Welcome to the latest episode of ‘In Conversation With’ with host and producer Hannah Horton, with our theme tune Surfing Thermals from our host, Hannah too! In this episode, host Hannah Horton welcomes Charlotte Keeffe AND Lara De Belder Musician, trumpeter and flugelhorn player Charlotte Keeffe wears her love for freely improvising, free jazz and abstract music-making on her (brightly coloured) sleeve. Whether performing regularly as a soloist (Sound Brush), or leading a variety of different ensembles, including her RIGHT HERE, RIGHT NOW Quartet, she meticulously carves out spaces for the free movement of ideas and individual expression. Inspired by abstract painters, Keeffe refers to her instruments as ‘Sound Brushes’. Her debut album ‘Right Here, Right Now’ is where you’ll find her exhibiting a passion for vibrant soundscapes rendered in live spaces. Released in 2021 on Discus Music, Keeffe earned critical acclaim and carved out a niche on the imprint, also composing, performing and co-leading (with Discus Music's head, Martin Archer), for/on a number of the record label's artists/projects. Keeffe's 2nd album is out now (released September 2023) and features her RIGHT HERE, RIGHT NOW Quartet, ALIVE! in the studio... Harnessing the power of art for social change is a crucial part of Keeffe’s musical identity: she has served as Assistant Musical Director of the London Gay Big Band, champions gender and diversity equality, as part of the Parliamentary award-winning Women in Jazz Media team, and played at the World Economic Forum 2019, in front of world leaders and celebrities including Sir David Attenborough. Keeffe understands that embracing individuality and letting go of inhibitions is the surest way to grasp the transformative power of music. ​Originally from North Yorkshire, London-based Actor, Singer & Writer Lara de Belder studied Music at the University of Leeds before training in Musical Theatre at the Royal Academy of Music in London. With a musical background spanning choral and classical music, musical theatre, jazz, blues and pop music, Lara has worked as a performer and creator in theatre, film, TV and concert and is the co-writer and creator of new British comedy musical, Bird Brigade, alongside Luka Antony Bjelis, directed by Grace Taylor (SIX) and long-listed for the Stiles and Drewe Mentorship Award 2021. Lara's passion for an eclectic range of musical genres has influenced her as a solo artist and writer of original material fusing pop with flavours of jazz, blues, funk, soul, RnB, hip hop, folk and electronic dance styles, first launching in May 2021 with Turn It Over. Describing her music as 'jazzpop', Lara takes inspiration from artists such as Celeste, Jacob Collier, Melody Gardot, Jamie Cullum, Ella Fitzgerald, Erykah Badu, Lizzo, Amy Winehouse, Robyn and Jessie Ware. Her music has been featured on BBC Introducing on BBC Radio Tees with Rianne Thompson and Rachel Teate as well as other radio programmes and podcasts including a placement on Bulgarian National Radio. Lara is also a writer and vocalist with upcoming Sony-AMG artist EnEyeCee, DWB Music Publishers and Gift Of Music. Hannah Horton is a British Female Jazz Saxophonist whose music is rooted in jazz, folk and funk. She has performed with many great jazz artists including Ian Shaw, Amy Winehouse, John Etheridge, Tina May, Georgia Mancio, Polly Gibbons, Natalie Williams, Esther Bennett and Irene Serra; and at venues including Ronnie Scott’s, Pizza Express Dean St, The 606, The Pheasantry, Love Supreme Jazz Festival, Royal Festival Hall and The Barbican. She has also toured in Europe and USA with her own and other groups. Her latest album has been going down a storm across the world. “Hannah makes the big beast of a baritone sax sound like an angel” – Ian Shaw. Hannah Horton website

Welcome to our podcast series ‘On The Bookcase’, featuring female authors from across the world, with host Fiona Ross and original music from Hannah Horton.  We were excited to find our podcasts named as one of the Top 15 Women In Media Podcasts on the web by Feedspot! Huge thank you to them! You can also find our podcasts at number 9 in the top 60 Best Jazz Podcasts in FeedSpot!  In this episode we welcome Dr Alexis McGee, to talk about her new book, From Blues to Beyoncé: A Century of Black Women’s Generational Sonic Rhetorics Dr. Alexis McGee received her Ph.D. from the University of Texas at San Antonio where she also received two certificates of concentration in Linguistics and Rhetoric and Composition. Drawing from this background, McGee is an interdisciplinary scholar who engages with various fields and sub-disciplines such as Rhetoric, Composition/Writing Studies, Black Studies, Critical Pedagogies, Sound Studies, as well as Women and Gender Studies. Her concentrated research interests, more specifically, focus on Black women’s rhetorical uses of voice, literacies, and expression. McGee’s book, From Blues to Beyoncé: A Century of Black Women’s Generational Sonic Rhetorics,  (SUNY 2024), amplifies Black women’s ongoing public assertions of resistance, agency, and hope across different media from the nineteenth century to today. By examining recordings, music videos, autobiographical writings, and speeches, Alexis McGee explores how figures such as Ida B. Wells, Billie Holiday, Ruth Brown, Queen Latifah, Aretha Franklin, Nina Simone, Janelle Monáe, and more mobilize sound to challenge antiBlack discourses and extend social justice pedagogies. Building on contemporary Black feminist interventions in sound studies and sonic rhetorics, From Blues to Beyoncé reveals how Black women’s sonic acts transmit meaning and knowledge within, between, and across generations. Her work has been featured on BBC Radio4 and published in various venues including College, Composition, and Communication (forthcoming, 2022); Rhetoric Review (2021); Communication and Critical/Cultural Studies (2018); Obsidian (2017); and Pedagogy (2016). Buy the book here Alexis McGee links here

Welcome to the latest episode of ‘In Conversation With’ with host and producer Hannah Horton, with our theme tune Surfing Thermals from our host, Hannah too! In this episode, host Hannah Horton welcomes Kai Hoffman Our podcasts are named as one of the Top 15 Women In Media Podcasts on the web by Feedspot and you can also find our podcasts at number 9 in the top 60 Best Jazz Podcasts in FeedSpot! Originally from Boston, MA, USA, Kai Hoffman is a blues, jazz & cabaret singer, songwriter, bandleader and recording artist based in the United Kingdom. Kai’s international reputation is growing steadily with shows including Don’t Tell Mama and the Metropolitan Room in New York City, The Blue Note in Milan and the European Jazz Expo, with further performances in countries as varied as Bangladesh, the Netherlands and Russia. Kai is also the founder of the Herne Bay Jazz Festival: Founded by artistic director Kai Hoffman, Herne Bay Jazz Festival CIC became a registered non-profit community interest company in February, 2024. As a CIC, we are currently expanding our year-round programs which will include workshops and performances over the course of the year as well as our August events. With a strong emphasis on exploring this genre of music without the barriers of cost or travel, our program includes new and established performers across a wide range of jazz styles, with free workshops for children and adults to explore their own creativity, offering our audiences the broadest selection possible, with an emphasis on inclusivity. Kai’s links here Hannah Horton is a British Female Jazz Saxophonist whose music is rooted in jazz, folk and funk. She has performed with many great jazz artists including Ian Shaw, Amy Winehouse, John Etheridge, Tina May, Georgia Mancio, Polly Gibbons, Natalie Williams, Esther Bennett and Irene Serra; and at venues including Ronnie Scott’s, Pizza Express Dean St, The 606, The Pheasantry, Love Supreme Jazz Festival, Royal Festival Hall and The Barbican. She has also toured in Europe and USA with her own and other groups. Her latest album has been going down a storm across the world. “Hannah makes the big beast of a baritone sax sound like an angel” – Ian Shaw. Hannah Horton website

Welcome to the third episode of our drummer focused series ‘Sticks and Thrones’ with host Migdalia Van Der Hoven, with our guest Jenny Pearson-Walinetski   Our podcasts are available on all platforms and are currently at number 9 in the top 60 best Jazz podcast on FeedSpot featuring original music from Migdalia Van Der Hoven available here Migdalia van der Hoven is an International Award winning Mexican drummer currently touring with SIX the Musical across the UK. She is also a Vater Drumsticks, Bosphorus Cymbals and RTOM Corporation artist and a Berklee College of Music graduate (where she studied and performed with Jackie Santos, Terri Lynn Carrington, Victor Mendoza and Mark Walker). She is known for her groove, sensitivity and versatility across multiple genres such as funk, jazz, fusion, latin jazz, pop and world music. She became the first Mexican Female drummer to ever perform at Ronnie Scott’s and the EFG London Jazz Festival. Migdalia became “Woman of the year 2022” in Mexico in arts and culture for her contribution in music nationally and internationally. Follow Migdalia here Jenny Pearson-Walinetski is a Drummer and Percussionist based in Manchester UK and is a graduate of the RNCM and Chetham’s School of Music. She currently tours with Miles Kane as well as artists including Bryony Jarman Pinto (Jazz), Molly Wharbuton (Pop) and IORA (Electro Pop and Sync) and has enjoyed over the years playing at festivals such as Glastonbury, Kendal Calling and Tramlines. Jenny is a current deputy on Six The Musical UK tour and has performed on other musicals such as Hamilton, Fantastically Great Women and Unfortunate Musical. She is involved with her Jazz/DnB duo, j2oh (@j2ohmusic) which has performed at London Jazz Festival, Glasshouse ICM, Royal Albert Hall and in a feature recording with the Halle Orchestra. J2oh look forward to their upcoming album release late 2024. Aside from gigs, Jenny records from her home studio with her work featured on Spotify Top 100, Netflix film releases UK and USA plus UK and European radio play. She has also featured as a drummer in advertisements for Facebook Meta and one of the Thousands of drummers in a shoot for Ladbrookes! Find Jenny on Instagram here

Welcome to the latest episode of our podcast series’ The Notes Between’ with Lara Eidi. Conversations exploring everything behind and about the world of songwriting! Our theme music ‘Breathe Love’ is from Lara Eidi herself available here In this episode, Lara talks to songwriter Germana Stella La Sorsa Italian London-based singer Germana Stella La Sorsa migrated from Puglia, Italy in 2017 and quickly established herself on the London jazz scene. "Nudging boundaries as she goes” (The Slow Music Movement) and exploring “the crossroads of many musical components, including story, composition, genre and style as well as instrumentation and effect” (London Jazz News), La Sorsa released her debut album 'Vapour' in 2021 on 33 Jazz Records. The singer melds her disparate influences in her second studio album, 'Primary Colours', released in January 2024 - once again on 33 Jazz Records - with the support of Help Musicians. Following the success of 'Vapour', 'Primary Colours' continues to ride the contemporary/avant-garde jazz wave, further exploring the boundaries of improvisation and sound experimentation, drawing upon modern sounds and grooves, from drum’n’bass to Latin music. Both eclectic and versatile, La Sorsa has performed in the most iconic London jazz venues - such as Ronnie Scott's, The Spice of Life, Vortex Jazz Club, Toulouse Lautrec Jazz Club and Oliver's Jazz Bar - but also Internationally, playing at Jazz Festivals such as the Al Bustan International Festival (Lebanon - with Faris Ishaq and Kham Quartet), Taranto Jazz Festival and Ceglie Jazz Open Festival (Italy). La Sorsa started performing in Italy at an early age, working her way up through the Italian Jazz scene to ultimately perform at the side of one of the most influential European jazz musicians: Franco Cerri (Chet Baker, Dizzy Gillespie, Billie Holiday, Lee Konitz, Gerry Mulligan, Django Reinhardt and many more). Besides her singing career, Germana currently teaches singing technique and jazz singing both privately and at Morley College (London). Website: Germana Stella La Sorsa Athens born to Lebanese Canadian parents, Lara Eidi is an artist that thrives on being different. As an independent artist, singer and multi- instrumentalist, she has carved a path for herself that continuously aimed at reshaping and developing her voice as a storyteller. An accomplished and reputable singer-songwriter, pianist, recording artist and jazz- folk vocalist of her own accord based in London and Athens. Her music has gained her critical acclaim as a genre bending artist (BBC Artist, 2020), described as “a singer with true gift of a voice, a kind soul, and a captivating presence.” (Jazz UK). At the heart of her being as a multi-disciplinary artist, she is sought after as a composer for vocal film scores, writes as a freelance music journalist, and is in demand as a creative workshop leader. Her music seeks to elevate and heal, and as a result, she creates genre- defying songs with a great emphasis on story telling. Her latest album ‘Sun’, her long awaited debut album, is all about pulling the threads of her folk, acoustic rock and jazz-classical upbringing to her message of hope, empowerment, and freedom. As a soloist, her recent debut performance at the infamous Royal Albert Hall, singing select pieces from Greece and Lebanon form the MedievalByzantine Traditions sees Lara engaging on a series of select and innovative performances with the SAUDHA Indian Classical Music Association.   Lara Eidi website

