further information, high-resolution images and press tickets available on request
CONTACT: Rosie Earl 01325 363436
NEWS RELEASE: ISSUED ON BEHALF OF SAGE GATESHEAD
Notes to editors:
Sage Gateshead is an international music centre and renowned conference and event venue located in the North East of England. It is for artists, for audiences, for the North and for the long term.
Its concert programme incorporates all kinds of local, regional and international music and runs all year round. Music-making and learning activity takes place not only in the building but across the region.
As a charity, the support it receives helps to ensure everyone in the community can experience the joys of music.
Sage Gateshead registered charity number: 1087445.