Relive the golden age of jazz in this year’s Jazz in the Glen, a two-day festival exploring jazz from the era of the 1920s to today’s new talent.
Hosted at Glen St Theatre from 6-7 September, the festival is offering a broad range of jazz music to suit all ages and styles.
Internationally renowned jazz act, the Young Northside Big Band, along with guest singer, Janet Seidel, have been busy rehearsing before their performance, which is focusing on popular big band music from the late 1930s to the early 1940s.
“We’ve been very fortunate to have one of Australia’s leading female jazz vocalists, the wonderful Janet Seidel, as a guest artist. This is incredibly exciting for the band, we’ve been working very hard to prepare her music,” said Young Northside Big Band conductor, Geoff Power.
Formed in the early 1970s by the late John Speite, the Young Northside Big Band was a major force in promoting jazz music education in schools.
Defunct for many years, the band was recently revived by Geoff in 2008, who also conducts and teaches music across multiple schools in Sydney. It consists of high school and university students from the Northern Beaches.
Geoff, who has previously toured across the US nine times as a featured jazz soloist, is also a member of the jazz band, Lounge Bar Lotharios, who are kickstarting the festival programme on Friday with the Great Gatsby Night.
“This is a band that plays the hot big band music of the 1920s… It’s some of the most exciting music of the era, and I’m thrilled to be part of keeping that art form alive,” he said.
Other performances over the weekend include Live in the Glen, a showcase of young musicians from the Northern Beaches, and Legends of Jazz, a tribute to jazz musicians ranging from swing, to bop, and cool. Buy your ticket now!
by Amelia Zhou