Welcome to the next episode of our podcast series’ The Notes Between’ with Lara Eidi. Conversations exploring everything behind and about the world of songwriting! Our theme music ‘Breathe Love’ is from Lara Eidi herself available here In this episode, Lara talks to songwriter Fini Bearman Fini Bearman  is a London-based singer, songwriter, composer & multi-instrumentalist. Her music melds diverse influences from jazz, folk and contemporary songs into an 'arresting and uniquely personal' sound.  Working both with and without words, incorporating her love of improvised music, Fini’s voice ‘effortlessly moves between a light precision and warm soulfulness is unmistakably her own’.   Her 4th album 'La Loba’ in October 2020 and received glowing reviews and praise from peers and critics including **** from Jazzwise (Editors Choice), allaboutjazz, The Arts Desk (album of the year), and more. This album was an opportunity to explore new songwriting avenues as a solo artist, recording the songs at her home studio in south east London, playing all the instruments (piano, tenor guitar, mandolin, ukulele, charango, tenor saxophone, percussion… all except cello; played by the wonderful Zosia Jagodzinska). Her fifth studio album, ‘Last Night of The World’ is due for release on Pastiche Records, Autumn 2024, and features a veritable feast of musical brilliance; Tom Cawley, Robin Mullarkey, James Maddren, Matt Calvert, Al Cherry, together with guests Alice Zawadzki, Josia Jagodzinska, Gareth Lockrane, George Crowley & Gwilym Simcock.   Over the past years Fini has worked as both soloist and collaborator/side-woman, touring festivals & venues  including Ronnie Scotts, The Sage Gateshead, Kings Place, The Barbican, The A-Trane (Berlin), Cafe Mercedes Jazz (Valencia), Manzioli (Izola, Slovenia) and even New York venue Dizzys (Jazz at the Lincoln Center). Festival highlights include the London Jazz Festival, Manchester Jazz Festival, Cambridge Jazz Festival, 'Jazz Voices' in Lithuania and ’Voicingers'  in Poland. Fini has been supported by the Arts Council & Musicians Benevolent Fund and has been nominated for awards including Best Jazz Vocal Album (Deutsche Jazzpreis 2023) & London Jazz Singer of the Year (Global Music Foundation). Athens born to Lebanese Canadian parents, Lara Eidi is an artist that thrives on being different. As an independent artist, singer and multi- instrumentalist, she has carved a path for herself that continuously aimed at reshaping and developing her voice as a storyteller. An accomplished and reputable singer-songwriter, pianist, recording artist and jazz- folk vocalist of her own accord based in London and Athens. Her music has gained her critical acclaim as a genre bending artist (BBC Artist, 2020), described as “a singer with true gift of a voice, a kind soul, and a captivating presence.” (Jazz UK). At the heart of her being as a multi-disciplinary artist, she is sought after as a composer for vocal film scores, writes as a freelance music journalist, and is in demand as a creative workshop leader. Her music seeks to elevate and heal, and as a result, she creates genre- defying songs with a great emphasis on story telling. Her latest album ‘Sun’, her long awaited debut album, is all about pulling the threads of her folk, acoustic rock and jazz-classical upbringing to her message of hope, empowerment, and freedom. As a soloist, her recent debut performance at the infamous Royal Albert Hall, singing select pieces from Greece and Lebanon form the MedievalByzantine Traditions sees Lara engaging on a series of select and innovative performances with the SAUDHA Indian Classical Music Assocation.  Lara Eidi website

Welcome to the latest episode of ‘In Conversation With’ with host and producer Hannah Horton, with our theme tune Surfing Thermals from our host, Hannah too! In this episode, host Hannah Horton welcomes Wendy Kirkland Our podcasts are named as one of the Top 15 Women In Media Podcasts on the web by Feedspot and you can also find our podcasts at number 9 in the top 60 Best Jazz Podcasts in FeedSpot! Pianist and singer Wendy Kirkland has been a mainstay of the UK Jazz scene since the late noughties, but it was her first album, Piano Divas, released in 2017 that began her ascent to wider recognition as a “Singing Pianist”, as dubbed by Jazz Journal. The ability to sing at the same time as comping and craft solos on the piano or unison piano/voice scat lines is her forte, with influences such as Diana Krall, Eliane Elias and Dena DeRose. Further accolades were given for her 2019 release The Music’s On Me, dubbed “a huge leap forward” by Jazz Views. Both albums prompted ACE funded tours all over the UK and constant radio airplay ever since. During lockdown from March 2020, Wendy and guitarist/bassist husband Pat Sprakes entertained with a daily dose of Latin American music on Facebook which they entitled Latin Lockdowns. After 86 such performances they decided it was time to move on to other musical endeavours, but were amazed and pleased to receive daily messages from people who described the videos in such terms as “a ray of sunshine” in their lockdown situations. Wendy will be performing at our special event on June 27th to celebrate jazz vocalists and women in the jazz industry to raise money for renowned jazz vocalist Anita Wardell. Five outstanding vocalists from the British jazz scene, Vimala Rowe, Lily Dior, Esther Bennett, Diana Torti and Fiona Ross will bring their unique artistry to a range of jazz standards in an evening full of jazz tradition and elegant atmosphere, all accompanied by Wendy!. Women in Jazz Media presents: Jazz Sisters: A celebration of vocal jazz Wendy’s musical career began at age 10, when she started taking piano lessons. She won a scholarship to have all her lessons paid for by Derbyshire Music, and continued to take her ABRSM piano grades. Switching to jazz in her late teens, Wendy continued her playing career as a dance class pianist, accompanist to singers and as a keyboardist in club bands. After being persuaded to sing by a great friend and guitarist, Bill McCreath, Wendy learned to reach people who are perhaps turned off by instrumental jazz, as she learnt to communicate with the audience through the songs. Wendy’s voice has been likened to Blossom Dearie with hints of Diana Krall. Wendy’s links here Hannah Horton is a British Female Jazz Saxophonist whose music is rooted in jazz, folk and funk. She has performed with many great jazz artists including Ian Shaw, Amy Winehouse, John Etheridge, Tina May, Georgia Mancio, Polly Gibbons, Natalie Williams, Esther Bennett and Irene Serra; and at venues including Ronnie Scott’s, Pizza Express Dean St, The 606, The Pheasantry, Love Supreme Jazz Festival, Royal Festival Hall and The Barbican. She has also toured in Europe and USA with her own and other groups. Her latest album has been going down a storm across the world. “Hannah makes the big beast of a baritone sax sound like an angel” – Ian Shaw. Hannah Horton website

Relaunching our podcast series 'Kicking Down the Door' in partnership Céline Peterson and Black Lives in Music with host Mary Sho, platforming inspirational black women in the Music industry and featuring music from Mary's 'Woman Rising' album. And kicking down the door to start us off, we are thrilled to welcome our first guest the inspirational singer/songwriter/producer and legend China Moses Singer, songwriter and producer China Moses evolves her artistry in truth. Defiantly real, her music resists what so many labels and critics desire: category. She captivates listeners with her deep pocket, sensitivity and wit, drawing inspiration from endless styles in the expansive lineage of Black American music. Frank and fearless, China’s songs document fleeting emotional states and extended narratives, often leaning into self-reflection both in lyric and phrasing. Her voice is a satin ribbon wrapped around a crackling flame. Listeners fortunate to observe her in live performance know the depth of her song interpretation. In a moment she can revolve a world. Click here for China Moses website Mary Sho, a singer and songwriter hailing from South London with a worldwide sound which transcends time and space, offering a home to lovers of authentic, live sounds. Sho’s sound drops you into the late 70’s and early 80’s with tinges of contemporary soul infused with funk origins, creating sounds similar to if Lizzo met Solange met Childish Gambino met Sly and The Family Stone with Thundercat on additional bass! Armed with live instrumentation and striking, self-directed and self styled visuals, Sho’s spacey vocals float over bass-heavy, funk-soul sounds. while highlighting the experiences of Black women and owning the power of her identity, mind, body and soul. Mary Sho has been featured on BBC London Radio multiple times and has recently performed at Brixton House (Soho Friends) ans Cafe KOKO. This year she was one of the recipients of Women in Jazz Media 2023 and has just released her debut Album titled ‘WOMAN RISING’ in the world. Mary Sho links her

Welcome to our latest episode of ‘In Conversation With’ with host and producer Hannah Horton, with our theme tune Surfing Thermals from our host, Hannah too! In this episode, host Hannah Horton welcomes Lily Dior! Our podcasts are named as one of the Top 15 Women In Media Podcasts on the web by Feedspot and you can also find our podcasts at number 9 in the top 60 Best Jazz Podcasts in FeedSpot! Lily was born in Australia where her debut album ‘Invitation’ received universal acclaim and put her firmly on the map, performing globally at major festivals and venues in New York, New Zealand, Japan, Singapore, Shanghai, Hong Kong and London, now her home. She has shared the stage with world-class musicians including Oscar Castro Neves, Dale Barlow and James Morrison, made numerous TV and Radio appearances and hosted her own show on Sydney’s premier jazz station ‘Eastside Radio’ for over ten years.  Lily will be performing at our special event on June 27th to celebrate jazz vocalists and women in the jazz industry to raise money for renowned jazz vocalist Anita Wardell. Five outstanding vocalists from the British jazz scene, Vimala Rowe, Lily Dior, Esther Bennett, Diana Torti and Fiona Ross will bring their unique artistry to a range of jazz standards in an evening full of jazz tradition and elegant atmosphere, accompanied by one of the UK’s most loved pianists, Wendy Kirkland. Women in Jazz Media presents: Jazz Sisters: A celebration of vocal jazz “Jazz and soul coexist in Lily Dior’s vocal style ... sassy, soulful, passionate and strong.” - Rhythms Magazine Lily links here Hannah Horton is a British Female Jazz Saxophonist whose music is rooted in jazz, folk and funk. She has performed with many great jazz artists including Ian Shaw, Amy Winehouse, John Etheridge, Tina May, Georgia Mancio, Polly Gibbons, Natalie Williams, Esther Bennett and Irene Serra; and at venues including Ronnie Scott’s, Pizza Express Dean St, The 606, The Pheasantry, Love Supreme Jazz Festival, Royal Festival Hall and The Barbican. She has also toured in Europe and USA with her own and other groups. Her latest album has been going down a storm across the world. “Hannah makes the big beast of a baritone sax sound like an angel” – Ian Shaw. Hannah Horton website

Welcome to the next episode of the Women in Jazz Media podcast series’ The Notes Between’ with Lara Eidi. Conversations exploring everything behind and about the world of songwriting! Our theme music ‘Breathe Love’ is from Lara Eidi herself available here In this episode, Lara talks to songwriter Laila Biali Multi award-winning Canadian singer-songwriter, pianist and CBC Music national radio host Laila Biali has headlined festivals and venues spanning five continents from New York City's Carnegie Hall to Beijing's National Centre for the Performing Arts, and supported international icon Sting. Her JUNO-nominated 2023 album, Your Requests, featured a stellar cast of guests and received a 4.5 star rave review in All About Jazz. Her previous release, Out of Dust, was also JUNO nominated (in 2021) and won Laila spots on “Best Album” lists around the globe. In 2020, Laila was honoured by SOCAN Music with the Hagood Hardy Award for Excellence in Songwriting. The previous year, Laila’s eponymous release won her a JUNO for "Vocal Jazz Album of the Year” and top prize at the Canadian Songwriting Competition in the Jazz category. Laila was the youngest-ever double winner at Canada’s National Jazz Awards when she was named "SOCAN Composer of the Year" and "Keyboardist of the Year”, and she received her first JUNO nomination for Tracing Light in 2011. When Laila isn’t on stage or in the studio, she’s busy hosting CBC Music's national radio show, Saturday Night Jazz – a weekly program broadcast to millions of listeners across Canada. And while she continues to earn high honours in the jazz world, Laila’s signature sound transcends genre – "masterfully mixes jazz and pop, bringing virtuosity and unpredictability to songs that are concise and catchy" (Washington Post). This coming November, she will release her brand new Wintersongs album, embarking on a cross-country Canadian tour with a virtuosic ensemble that includes Jane Bunnett, members of the Venuti String Quartet, George Koller, Ben Wittman, the dancers Andrea Nann and Sara Prosper, as well as local youth choirs.  "Biali's voice – spanning registers – is pure and warm. She's also fearless on piano and, above else, in her imagination.” – DownBeat Magazine Athens born to Lebanese Canadian parents, Lara Eidi is an artist that thrives on being different. As an independent artist, singer and multi- instrumentalist, she has carved a path for herself that continuously aimed at reshaping and developing her voice as a storyteller. An accomplished and reputable singer-songwriter, pianist, recording artist and jazz- folk vocalist of her own accord based in London and Athens. Her music has gained her critical acclaim as a genre bending artist (BBC Artist, 2020), described as “a singer with true gift of a voice, a kind soul, and a captivating presence.” (Jazz UK). At the heart of her being as a multi-disciplinary artist, she is sought after as a composer for vocal film scores, writes as a freelance music journalist, and is in demand as a creative workshop leader. Her music seeks to elevate and heal, and as a result, she creates genre- defying songs with a great emphasis on story telling. Her latest album ‘Sun’, her long awaited debut album, is all about pulling the threads of her folk, acoustic rock and jazz-classical upbringing to her message of hope, empowerment, and freedom. As a soloist, her recent debut performance at the infamous Royal Albert Hall, singing select pieces from Greece and Lebanon form the MedievalByzantine Traditions sees Lara engaging on a series of select and innovative performances with the SAUDHA Indian Classical Music Assocation.  Lara Eidi website

Welcome to the next episode of our podcast series’ The Notes Between’ with Lara Eidi. Conversations exploring everything behind and about the world of songwriting! Our theme music ‘Breathe Love’ is from Lara Eidi herself available here In this episode, Lara talks to songwriter Moira Smiley Singer / Composer Moira Smiley has toured the world and recorded with Indie-pop favourites, Tuneyards, performing with them on all the late-night TV shows (Kimmel, Colbert, Conan O’Brien, UK’s Jools Holland, etc.) and recently to re-open David Geffen Hall at Lincoln Center in NYC with Chris Thile, Hilary Hahn and Brad Mehldau. She began her singing career in Baroque and Medieval music, collaborating with Paul Hillier, Fretless Consort of Viols, Dufay Collective and Sinfonye, BBC Singers and New World Symphony. As a folksinger, she’s fronted the legendary Irish-American supergroup, Solas as well as the Lomax and Folklife Projects produced by Jayme Stone, and continues to lead her own vocal collaborations as VOCO and The Voice Is A Traveler. As a composer, she’s premiered works alongside Eric Whitacre, Morten Lauridsen, Shara Nova, Billy Childs and many others. Moira has been featured in TED conferences, on BBC Radio and TV, NPR, ABC Australia, and live at countless venues from Lincoln Center and Carnegie Hall to Walt Disney Concert Hall and Royal Festival Hall. She brings vivid, embodied singing to stages tiny and grand, atop glaciers or in cozy kitchens from Taiwan to Tasmania. Moira’s 2018 solo album ‘Unzip The Horizon’ premiered at the prestigious Savannah Music Festival in 2018, and she published its companion choral Songbook in 2019. In February of 2021, she released her vocal album ‘In Our Voices’, featuring international VOCO collaborators. A new album of folksongs with string quartet, ‘The Rhizome Project’ will be released in 2024. “I’m so thankful I’ve had the privilege of performing and recording with Moira. She embodies the endless creative potential of the voice, and… (has made) a deeply moving body of work.” Merrill Garbus - Tune-Yards Athens born to Lebanese Canadian parents, Lara Eidi is an artist that thrives on being different. As an independent artist, singer and multi- instrumentalist, she has carved a path for herself that continuously aimed at reshaping and developing her voice as a storyteller. An accomplished and reputable singer-songwriter, pianist, recording artist and jazz- folk vocalist of her own accord based in London and Athens. Her music has gained her critical acclaim as a genre bending artist (BBC Artist, 2020), described as “a singer with true gift of a voice, a kind soul, and a captivating presence.” (Jazz UK). At the heart of her being as a multi-disciplinary artist, she is sought after as a composer for vocal film scores, writes as a freelance music journalist, and is in demand as a creative workshop leader. Her music seeks to elevate and heal, and as a result, she creates genre- defying songs with a great emphasis on story telling. Her latest album ‘Sun’, her long awaited debut album, is all about pulling the threads of her folk, acoustic rock and jazz-classical upbringing to her message of hope, empowerment, and freedom. As a soloist, her recent debut performance at the infamous Royal Albert Hall, singing select pieces from Greece and Lebanon form the MedievalByzantine Traditions sees Lara engaging on a series of select and innovative performances with the SAUDHA Indian Classical Music Association.  Lara Eidi website

Welcome to our latest episode of ‘In Conversation With’ with host and producer Hannah Horton, with our theme tune Surfing Thermals from our host, Hannah too! In this episode, host Hannah Horton welcomes Laura Impallomeni! Our podcasts are named as one of the Top 15 Women In Media Podcasts on the web by Feedspot and you can also find our podcasts at number 9 in the top 60 Best Jazz Podcasts in FeedSpot! Laura Impallomeni is a jazz trombonist, composer and musical director of various projects. In 2020 she graduated from her MMus in Jazz Trombone from Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music and Dance, where she studied improvisation and composition under world famous musicians. She went on to receive the Arts Council England ‘Develop Your Creative Practice Fund’ to compose a collection of original contemporary jazz compositions under skilled mentorship, featuring trombone as the lead instrument. In November 2020, she debuted this body of work at a sold out concert at London Jazz Festival 2022 with her contemporary jazz quintet . She has just been awarded the “record and Release’ grant from Help Musicians and expects to release her debut jazz album in 2024. Laura has performed and toured with various renowned artists such as First Aid Kit, The Dualers, Giffords Circus, Janet Kay and Ken Boothe. She is the musical director, composer and trombonist of an original 11 piece afro jazz band called ‘Yamäya’, who have just released their debut album ‘Senegal’ on Funkiwala Records. She is also the trombonist for Rootsgarden Dub Soundsytem, The Voodoo Love Orchestra (cambia and salsa) and Barnacles (experimental jazz) and works for London music charity ‘Play for Progress’ as a therapeutic music teacher/workshop leader with young asylum seekers and refugees. On the 25th of April she will perform a mixture of some of her original compositions and her favourite standards alongside members of her quintet. Tickets available here Laura links here Hannah Horton is a British Female Jazz Saxophonist whose music is rooted in jazz, folk and funk. She has performed with many great jazz artists including Ian Shaw, Amy Winehouse, John Etheridge, Tina May, Georgia Mancio, Polly Gibbons, Natalie Williams, Esther Bennett and Irene Serra; and at venues including Ronnie Scott’s, Pizza Express Dean St, The 606, The Pheasantry, Love Supreme Jazz Festival, Royal Festival Hall and The Barbican. She has also toured in Europe and USA with her own and other groups. Her latest album has been going down a storm across the world. “Hannah makes the big beast of a baritone sax sound like an angel” – Ian Shaw. Hannah Horton website

Welcome to our latest episode of ‘In Conversation With’ with host and producer Hannah Horton, with our theme tune Surfing Thermals from our host, Hannah too! In this episode, host Hannah Horton welcomes Helena Jane Summerfield! Our podcasts are named as one of the Top 15 Women In Media Podcasts on the web by Feedspot and you can also find our podcasts at number 9 in the top 60 Best Jazz Podcasts in FeedSpot! Helena Summerfield is the Learning and Participation project manager at Jazz North the jazz talent development agency for the North of England. After graduating from the Guildhall School of Music & Drama in 1997, saxophonist Helena has worked in a variety of mainstream and inclusive music education settings. She was the lead jazz tutor at Trafford Music Service when they received the 2021 ‘Will Michael Jazz Education Award’ and awarded 'Jazz Educator of the Year' at the 2022 ‘Parliamentary Jazz Awards’ in recognition of her work on ‘Jazz Camp for Girls’. Helena has also worked as the interim programme manager for the National Youth Jazz Collective (NYJC) In her role as Learning and Participation project manager for Jazz North Helena is currently working to create new teaching resources to encourage beginner pupils (and their teachers!) to engage with jazz and improvisation. As a performer Helena plays saxophone and flute in a number of Manchester based bands. She has co-created 3 interactive children’s shows that have been successfully performed around the Northwest of England. Upcoming performances – ‘Animal Fantasia’ for ‘Make Create Feel Great’ at St. Benedict’s School, Ealing on 11th April 2024 ‘There once was a bird’ and ‘HMS Syncopation’ interactive children’s shows at Manchester Jazz Festival – 18th May 2024. Helena links here Hannah Horton is a British Female Jazz Saxophonist whose music is rooted in jazz, folk and funk. She has performed with many great jazz artists including Ian Shaw, Amy Winehouse, John Etheridge, Tina May, Georgia Mancio, Polly Gibbons, Natalie Williams, Esther Bennett and Irene Serra; and at venues including Ronnie Scott’s, Pizza Express Dean St, The 606, The Pheasantry, Love Supreme Jazz Festival, Royal Festival Hall and The Barbican. She has also toured in Europe and USA with her own and other groups. Her latest album has been going down a storm across the world. “Hannah makes the big beast of a baritone sax sound like an angel” – Ian Shaw. Hannah Horton website

Welcome to the next episode of our podcast series’ The Notes Between’ with Lara Eidi. Conversations exploring everything behind and about the world of songwriting! Our theme music ‘Breathe Love’ is from Lara Eidi herself available here In this episode, Lara talks to songwriter Evie Asio Evie Asio describes her sound as “musical storytelling”, as a result of her desire to provoke emotions and narrative throughout every layer of her music. Evie grew up in South-East London, where she used the range of musical styles around her to begin writing songs at the age of 15. After graduating with a BA in Music, Evie began her music career through releasing a series of experimental projects on Soundcloud and YouTube. Evie’s Jazz-inspired debut single, ‘Beautiful Love’ [2019], was featured on the AStepFWD September 2019 chart, and led Evie to be named a 2020 One to Watch by Premier Gospel. Throughout her journey, Evie has performed at notable venues such as The Spice of Life, Proud Camden and Jazz Live @ The Crypt, as well as supporting BAYLI on her London headline show in 2022. In November 2022, Evie Asio released her debut album ‘Contending and Contention’, a 9- track concept album dealing with the themes of struggle and self-reflection that she has explored in her own personal battles. The album received critical acclaim in various publications, including Something Else! And Jazz in Europe. Songs across the album have received international radio play, with singles ‘Available’ and ‘From Here’ being named as China Moses’ ‘Late Night Track of the Week’ on Jazz FM, and ‘Turning Time’ and ‘Imperfect People’ being featured on BBC6 Music. Instagram // Website // Twitter // YouTube Athens born to Lebanese Canadian parents, Lara Eidi is an artist that thrives on being different. As an independent artist, singer and multi- instrumentalist, she has carved a path for herself that continuously aimed at reshaping and developing her voice as a storyteller. An accomplished and reputable singer-songwriter, pianist, recording artist and jazz- folk vocalist of her own accord based in London and Athens. Her music has gained her critical acclaim as a genre bending artist (BBC Artist, 2020), described as “a singer with true gift of a voice, a kind soul, and a captivating presence.” (Jazz UK). At the heart of her being as a multi-disciplinary artist, she is sought after as a composer for vocal film scores, writes as a freelance music journalist, and is in demand as a creative workshop leader. Her music seeks to elevate and heal, and as a result, she creates genre- defying songs with a great emphasis on story telling. Her latest album ‘Sun’, her long awaited debut album, is all about pulling the threads of her folk, acoustic rock and jazz-classical upbringing to her message of hope, empowerment, and freedom. As a soloist, her recent debut performance at the infamous Royal Albert Hall, singing select pieces from Greece and Lebanon form the MedievalByzantine Traditions sees Lara engaging on a series of select and innovative performances with the SAUDHA Indian Classical Music Assocation.  Lara Eidi website

Welcome to our podcast series ‘On The Bookcase’, featuring female authors from across the world, with host Fiona Ross and original music from Hannah Horton.  We were excited to find our podcasts named as one of the Top 15 Women In Media Podcasts on the web by Feedspot! Huge thank you to them! You can also find our podcasts at number 9 in the top 60 Best Jazz Podcasts in FeedSpot!  In this episode we welcome Judith Tick, to talk about her new book, Becoming Ella Fitzgerald: The Jazz Singer Who Transformed American Song Judith Tick is professor emerita of music history at Northeastern University. She has published award-winning books and articles about American music and women’s history in music, including Ruth Crawford Seeger: A Composer’s Search for American Music. She lives in Brookline, Massachusetts. In this first major biography since Fitzgerald’s death, historian Judith Tick offers a sublime portrait of this ambitious risk-taker whose exceptional musical spontaneity made her a transformational artist. Becoming Ella Fitzgerald clears up long-enduring mysteries. Archival research and in-depth family interviews shed new light on the singer’s difficult childhood in Yonkers, New York, the tragic death of her mother, and the year she spent in a girls’ reformatory school—where she sang in its renowned choir and dreamed of being a dancer. Rarely seen profiles from the Black press offer precious glimpses of Fitzgerald’s tense experiences of racial discrimination and her struggles with constricting models of Black and white femininity at midcentury. Tick’s compelling narrative depicts Fitzgerald’s complicated career in fresh and original detail, upending the traditional view that segregates vocal jazz from the genre’s mainstream. As she navigated the shifting tides between jazz and pop, she used her originality to pioneer modernist vocal jazz. Interpreting long-lost setlists, reviews from both white and Black newspapers, and newly released footage and recordings, the book explores how Ella’s transcendence as an improvisor produced onstage performances every bit as significant as her historic recorded oeuvre. From the singer’s first performance at the Apollo Theatre’s famous “Amateur Night” to the Savoy Ballroom, where Fitzgerald broke through with Chick Webb’s big band in the 1930s, Tick evokes the jazz world in riveting detail. She describes how Ella helped shape the bebop movement in the 1940s, as she joined Dizzy Gillespie and her then-husband, Ray Brown, in the world-touring Jazz at the Philharmonic, one of the first moments of high-culture acceptance for the disreputable art form. Breaking ground as a female bandleader, Fitzgerald refuted expectations of musical Blackness, deftly balancing artistic ambition and market expectations. Her legendary exploration of the Great American Songbook in the 1950s fused a Black vocal aesthetic and jazz improvisation to revolutionize the popular repertoire. This hybridity often confounded critics, yet throughout the 1970s and 1980s, Ella reached audiences around the world, electrifying concert halls, and sold millions of records. A masterful biography, Becoming Ella Fitzgerald describes a powerful woman who set a standard for American excellence nearly unmatched in the twentieth century. Available to purchase here

Welcome to the next episode of our podcast series’ The Notes Between’ with Lara Eidi. Conversations exploring everything behind and about the world of songwriting! Our theme music ‘Tide is from Lara Eidi herself available here In this episode, Lara talks to songwriter Nadine Khouri Nadine Khouri is a Beirut-born musician and songwriter currently based in Marseille. Influenced by dream-pop, film soundtracks and spoken-word, her sound has been described as a #music born of perennial outsider-status.” Discovered by legendary producer John Parish (PJ Harvey, Eels) for her singular voice, Khouri was invited to sing on his track ‘Baby’s Coming’ and subsequently recorded her debut with the producer in his hometown, Bristol. Self-released in February 2017, ‘The Salted Air’ cemented Khouri"s one-to-watch status. It was hailed by MOJO as "A thing of dark possessed beauty” in their four-star album review, celebrated by Q (Critics Choice) and selected as one of Rough Trade’s Albums of the Year. Acclaimed music photographer Steve Gullick (Nirvana, Bonnie $Prince" Billy) shot Khouri"s press photos and cover art. He also directed the video for #You Got A Fire”. Since the album’s release, Khouri has performed in some of Europe’s most prestigious venues, including Royal Festival Hall, Botanique, Paradiso, The Berlin Palace, and has shared the stage with Low, Aldous Harding, Marissa Nadler, and many more. Her follow-up album, ‘Another Life’ was released on French label Talitres on November 18th 2022. Recorded between London and Bristol with John Parish, the album extends the collaborative partnership that began with Khouri"s acclaimed debut. Fans of Khouri"s music so far will recognise her distinct and minimalistic approach to both vocals and music alike: the serene, dreamlike quality to her songs, suffused with otherworldly, beatific textures. Sonically, the album is set to a shifting sonic tapestry, taking in blues, fragile drum machine rhythms and sun-bleached 1970s Laurel Canyon rock. Though the record finds Khouri uncertain of her place in the world, her music has never felt more assured or precise. Athens born to Lebanese Canadian parents, Lara Eidi is an artist that thrives on being different. As an independent artist, singer and multi- instrumentalist, she has carved a path for herself that continuously aimed at reshaping and developing her voice as a storyteller. An accomplished and reputable singer-songwriter, pianist, recording artist and jazz- folk vocalist of her own accord based in London and Athens. Her music has gained her critical acclaim as a genre bending artist (BBC Artist, 2020), described as “a singer with true gift of a voice, a kind soul, and a captivating presence.” (Jazz UK). At the heart of her being as a multi-disciplinary artist, she is sought after as a composer for vocal film scores, writes as a freelance music journalist, and is in demand as a creative workshop leader. Her music seeks to elevate and heal, and as a result, she creates genre- defying songs with a great emphasis on story telling. Her latest album ‘Sun’, her long awaited debut album, is all about pulling the threads of her folk, acoustic rock and jazz-classical upbringing to her message of hope, empowerment, and freedom. As a soloist, her recent debut performance at the infamous Royal Albert Hall, singing select pieces from Greece and Lebanon form the MedievalByzantine Traditions sees Lara engaging on a series of select and innovative performances with the SAUDHA Indian Classical Music Association. 

Welcome to our latest episode of ‘In Conversation With’ featuring music from Hannah Horton. We were excited to find our podcast named as one of the Top 15 Women In Media Podcasts on the web by Feedspot! Huge thank you to them! To celebrate we have a new theme tune Surfing Thermals from our host, Hannah Horton. You can also find our podcasts at number 9 in the top 60 Best Jazz Podcasts in FeedSpot! In this episode, host Hannah Horton welcomes rising star Mary Sho Mary Sho, a singer and songwriter hailing from South London with a worldwide sound which transcends time and space, offering a home to lovers of authentic, live sounds. Sho’s sound drops you into the late 70’s and early 80’s with tinges of contemporary soul infused with funk origins, creating sounds similar to if Lizzo met Solange met Childish Gambino met Sly and The Family Stone with Thundercat on additional bass! Armed with live instrumentation and striking, self-directed and self styled visuals, Sho’s spacey vocals float over bass-heavy, funk-soul sounds. while highlighting the experiences of Black women and owning the power of her identity, mind, body and soul. Mary Sho has been featured on BBC London Radio multiple times and has recently performed at Brixton House (Soho Friends) ans Cafe KOKO. This year she was one of the recipients of Women in Jazz Media 2023 'Kicking Down The Door Creator Fund' and has just released her debut Album titled ‘WOMAN RISING’ in the world Mary Sho links here Hannah Horton is a British Female Jazz Saxophonist whose music is rooted in jazz, folk and funk. She has performed with many great jazz artists including Ian Shaw, Amy Winehouse, John Etheridge, Tina May, Georgia Mancio, Polly Gibbons, Natalie Williams, Esther Bennett and Irene Serra; and at venues including Ronnie Scott’s, Pizza Express Dean St, The 606, The Pheasantry, Love Supreme Jazz Festival, Royal Festival Hall and The Barbican. She has also toured in Europe and USA with her own and other groups. Her latest album has been going down a storm across the world. “Hannah makes the big beast of a baritone sax sound like an angel” – Ian Shaw. Hannah Horton website

Welcome to our podcast series ‘On The Bookcase’, featuring female authors from across the world, with host Fiona Ross and original music from Hannah Horton.  We were excited to find our podcast named as one of the Top 15 Women In Media Podcasts on the web by Feedspot! Huge thank you to them! You can also find our podcasts at number 9 in the top 60 Best Jazz Podcasts in FeedSpot!  In this episode we welcome Arlette Hovinga, to talk about her new book, How To Build Relationships in the Music Industry: A Guide for Musicians 'I’m Arlette, a freelance jazz promoter and media director from The Netherlands. Originally, I produced and programmed events in The Hague, where I lived most of my life. I’ve also toured with bands such as The Four Tops and The Temptations. In 2015, I decided to spend more time in The Netherlands than on the road and shifted my focus back to PR and marketing. Since then, I’ve worked with clients in The Netherlands, Belgium, France, Poland and Russia. When I have time, I enjoy having beers with unsuspecting jazz musicians and check out shows at my favorite local jazz bar, Dizzy in Rotterdam. Some Humble pie; I was honored to win a Netherlands Music Industry Award in January 2020, awarded at Eurosonic Noorderslag. In 2021 I joined the 7 Virtual Jazz Club competition as a juror.  I was a jazz juror for the first time in 2019, at Jazz Across Borders in Saint-Petersburg, Russia, and enjoyed it very much. I’ve also had the pleasure of being invited as a speaker at the Why DIY Music Podcast and by Gail Boyd at Alternative Venues for Jazz.' Book available to purchase here Arlette website here

Welcome to the next episode of our podcast series’ The Notes Between’ with Lara Eidi. Conversations exploring everything behind and about the world of songwriting! Our theme music ‘Tide is from Lara Eidi herself available here In this episode, Lara talks to songwriter Carmen Souza Carmen Souza was born in Lisbon within a Christian family of Cape Verdeans. Very early she experienced the “Sodade” feeling of missing someone with the long absence of her father due to his work at sea. She grew up in a mixed language environment of Creole, the Cape Verde dialect her parents spoke at home, and Portuguese, always surrounded by the Cape Verdean way of life. Theo Pascal, her producer and mentor, but also one of the greatest bass players in Portugal, discovered her talent and introduced her to the world of jazz and other contemporary music that could help it develop her register. Carmen Souza has become a true world music force and one of Europe's most in-demand jazz singers, as someone said: "Carmen Souza does not have to decide whether her music is Jazz or 'World Music'. Her style is just as unique as convincing and her Cape Capeverdean roots are as evident as her desire to create a new language under the label of 'World Jazz'. Lara Eidi: An award -winning self made artist born in Athens to Lebanese Canadian parents. Multi-instrumentalist, storyteller, singer, composer and also a freelance music journalist, workshop leader and educator…the list of Lara’s skills is long, as has been her music career. Lara discovered music at an early age with the Greek National Opera Productions. She earned a Masters in Jazz Voice Studies with distinction from the Guildhall School of Music and Drama in London and completed a Degree in English Literature at the University of St Andrews. She has performed in some of the most renowned London venues but also internationally, from her hometown of Athens to the Beirut International Festival. On stage, Lara doesn’t only sing but also plays the piano, the guitar and leads entire bands. Whilst collaborating with some of London’s acclaimed musicians across the jazz and folk scenes, she has self-released two EPs (‘Little People‘ and ‘Tell It Like It Is’) and, during the pandemic, launched and founded her own teaching platform, “Phonica Music Coaching”, through which she shares the important message of healing through music. This is also the essence of her music. All this wealth of experience converges into her album ‘Sun’, which incorporates Lara’s many talents as composer, musicians, singer and arranger, through stories of hope and empowerment. She’s collaborated with some of London’s finest musicians across the jazz and folk scenes, often switching roles between standing upstage as a versatile and engaging singer, to leading an entire band whilst sitting at the piano and singing.   Recently supported by Hawkwood College and the Francis W Reckitt Arts Trust, and about to release her biggest album to date ‘ Sun’, Finally, her passion for music as a life choice has led her to become an in-demand educator, offering workshops at leading music institutions as well as community spaces in Europe. As if that wasn’t enough she launched and founded her own teaching platform “ Phonica Music Coaching “ during the pandemic, leading music sessions across the globe to people who needed an alternative method of healing; after all, it was music that led Lara to engage time and time again, and at the heart of her creativity is a need to make her personal experiences relatable to all, through her music. Now residing between Athens and London, and a new album underway, “Sun” has already gained critical global acclaim from award winning journalists and she was just nominated for songwriter of the year by the renowned Orpheus Global Music Awards. Lara Eidi website

Welcome to our latest episode of ‘In Conversation With’ featuring music from Hannah Horton. We were excited to find our podcast named as one of the Top 15 Women In Media Podcasts on the web by Feedspot! Huge thank you to them! To celebrate we have a new theme tune Surfing Thermals from our host, Hannah Horton. You can also find our podcasts at number 9 in the top 60 Best Jazz Podcasts in FeedSpot! In this episode, host Hannah Horton welcomes the fellow Women in Jazz Media team member Germana Stella La Sorsa Italian London-based singer Germana Stella La Sorsa migrated from Puglia in 2017 and quickly established herself on the London jazz scene."Nudging boundaries as she goes” (The Slow Music Movement) and exploring “the crossroads of many musical components, including story, composition, genre and style as well as instrumentation and effect” (London Jazz News), La Sorsa released her debut album Vapour in 2021 on 33 Jazz Records. The singer melds her disparate infuences in her second studio album, Primary Colours, due for release in January 2024 (once again on 33 Jazz Records) and with the support of Help Musicians. Following the success of Vapour, Primary Colours continues to ride the contemporary/avant-garde jazz wave, further exploring the boundaries of improvisation and sound experimentation, drawing upon modern sounds and grooves, from drum’n’bass to Latin music. Both eclectic and versatile, La Sorsa has performed in the most iconic London jazz venues, such as Ronnie Scott's, The Spice of Life, Vortex Jazz Club, Toulouse Lautrec Jazz Club and Oliver's Jazz Bar."There is a sort of positive melancholy in Germana’s vocal performance, you hear a link to the tradition yet at the same time it’s fresh and forward facing." - Simone Gubbiotti, Jazz in Europe Hannah Horton is a British Female Jazz Saxophonist whose music is rooted in jazz, folk and funk. She has performed with many great jazz artists including Ian Shaw, Amy Winehouse, John Etheridge, Tina May, Georgia Mancio, Polly Gibbons, Natalie Williams, Esther Bennett and Irene Serra; and at venues including Ronnie Scott’s, Pizza Express Dean St, The 606, The Pheasantry, Love Supreme Jazz Festival, Royal Festival Hall and The Barbican. She has also toured in Europe and USA with her own and other groups. Her latest album has been going down a storm across the world. “Hannah makes the big beast of a baritone sax sound like an angel” – Ian Shaw. Hannah Horton website

Welcome to the next episode of our podcast series’ The Notes Between’ with Lara Eidi. Conversations exploring everything behind and about the world of songwriting! Our theme music ‘Tide is from Lara Eidi herself available here In this episode, Lara talks to songwriter Sarah Gillespie Sarah Gillespie is a British American singer songwriter and writer based in London. She has four albums, known for combining poetic lyrics with folk, blues and elements of jazz. Her debut collection of poetry, Queen Ithaca Blues, was published by Albion Beatnik Press. Gillespie's fourth album, Wishbones, was arranged and co-produced by Mercury nominated pianist and composer Kit Downes. Her band features Kit Downes - organ and piano, James Maddren - drums, Ruth Goller - bass, Chris Montague - guitar and special guest Laura Jurd - trumpet. Wishbones was launched at the Southbank Centre's Purcell Room on October 29, 2018. During the lockdown of 2020, Gillespie launched her Create Now Academy delivering mentoring programs and workshops for women songwriters. Gillespie composes her material on the guitar. She cites her main influences as Tom Waits, Cole Porter, Bob Dylan early blues and jazz, poets T. S. Eliot and James Tate and the 1950s Beat Poetry movement. Her style has been described as 'mixing folk, jazz and blues' with an emphasis on the lyrical content and delivery.The Guardian's jazz critic John Fordham writes "Gillespie, who joins Bob Dylan's lyrical bite and languid delivery to the forthrightness of Joni Mitchell, with a little rap-like percussiveness thrown in, is an original."Robert Shore of London's Metro points to "her Beat-like verbal collages ('Cinnamon ginseng bootleg bourbon Calvados Berlin') and beautifully controlled associative word strings, all delivered with her distinctive vocal mixture of dark romanticism and punkish attitude". Lara Eidi: An award -winning self made artist born in Athens to Lebanese Canadian parents. Multi-instrumentalist, storyteller, singer, composer and also a freelance music journalist, workshop leader and educator…the list of Lara’s skills is long, as has been her music career. Lara discovered music at an early age and started performing from the age of 11 with the Greek National Opera Productions. She earned a Masters in Jazz Voice Studies with distinction from the Guildhall School of Music and Drama in London and completed a Degree in English Literature at the University of St Andrews. She has performed in some of the most renowned London venues but also internationally, from her hometown of Athens to the Beirut International Festival. On stage, Lara doesn’t only sing but also plays the piano, the guitar and leads entire bands. Whilst collaborating with some of London’s acclaimed musicians across the jazz and folk scenes, she has self-released two EPs and, during the pandemic, launched and founded her own teaching platform, “Phonica Music Coaching”, through which she shares the important message of healing through music. This is also the essence of her music. All this wealth of experience converges into her album ‘Sun’, which incorporates Lara’s many talents as composer, musicians, singer and arranger, through stories of hope and empowerment. She’s collaborated with some of London’s finest musicians across the jazz and folk scenes, often switching roles between standing upstage as a versatile and engaging singer, to leading an entire band whilst sitting at the piano and singing.   Recently supported by Hawkwood College and the Francis W Reckitt Arts Trust. Finally, her passion for music as a life choice has led her to become an in-demand educator, offering workshops at leading music institutions as well as community spaces in Europe. Now residing between Athens and London, and a new album underway, “Sun” has already gained critical global acclaim from award winning journalists and she was just nominated for songwriter of the year by the renowned Orpheus Global Music Awards.  

Welcome to this episode of our podcast series’ The Notes Between’ with Lara Eidi. Conversations exploring everything behind and about the world of songwriting! Our theme music ‘Tide is from Lara Eidi herself available here In this episode, Lara talks to songwriter Ese Okorodudu Ese Okorodudu is founder and leader of the extended musical family that is Ese & The  Vooduu People. London-born singersongwriter Ese (vocals, guitar) is backed a floating pool of some of the UK's best musicians. She's inspired by an eclectic selection of legends from Sly & The Family Stone and Led Zeppelin to Dr John and Skunk  Anansie via David Bowie and Prince. A killer live act, with an emphasis on improvisation and virtuosity, E&TVP are signed to Quadrafon Music Industries and have released two full-length albums as well as a number of EPs and singles. A third album, entitled “Glowing” is due for release in the Autumn of 2023. Over the past couple of years they have been experimenting with adding jazz and African flavours to their already heady and eclectic musical stew. The first fruits of this have just been released on a new mini-album, Tainted Love. This will be followed by a more ‘overtly jazzy’ EP in the summer. Says Ese: "Jazz appeals to me not just because of its spirituality, expressiveness and spontaneity – it's also a very broad church with hundreds of denominations. Sun Ra is supposed to have once said ‘Jazz is what I say it is’ – I like that attitude. As a musician, I'm sometimes pigeonholed as a rocker or a soul singer but really I'm interested in crossing borders and mixing genres." Lara Eidi: An award -winning self made artist born in Athens to Lebanese Canadian parents. Multi-instrumentalist, storyteller, singer, composer and also a freelance music journalist, workshop leader and educator…the list of Lara’s skills is long, as has been her music career. Lara discovered music at an early age and started performing from the age of 11 with the Greek National Opera Productions. She earned a Masters in Jazz Voice Studies with distinction from the Guildhall School of Music and Drama in London and completed a Degree in English Literature at the University of St Andrews. She has performed in renowned London venues and internationally, from her hometown of Athens to the Beirut International Festival. On stage, Lara sings and also plays the piano, guitar and leads bands. Whilst collaborating with musicians across the jazz and folk scenes she also launched and founded her own teaching platform, “Phonica Music Coaching”, through which she shares the important message of healing through music. This is also the essence of her music. All this wealth of experience converges into her album ‘Sun’, which incorporates Lara’s many talents as composer, musicians, singer and arranger, through stories of hope and empowerment. Recently supported by Hawkwood College and the Francis W Reckitt Arts Trust, Lara’s talents and gifts saw her launching this podcast series focused on songwriting with special guests.  This came shortly after she took up freelance music journalism during the pandemic, becoming a writer for Women in Jazz Media, London Jazz News, BackseatMafia. Finally, her passion for music as a life choice has led her to become an in-demand educator, offering workshops at leading music institutions as well as community spaces in Europe. As if that wasn’t enough she launched and founded her own teaching platform “ Phonica Music Coaching “ leading music sessions across the globe to people who needed an alternative method of healing; after all, it was music that led Lara to engage time and time again, and at the heart of her creativity is a need to make her personal experiences relatable to all, through her music.

Welcome to our latest episode of ‘In Conversation With’ featuring music from Hannah Horton! You can find our podcasts at number 9 in the top 60 Best Jazz Podcasts in FeedSpot! In this episode, host Hannah Horton welcomes the Dr Catherine Tackley! Professor Catherine Tackley (née Parsonage) was appointed at the University of Liverpool in August 2016 as Head of the Department of Music, a position she held for six years. During this time, she oversaw the expansion of the Department including the development of new facilities, most notably the Tung Auditorium in the Yoko Ono Lennon Centre which opened in 2022. She was winner of Inspirational Leader of the Year at the University of Liverpool Staff Awards in 2022. She currently holds a Major Research Fellowship from the Leverhulme Trust for the project ‘The British Dance Band: Music and Musicians in the Mainstream’ and is on research leave until Autumn 2025. Catherine completed a PhD on early jazz in Britain at City University London and began her academic career at Leeds College of Music, latterly in the role of Head of the Centre for Jazz Studies UK. Catherine joined The Open University as Lecturer in Music in July 2008, was appointed Senior Lecturer in February 2011 and Professor in April 2016. Catherine was Head of the Music Department at the OU in 2014-2016, following several years as Director of Research for Music. She also served as Interim Associate Dean (Research) in the Faculty of Arts. She is now a Visiting Professor at the OU. Catherine is the supervisor of PhD students in the areas of jazz, popular and improvised musics and musical theatre, particularly focussing on history and performance practice. She welcomes enquiries from prospective doctoral students with interests in these and related areas. Hannah Horton is a British Female Jazz Saxophonist whose music is rooted in jazz, folk and funk. She has performed with many great jazz artists including Ian Shaw, Amy Winehouse, John Etheridge, Tina May, Georgia Mancio, Polly Gibbons, Natalie Williams, Esther Bennett and Irene Serra; and at venues including Ronnie Scott’s, Pizza Express Dean St, The 606, The Pheasantry, Love Supreme Jazz Festival, Royal Festival Hall and The Barbican. She has also toured in Europe and USA with her own and other groups. Her latest album has been going down a storm across the world. “Hannah makes the big beast of a baritone sax sound like an angel” – Ian Shaw. Hannah Horton website

Welcome to the fifth episode of our podcast series’ The Notes Between’ with Lara Eidi. Conversations exploring everything behind and about the world of songwriting! Our theme music ‘Tide is from Lara Eidi herself available here In this episode, Lara talks to songwriter Lara De Belder Originally from North Yorkshire, Actor, Singer & Writer Lara de Belder studied Music at the University of Leeds before training in Musical Theatre at the Royal Academy of Music in London. With a musical background spanning choral and classical music, musical theatre, jazz, blues and pop music, Lara has worked as a performer and creator in theatre, film, TV and concert and is the co-writer and creator of new British comedy musical, Bird Brigade, alongside Luka Antony Bjelis, directed by Grace Taylor (SIX) and long-listed for the Stiles and Drewe Mentorship Award 2021.  Lara's passion for an eclectic range of musical genres has influenced her as a solo artist and writer of original music fusing pop with flavours of jazz, blues, funk, soul, RnB, hip hop, folk and electronic dance styles, first launching in May 2021 with her debut Single, Turn It Over. Describing her music as 'jazzpop', Lara takes inspiration from artists such as Celeste, Jacob Collier, Melody Gardot, Jamie Cullum, Ella Fitzgerald, Erykah Badu, Lizzo, Amy Winehouse, Robyn and Jessie Ware. Her music has been featured on BBC Introducing on BBC Radio Tees with Rianne Thompson and Rachel Teate as well as other radio programmes and podcasts. This November 2023, she will be performing her first headline show as part of the London Jazz Festival in partnership with Women In Jazz Media.  Lara discovered music at an early age – playing the piano and singing – and started performing from the age of 11 with the Greek National Opera Productions. She earned a Masters in Jazz Voice Studies with distinction from the Guildhall School of Music and Drama in London and completed a Degree in English Literature at the University of St Andrews. She has performed in some of the most renowned London venues and the London Jazz Festival, Beirut International Festival, Edinburgh Fringe Festival, to name but a few and also internationally, from her hometown of Athens to the Beirut International Festival. Whilst collaborating with some of London’s acclaimed musicians across the jazz and folk scenes, she has self-released two EPs (‘Little People‘ and ‘Tell It Like It Is’) and, during the pandemic, launched and founded her own teaching platform, “Phonica Music Coaching”, through which she shares the important message of healing through music. This is also the essence of her music. All this wealth of experience converges into her album ‘Sun’, which incorporates Lara’s many talents as composer, musicians, singer and arranger, through stories of hope and empowerment. The liner notes to ‘Sun’ were written by the Award winning jazz artist, writer, Recording Academy Voting member and our very own Women In Jazz Media Chief Fiona Ross. She writes: ”Music is an omnipotent tool. It has the potential to strengthen and empower. To bring light where there is dark. To calm the mind and soothe the soul. But these almost magical moments of connectivity can only be realised if placed in the right hands. Lara Eidi. Is those hands”.’ “Lara Eidi is an artist that thrives on being different, with a voice that’s clearly a gift “( Sandy Brown Jazz) She’s collaborated with some of London’s finest musicians across the jazz and folk scenes, often switching roles between standing upstage as a versatile and engaging singer, to leading an entire band whilst sitting at the piano and singing.   Now residing between Athens and London, and a new album underway, “Sun” has already gained critical global acclaim from award winning journalists and she was just nominated for songwriter of the year by the renowned Orpheus Global Music Awards.

Welcome to the fourth episode of our podcast series’ The Notes Between’ with Lara Eidi. Conversations exploring everything behind and about the world of songwriting! Our theme music ‘Tide' is from Lara Eidi herself available here In this third episode, Lara talks to songwriter AshaineWhite. Ashaine White is a rising star in the UK music scene, already nominated for a 2022 Ivors Academy Rising Star award, she is one to watch. With a critically acclaimed project (Fairytales, 2021) under her belt, Ashaine has quickly become a sought-after artist, receiving support from some of the top radio stations in the country (BBC Radio 1 Xtra, BBC Introducing London, Soho Radio, Reprezent Radio, and Voices Radio). Her highly anticipated second project, "Ash," was released in 2023 and highlighted in Bandcamp’s New and Notable Spotify’s Fresh Finds and Soundcloud’s Fresh Pressed. Ashaine's uniquely authentic blend of genre and fearless approach to songwriting has garnered praise from music critics and fans, drawing comparisons to Frank Ocean, PJ Harvey and Jeff Buckley. A captivating voice, raw lyrics, and genre-bending soundscapes have set her apart as one of the most exciting new artists in the UK. Live performance is vital to Ashaine’s artistry,  performing at various prestigious venues, including the Roundhouse, Jazz Cafe, Camden Assembly, EFG London Jazz Festival, Ronnie Scotts, Wilderness Festival, and Love Supreme Festival. Her live performances have garnered her a loyal following and are a pillar to Ashaine’s artist brand. “Ashaine White is a fierce and formidable artist making a significant impact in the music industry. She is on a mission to break barriers within UK music, showcasing herself as a Black creator in an alternative space – and breaking them down she absolutely is, not just in the UK but across the world.” An award -winning self made artist born in Athens to Lebanese Canadian parents. Multi-instrumentalist, storyteller, singer, composer and also a freelance music journalist, workshop leader and educator…the list of Lara’s skills is long, as has been her music career. Lara discovered music at an early age – playing the piano and singing – and started performing from the age of 11 with the Greek National Opera Productions. She earned a Masters in Jazz Voice Studies with distinction from the Guildhall School of Music and Drama in London and completed a Degree in English Literature at the University of St Andrews. She has performed in some of the most renowned London venues and internationally, from her hometown of Athens to the Beirut International Festival. On stage, Lara doesn’t only sing but also plays the piano, the guitar and leads entire bands. Whilst collaborating with some of London’s acclaimed musicians across the jazz and folk scenes, she has self-released two EPs (‘Little People‘ and ‘Tell It Like It Is’) and, during the pandemic, launched and founded her own teaching platform, “Phonica Music Coaching”, through which she shares the important message of healing through music. This is also the essence of her music. All this wealth of experience converges into her album ‘Sun’, which incorporates Lara’s many talents as composer, musicians, singer and arranger, through stories of hope and empowerment. The liner notes to ‘Sun’ were written by the Award winning jazz artist, writer, Recording Academy Voting member and our very own Women In Jazz Media Chief Fiona Ross. She writes: ”Music is an omnipotent tool. It has the potential to strengthen and empower. To bring light where there is dark. To calm the mind and soothe the soul. But these almost magical moments of connectivity can only be realised if placed in the right hands. Lara Eidi. Is those hands”.’ Now residing between Athens and London, and a new album underway, “Sun” has already gained critical global acclaim from award winning journalists and she was just nominated for songwriter of the year by the renowned Orpheus Global Music Awards. Lara Eidi website

Welcome to the third episode of our podcast series’ The Notes Between’ with Lara Eidi. In this episode Lara talks to Kate Smith. Conversations exploring everything behind and about the world of songwriting! Our theme music ‘Opened Eyes’ is from Lara Eidi herself available here Once declared the “singing madame” of Beijing’s cabaret scene (Global Times), Kate Smith has travelled the globe, crossing borders and musical genres alike, continually defying labels. With experience performing professionally in classical, folk, pop rock, improvisation, musical theatre and more, Kate eventually landed in London, studying classical singing and earning her MMus in Leadership at Guildhall School of Music and Drama, where she also began developing The Embodied Voice. Since then, Kate has become an in-demand performer and maker in British vocal theatre. She is passionate about transforming our relationship to the body by creating music - and facilitating collective music-making - for voices and bodies in motion. Kate specialises in projects that bring together movement, voice, and improvisation. She is a cast member of Verity Standen’s acclaimed Undersong and Artistic Director of THAT! Ensemble. She has performed in singer-instrumentalist opera (Re:Sound Music Theatre), choral street theatre (Totally Themes), folk opera (Spitalfields Music) and more. She improvises with The Improvisers’ Choir (TIC), electro-acoustic trio AR|RA, and vocal collective, Anthropos. She is also a founding member of El Parnaso Hyspano, performing early music from Latin America.  Kate is currently working on writing a song cycle for voice and movement, Songs from the Body. Kate has taught workshops on creative music and The Embodied Voice for a range of communities and clients, working with participants in hospitals, mental-health centres, prisons, schools, conservatories and art galleries. Her clients have included BBC Creative Learning, Guildhall School of Music and Drama, The Barbican Creative Learning, CREATE, Harvard University, Whitechapel Gallery, Aldeburgh Young Musicians, Found Sound Nation, and more. She provides voice and movement consultation for dance and theatre companies, and was the director of Hackney One Voice, an inter-generational community choir.  As the founder of Curiosa, Kate has led residencies and workshops on cross-arts collaboration in China, Portugal and Malta.  Lara Eidi is an artist that thrives on being different.  Born in Athens Lebanese-Canadian parents, her entire life and career is that of a singer-songwriter , multidisciplinary artist, educator and writer. Undefined by style, Lara’s music has earned her own unique place in the music world as a storyteller, jazz and folk singer, composer and recording artist heard at venues in London including the Barbican, St Martins in the Fields, Green Note, Edinburgh Festival, Beirut International Festival to name a few. Born in Athens to Lebanese-Canadian parents, her music has gained her critical acclaim as an artist with a truly unique voice (BBC Artist, 2020- 2021), who manages to shift between musical styles and vocations owed to her diverse background as a singer ( Guildhall School of Music and Drama ); writer ( English Literature from the University of St. Andrews) and educator. Lara's passion and artistry comes from a pure and authentic drive to connect with audience members as well as students, creating a space where the healing power of music can be felt by all.  Recently supported by Hawkwood College and the Francis W Reckitt Arts Trust, Lara releaesd her new album in Spring 2023. Finally, her passion for music as a life choice has led her to become an in demand educator , offering workshops at leading music institutions as well as community spaces in Europe.  "Lara Eidi is one of those singers who connects with the audience as soon as she starts to sing. Perhaps psychologists can explain the gift – and it is a gift "Sandy Brown Jazz- London Lara Eidi website

Welcome to our podcast series ‘On The Bookcase’, featuring female authors from across the world, with host Fiona Ross and original music from Hannah Horton. You can find our podcasts at number 9 in the top 60 Best Jazz Podcasts in FeedSpot!  In this episode we welcome Stephanie Stein Crease, to talk about her new book, Rhythm Man: Chick Webb and the Beat that Changed America. Stephanie Stein Crease is a jazz historian, author, editor, and former Senior Jazz Coordinator for the Jazz Arts Program, Manhattan School of Music. Her books include Gil Evans: Out of the Cool (2002 ASCAP/Deems Taylor Award), and Duke Ellington: His Life in Jazz (2009). She was literary editor for the Grammy-awarded Duke Ellington Centennial Edition. She was a 2020 Scholar-in Residence at the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture, NYPL, and 2018 Berger-Benny Carter-Berger Research Fellow at the Institute of Jazz Studies, Rutgers University. Rhythm Man: Chick Webb and the Beat that Changed America, a biography of Chick Webb, one of the first jazz drum virtuosos, and the innovative Harlem bandleader whose music helped launch the Swing Era of the 1930s. The book paints a nuanced portrait of Webb's life, from his early years in Baltimore, to top bandleader in Harlem during the Great Depression, and on to national fame as big band swing music swept across the country. Features previously unpublished material that sheds new light on the early jazz and dance scene in Baltimore, New York and Harlem during the 1920s, the Swing Era, and Webb's interactions with his family and many noted musicians. Available to purchase here

Welcome to our latest episode of ‘In Conversation With’ featuring music from Hannah Horton! You can find our podcasts at number 9 in the top 60 Best Jazz Podcasts in FeedSpot! In this episode, host Hannah Horton welcomes the award winning J Steps! J Steps are a jazz ensemble led by Hannah Horton for female and non binary improvising musicians and this will be there first performance since winning the Parliamentary Jazz Education Award. The players are grade 6 and above and are taught jazz harmony and improvisation, playing standards and originals. J Steps have performed at EFG London Jazz Festival and Saffron Hall foyer. Hannah Horton is a British Female Jazz Saxophonist whose music is rooted in jazz, folk and funk. She has performed with many great jazz artists including Ian Shaw, Amy Winehouse, John Etheridge, Tina May, Georgia Mancio, Polly Gibbons, Natalie Williams, Esther Bennett and Irene Serra; and at venues including Ronnie Scott’s, Pizza Express Dean St, The 606, The Pheasantry, Love Supreme Jazz Festival, Royal Festival Hall and The Barbican. She has also toured in Europe and USA with her own and other groups. Her latest album has been going down a storm across the world. “Hannah makes the big beast of a baritone sax sound like an angel” – Ian Shaw. Hannah Horton website

Welcome to our latest episode of ‘In Conversation With’ featuring music from Hannah Horton! You can find our podcasts at number 9 in the top 60 Best Jazz Podcasts in FeedSpot! In this episode, host Hannah Horton welcomes Jo Harrop! Born in Durham and raised on a heady musical diet of the likes of, Nina Simone, Billie Holiday and Aretha Franklin, Jo Harrop first cut her teeth as a session singer. After moving to London, she quickly established herself as one of the most unmistakable voices in British jazz, performing everywhere from the Royal Albert Hall to sell out shows at Ronnie Scotts. Jo was nominated for two Parliamentary Jazz Awards in 2022, for vocalist and album of the year, and her songs have been playlisted on BBC Radio 2 Jo Whiley show, Jazz FM and BBC Radio 6 music. Having signed to London-based jazz label, Lateralize Records, she recently received a raft of rapturous reviews for Weathering The Storm, her debut with guitarist, Jamie McCredie, and her first original album, The Heart Wants, which hit number 13 in the US Jazz album charts. Jo Harrop website Hannah Horton is a British Female Jazz Saxophonist whose music is rooted in jazz, folk and funk. She has performed with many great jazz artists including Ian Shaw, Amy Winehouse, John Etheridge, Tina May, Georgia Mancio, Polly Gibbons, Natalie Williams, Esther Bennett and Irene Serra; and at venues including Ronnie Scott’s, Pizza Express Dean St,The 606, The Pheasantry, Love Supreme Jazz Festival, Royal Festival Hall and The Barbican. She has also toured in Europe and USA with her own and other groups. Her latest album has been going down a storm across the world. “Hannah makes the big beast of a baritone sax sound like an angel” – Ian Shaw. Hannah Horton website

Welcome to our latest episode of ‘In Conversation With’ featuring music from Hannah Horton! You can find our podcasts at number 9 in the top 60 Best Jazz Podcasts in FeedSpot! In this episode, host Hannah Horton welcomes our JAM Collective! J.A.M. STRING COLLECTIVE is an exciting new contemporary jazz string trio, playing their own re-imaginings of works by jazz heavyweights, such as Ornette Coleman, Thelonious Monk and Kenny Wheeler, alongside their own compositions. Their arrangements leave space for moments of freeness, with a heavy focus on interaction and improvisation.The trio features Annalise Lam (violin), Julia Dos Reis (viola), and Miranda Lewis-Brown (cello). Julia and Miranda met in 2015 through Gary Crosby’s (OBE) Tomorrow’s Warriors Jazz String project, String Ting, with whom they have gigged extensively across the UK and Europe. They have toured with larger Warrior ensembles such as Peter Edward’s Nu Civilisation Orchestra, and Jazz Jamaica, as well as played their own gigs - as a trio and quartet - in venues such as Ronnie Scott’s, Pizza Express Club Soho, The Purcell Room SBC. In 2019 they supported legendary saxophonist, Steve Williamson, in a UK tour. In more recent years Annalise also joined the larger collective of String Ting, first meeting Julia at a Warrior’s workshop led by jazz violinist extraordinaire, Benet McClean. Julia and Annalise struck up a relationship which continued through their Masters studies at Guildhall, where they would often meet to jam ideas, many of which have continued into J.A.M. Hannah is a British Female Jazz Saxophonist whose music is rooted in jazz, folk and funk. She has performed with many great jazz artists including Ian Shaw, Amy Winehouse, John Etheridge, Tina May, Georgia Mancio, Polly Gibbons, Natalie Williams, Esther Bennett and Irene Serra; and at venues including Ronnie Scott’s, Pizza Express Dean St, The 606, The Pheasantry, Love Supreme Jazz Festival, Royal Festival Hall and The Barbican. She has also toured in Europe and USA with her own and other groups. Her latest album has been going down a storm across the world. “Hannah makes the big beast of a baritone sax sound like an angel” – Ian Shaw https://hannahhorton.com/

Welcome to our latest episode of ‘In Conversation With’ featuring music from Hannah Horton! You can find our podcasts at number 9 in the top 60 Best Jazz Podcasts in FeedSpot! In this episode, host Hannah Horton welcomes our special guest, Betty Accorsi 'I am an Italian saxophone player, multi-instrumentalist and composer, and my home is currently in the United Kingdom. I studied classical saxophone, piano and composition at the Giuseppe Verdi Conservatoire in Milan. I was involved in projects spanning from contemporary music ensembles with composer Salvatore Sciarrino to the progressive rock band Psicosuono, which released two albums (Eta Carinae, Metropoli). In 2018, I moved to London and started an MMus in Jazz Saxophone at Trinity Laban Conservatoire with a scholarship. Trinity's academic environment included leaders in the London jazz scene such as saxophonist Jean Toussaint and composer Bruno Heinen. Searching for a more open-ended approach to artistry and composition, I moved to Goldsmiths University of London in 2019, completing my Master's degree in Performance under the guidance of Mick Foster, Paul Bartholomew and Dr Pete Furniss. I graduated with a distinction presenting a programme of electronic rearrangements of classical music for soprano saxophone and Ableton Live and a jazz quartet performance.    My main project is the Betty Accorsi Quartet. This was founded with pianist Finn Carter and drummer Scott MacDonald; they were the finest musicians in my year at Goldsmiths and very popular in the South East of London. We are joined by in-demand bassist Andy Hamill (Van Morrison, Martin Taylor, Ibrahim Maalouf). In December 2020 we released “The Cutty Sark Suite”, an album of my compositions blending Wayne Shorter, folk and punk. The Quartet was also part of 2021 Brighton Fringe Festival, playing The Cutty Sark Suite in its entirety on a live-streamed gig.  Our second album “Growing Roots” was be released on the 15th July 2022 featuring pianist Daniel Hewson (Groove Armada, Madonna, Incognito), Scott MacDonald on drums and Andy Hamill on bass. https://www.bettyaccorsi.com/ Hannah is a British Female Jazz Saxophonist whose music is rooted in jazz, folk and funk. She has performed with many great jazz artists including Ian Shaw, Amy Winehouse, John Etheridge, Tina May, Georgia Mancio, Polly Gibbons, Natalie Williams, Esther Bennett and Irene Serra; and at venues including Ronnie Scott’s, Pizza Express Dean St, The 606, The Pheasantry, Love Supreme Jazz Festival, Royal Festival Hall and The Barbican. She has also toured in Europe and USA with her own and other groups. Her latest album has been going down a storm across the world. “Hannah makes the big beast of a baritone sax sound like an angel” – Ian Shaw https://hannahhorton.com/

Welcome to our latest episode of ‘In Conversation With’ featuring music from Hannah Horton! You can find our podcasts at number 9 in the top 60 Best Jazz Podcasts in FeedSpot! In this episode, host Hannah Horton welcomes our special guest, Lara Eidi Lara Eidi is an artist that thrives on being different.  Born in Athens Lebanese- Canadian parents, her entire life and career is that of a  singer- songwriter , multidisciplinary artist, educator and writer. Undefined by style, Lara’s music has earned her own unique place in the music world as a storyteller, jazz and folk singer, composer and recording artist heard at venues in London including the Barbican, St Martins in the Fields, Green Note, Edinburgh Festival, Beirut International Festival to name a few. Born in Athens  to Lebanese-Canadian parents, her music has gained her critical acclaim as an artist with a truly unique voice (BBC Artist, 2020- 2021), who manages to shift between musical styles and vocations owed to her diverse background as a singer ( Guildhall School of Music and Drama ) ; writer ( English Literature from the University of St. Andrews) and educator. Lara's passion and artistry comes from a pure and authentic drive to connect with audience members as well as students, creating a space where the healing power of music can be felt by all.  Recently supported by Hawkwood College and the Francis W Reckitt Arts Trust, Lara is set to record her new album in Spring 2023, and has just launched her very first podcast on songwriting ' The Notes Between' with Women in Jazz Media.  Finally, her passion for music as a life choice has led her to become an in demand educator , offering workshops at leading music institutions as well as community spaces in Europe. "Lara Eidi is one of those singers who connects with the audience as soon as she starts to sing. Perhaps psychologists can explain the gift – and it is a gift "Sandy Brown Jazz- London Lara Eidi website Hannah Horton is a British Female Jazz Saxophonist whose music is rooted in jazz, folk and funk. She has performed with many great jazz artists including Ian Shaw, Amy Winehouse, John Etheridge, Tina May, Georgia Mancio, Polly Gibbons, Natalie Williams, Esther Bennett and Irene Serra; and at venues including Ronnie Scott’s, Pizza Express Dean St, The 606, The Pheasantry, Love Supreme Jazz Festival, Royal Festival Hall and The Barbican. She has also toured in Europe and USA with her own and other groups. Her latest album has been going down a storm across the world. “Hannah makes the big beast of a baritone sax sound like an angel” – Ian Shaw Hannah Horton Website

Welcome to the second episode of our brand-new podcast series’ The Notes Between’ with Lara Eidi. Conversations exploring everything behind and about the world of songwriting! Our theme music ‘Opened Eyes’ is from Lara Eidi herself available here . In this second episode, Lara talks to songwriter Daisy Chute.  Daisy Chute is a London-based folk singer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist originally from Edinburgh, Scotland.Following the release of acclaimed EPs Songs of Solace (2021) and Cradle Songs (2022), Daisy is set to release her next EP Maiden, Mother, Crone in Spring 2023 and an album later this year. Headline touring in 2022 included arts venues Kings Place (London) The Met (Bury) Voodoo Rooms (Edinburgh) and festivals including Bristol Folk, Cambridge Folk and Glastonbury; in 2023 Daisy co-headlines a tour with Flo Perlin/Fern Maddie. 2022 artist residencies included Sage Gateshead Summer Studios and Chris Difford songwriting retreat. Her Arts Council funded musical about Pendle witch trials COVEN had its first workshop with Kindred Partners. Daisy’s music features across local/national BBC radio/TV and globally across 900 Caffe Nero playlists. Recent awards include FATEA EP of 2022 for Songs of Solace, Take the Stage (Lowden Guitar) RootsTech (Kawai pianos), Coffee Music Project, International Songwriting Award and Drake Yolanda. Daisy Chute website Lara Eidi is an artist that thrives on being different.  Born in Athens Lebanese-Canadian parents, her entire life and career is that of a singer- songwriter, multidisciplinary artist, educator and writer. Undefined by style, Lara’s music has earned her own unique place in the music world as a storyteller, jazz and folk singer, composer and recording artist heard at venues in London including the Barbican, St Martins in the Fields, Green Note, Edinburgh Festival, Beirut International Festival to name a few. Born in Athens  to Lebanese-Canadian parents, her music has gained her critical acclaim as an artist with a truly unique voice (BBC Artist, 2020- 2021), who manages to shift between musical styles and vocations owed to her diverse background as a singer ( Guildhall School of Music and Drama ); writer ( English Literature from the University of St. Andrews) and educator. Lara's passion and artistry comes from a pure and authentic drive to connect with audience members as well as students, creating a space where the healing power of music can be felt by all. Recently supported by Hawkwood College and the Francis W Reckitt Arts Trust, Lara is set to record her new album in Spring 2023, and has just launched her very first podcast on songwriting ' The Notes Between' with Women in Jazz Media.  Finally, her passion for music as a life choice has led her to become an in demand educator, offering workshops at leading music institutions as well as community spaces in Europe. "Lara Eidi is one of those singers who connects with the audience as soon as she starts to sing. Perhaps psychologists can explain the gift – and it is a gift "Sandy Brown Jazz- London Lara Eidi website

Welcome to our latest episode of ‘In Conversation With’ featuring music from Hannah Horton! You can find our podcasts at number 9 in the top 60 Best Jazz Podcasts in FeedSpot!In this episode, host Hannah Horton welcomes our special guest, Romarna Campbell! Romarna’s musical storytelling begins with the drums. The nomadic spirit of this exciting drummer, producer and composer lives in her jazz and hip hop-infused music. Her irrepressible energy can be heard on Inherently Political, a super-charged sonic assault on racism that immediately won favour with Anne Frankenstein, Jazz FM’s Tony Minvielle and had her crowned by Jamz Supernova as New Name of the Week. Her independently released kaleidoscopic debut 25 Songs For My 25th Birthdayfeatures Soweto Kinch, Tomeka Reid, Sumi Tonooka and Lady Sanity and takes us deeper into her world of resonant frequencies and conscious vibrations. Having honed her craft with Berklee College of Music, Tomorrow's Warriors and the Notebenders, Romarna stands on the shoulders of giants and is drawing inspiration from the view as she beats a path forward that is very much her own. Hannah is a British Female Jazz Saxophonist whose music is rooted in jazz, folk and funk. She has performed with many great jazz artists including Ian Shaw, Amy Winehouse, John Etheridge, Tina May, Georgia Mancio, Polly Gibbons, Natalie Williams, Esther Bennett and Irene Serra; and at venues including Ronnie Scott’s, Pizza Express Dean St, The 606, The Pheasantry, Love Supreme Jazz Festival, Royal Festival Hall and The Barbican. She has also toured in Europe and USA with her own and other groups. Her latest album has been going down a storm across the world. “Hannah makes the big beast of a baritone sax sound like an angel” – Ian Shaw

Welcome to the second episode of our new drummer focused series ‘Sticks and Thrones’ with host Migdalia Van Der Hoven, with our guest Abbie Finn. Our podcasts are available on all platforms and are currently at number 9 in the top 60 best Jazz podcast on FeedSpot featuring original music from Migdalia Van Der Hoven available here Migdalia van der Hoven is an International Award winning Mexican drummer currently touring with SIX the Musical across the UK. She is also a Vater Drumsticks, Bosphorus Cymbals and RTOM Corporation artist and a Berklee College of Music graduate (where she studied and performed with Jackie Santos, Terri Lynn Carrington, Victor Mendoza and Mark Walker). She is known for her groove, sensitivity and versatility across multiple genres such as funk, jazz, fusion, latin jazz, pop and world music. She became the first Mexican Female drummer to ever perform at Ronnie Scott’s and the EFG London Jazz Festival. Migdalia has become “Woman of the year 2022” in Mexico in arts and culture for her contribution in music nationally and internationally. Abbie Finn is a musician from the North-East of England, currently based in Brandon, County Durham, who has over 16 years performance experience. Abbie studied Jazz drums under Sebastiaan De Krom at Leeds College of Music, gaining a 1st Class Degree with honours. She then received a Master’s degree from Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music and Dance in London, studying with Gene Calderazzo and Asaf Sirkis. In 2018 she was given the opportunity to play Percussion with the WOW (Women of the World) Orchestra at the Royal Festival Hall in London as part of a festival of women. Abbie was a dep for the National Youth Jazz Orchestra and also played with the NYJO Academy big band, The Trinity Composer's Big Band, Kinesis: A Drum and Sax duo with Harry Keeble, The NYJO Quintet, The Jazztones, Paul Edis Trio, Durham Alumni Big Band, Strictly Smokin' Big band and more. She has had the pleasure of working with artists such as: NYJO (National Youth Jazz Orchestra), Simon Spillett, Paul Edis, Andrea Vicari, Derek Nash, Oli Hayhurst, Dean Stockdale, Sue Ferris, Graham Hardy, Paul Grainger, Andy Champion, Zoe Gilby, Mark Williams, Harry Keeble, Michael Lamb, Alice Grace, Ruth Lambert, Bradley Johnson, The Strictly Smokin’ Big Band, NYJO Ambassadors, NYJO academy big band, Musicians unlimited big band, Durham Alumni big band, Customs House big band, Ray Beckett and more. Abbie’s current main projects are the Abbie Finn Trio with Harry Keeble on tenor saxophone and Paul Grainger on double bass and the Finntet - a hardbop band featuring Graham Hardy, Harry Keeble, Dean Stockdale and Paul Grainger. She also frequently performs with the Harry Keeble Quartet, the Dean Stockdale Trio and many more. “Exceptional British Jazz from drummer Abbie Finn” - Chris Philips - Jazz FM.

Welcome to our latest episode of ‘In Conversation With’ featuring music from Hannah Horton! You can find our podcasts at number 9 in the top 60 Best Jazz Podcasts in FeedSpot! In this episode, host Hannah Horton welcomes our special guest, Faye Patton. Faye is a singer-songwriter, pianist and classically trained guitarist - she writes original songs in jazz idiom which combine jazz, funk, pop, folk, gospel and blues influences with a classic sound that recalls the great Jazz divas of the past. Her vocals, (with a register that stretches to heights, depths and lengths that make audiences gasp) have been compared to Judy Garland and Joni Mitchell. Her prodigious piano playing has been compared to Ray Charles and Horace Silver. A powerful lyricist and prodigious producer of 5 independent releases, her songs contain an inspirational LGBT flavour rarely seen on the jazz scene. She is currently the resident in house musician at art deco cocktail jazz venue Bermondsey Arts Club. Faye has gigged regularly in and around the London over the last 20 years. Venues include: Soho Theatre Piano Bar, Ray's Jazz, Upstairs at Ronnie Scott's, Stratford Theatre Royal, Upstairs at The Ritzy Cinema, The Vortex, The Green Note, The Pheasantry, Karamel Klub, Toulouse Lautrec, Caffe Concerto, E15 Jazz Sessions, Soderberg Soho, Bermondsey Arts Club. Festivals include: Isle of Wight International Jazz Divas, Derry Jazz Festival, Jazznacht Donaueshingen in Germany, Hackney Spice Festival. Faye has been featured as a guest blogger in London Jazz News and has had radio play on BBC Radio Foyle, Radio Jazz Caribe, (Venezuela) Resonance, Real Music FM, and London Jazz Radio and is featured in international jazz blogs and podcasts. https://fayepatton.com/home/ Hannah is a British Female Jazz Saxophonist whose music is rooted in jazz, folk and funk. She has performed with many great jazz artists including Ian Shaw, Amy Winehouse, John Etheridge, Tina May, Georgia Mancio, Polly Gibbons, Natalie Williams, Esther Bennett and Irene Serra; and at venues including Ronnie Scott’s, Pizza Express Dean St, The 606, The Pheasantry, Love Supreme Jazz Festival, Royal Festival Hall and The Barbican. She has also toured in Europe and USA with her own and other groups. Her latest album has been going down a storm across the world. “Hannah makes the big beast of a baritone sax sound like an angel” – Ian Shaw https://hannahhorton.com/

Special EFG London Jazz Festival 2022 Podcast: It was once again the time of year when jazz lovers and observers everywhere enjoy the excitement of the EFG London Jazz Festival. This November, we put on a wide range of events and workshops that aimed to both inspire and represent everyone in jazz, as well as shine a light on all the work done by women working in the Jazz industry, both in front and behind the scenes. Working at two venues - Jazz Cafe Posk and Toulouse Lautrec, and supported by Jazz Views as part of the ‘Women Who Inspire’ series, Isabel Marquez was our roving reporter throughout the festival. Our full line up and further information can be found through this link

In May 2022 to coincide with the Mental Health Foundation’s ‘Mental Health Awareness Week’, Women in Jazz Media published an article written by our Mental Health and Wellbeing group members Diana Torti and Fiona Mactaggart, discussing WiJM’s aim to support mental health and wellbeing amongst the Jazz community and also to support a wide-ranging discourse about the particular challenges of working in a creative industry such as Jazz. Often this can include an experience of feeling isolated and “the only one” with our own particular mental health issues. As part of our next steps we would like to share a podcast interview by WiJM’s Fiona Mactaggart. Fiona, a Jazz journalist and retired psychiatrist speaks with Jazz singer and songwriter Sophie Bancroft, who shares some of the challenges she has faced as a busy, gigging, peri-menopausal Jazz musician. Heralding from one of Britain’s top jazz families, with brothers Tom and Phil Bancroft, Sophie’s early part of her career saw her performing jazz vocals around Britain and Europe at major jazz festivals and clubs, and on regular broadcasts for the BBC.  She has gone on to have a highly successful career as a singer-songwriter with a unique blend of jazz and folk influences. https://www.sophiebancroft.co.uk/

Welcome to our latest episode of ‘In Conversation With’ featuring music from Hannah Horton! You can find our podcasts in the top 60 Best Jazz Podcasts in FeedSpot! In this episode, host Hannah Horton welcomes our special guest, Migdalia Van Der Hoven Migdalia van der Hoven is an award-winning Mexican drummer known for her groove, sensitivity and versatility across multiple genres such as funk, jazz, latin and pop. Having just recorded a new album 'Point of Departure' live at Abbey Road Studios we are excited to chat to her before her debut performance at Jazz Café Posk this week. Migdalia became the first Mexican Female drummer to ever perform at Ronnie Scott’s and the EFG London Jazz Festival and recently was honoured as “Woman of the year 2022” in Mexico in arts and culture for her contribution in music nationally and internationally. Currently touring with SIX the Musical across the UK, Migdalia is also a Vater Drumsticks, Bosphorus Cymbals and RTOM Corporation artist. She is a Berklee College of Music graduate (where she studied and performed with Jackie Santos, Terri Lynn Carrington, Victor Mendoza and Mark Walker). Migdalia has performed in the UK with Scott Stroman, Adam Glasser, Russell Brand, Paul Enger (Caffe Nero), The All Souls Orchestra, Women in Jazz and on the BBC/ITV. She was part of the Beantown Jazz Festival in the USA and is currently a member of the National Jazz Orchestra of Mexico where she performs and also supports young women through scholarships to continue their studies in jazz. She also offers masterclasses internationally and is one of the UK judges for Hit like a Girl Contest 2022, which is the biggest female drum/beats contest worldwide. Together with her latest project "The Migdalia van der Hoven Quartet", she launched her new EP "Girl Facing South" with a series of dates in and around London including the EFG London Jazz Festival 2021, Ronnie Scott’s Jazz Club, Toulouse Lautrec, Pizza Express Live and more. The EP comprises a mix of original and West Coast fusion tracks and has received positive reviews from Grammy Award winning artists. Hannah is a British Female Jazz Saxophonist whose music is rooted in jazz, folk and funk. She has performed with many great jazz artists including Ian Shaw, Amy Winehouse, John Etheridge, Tina May, Georgia Mancio, Polly Gibbons, Natalie Williams, Esther Bennett and Irene Serra; and at venues including Ronnie Scott’s, Pizza Express Dean St, The 606, The Pheasantry, Love Supreme Jazz Festival, Royal Festival Hall and The Barbican. She has also toured in Europe and USA with her own and other groups. Her latest album has been going down a storm across the world. “Hannah makes the big beast of a baritone sax sound like an angel” – Ian Shaw

Welcome to the very first episode of our brand-new podcast series’ The Notes Between’ with Lara Eidi. Conversations exploring everything behind and about the world of songwriting! Our gorgeous theme music ‘Opened Eyes’ is from Lara Eidi herself available here In this first episode, Lara talks to songwriter Liv Monaghan. Liv Monaghan is a vocalist and songwriter based in Paris. Producer and story-teller with two studio albums of compositions released between 2016 and 2018 and another on the way. ‘My music pulls threads from Jazz, Soul, Rock, and Romanticism to create an alternative, sometimes experimental, often poetic and always original sound’. Lover of the left-behind, of old things of letter-notes and half-light ghosts which get stitched, strung or typed back up together to make something new. Liv Monaghan website Lara Eidi is an artist that thrives on being different.  Born in Athens Lebanese- Canadian parents, her entire life and career is that of a  singer-songwriter , multidisciplinary artist, educator and writer. Undefined by style, Lara’s music has earned her own unique place in the music world as a storyteller, jazz and folk singer, composer and recording artist heard at venues in London including the Barbican, St Martins in the Fields, Green Note, Edinburgh Festival, Beirut International Festival to name a few. Born in Athens to Lebanese-Canadian parents, her music has gained her critical acclaim as an artist with a truly unique voice (BBC Artist, 2020- 2021), who manages to shift between musical styles and vocations owed to her diverse background as a singer ( Guildhall School of Music and Drama ) ; writer ( English Literature from the University of St. Andrews) and educator. Lara's passion and artistry comes from a pure and authentic drive to connect with audience members as well as students, creating a space where the healing power of music can be felt by all.  Recently supported by Hawkwood College and the Francis W Reckitt Arts Trust, Lara is set to record her new album in Spring 2023, and has just launched her very first podcast on songwriting 'The Notes Between' with Women in Jazz Media.  Finally, her passion for music as a life choice has led her to become an in demand educator, offering workshops at leading music institutions as well as community spaces in Europe. "Lara Eidi is one of those singers who connects with the audience as soon as she starts to sing. Perhaps psychologists can explain the gift – and it is a gift "Sandy Brown Jazz- London Lara Eidi website

Welcome to our latest episode of ‘In Conversation With’ featuring music from Hannah Horton! You can now find our podcasts in the top 60 Best Jazz Podcasts in FeedSpot! In this episode, host Hannah Horton welcomes our special guest, Esther Bennett. Esther Bennett is one of the jazz scene’s most respected and widely loved vocalists, juxtaposing sensitivity with a sparky sense of humour; her song delivery leaving audiences utterly compelled. Her innate sense of musicality, gleaned from her earlier years of saxophone playing and study of the jazz idiom, inform a voice that has individuality, originality and flair Esther’s debut album Just in Time was produced by multi award winning singer Ian Shaw and launched at London’s 606 Club in 2005. Since then, she has carved out a prestigious career as a jazz singer performing extensively in major venues in and around London across the country and in Europe, accompanied by some the UK’s leading jazz musicians.Her repertoire chooses original material, highly individual interpretations of jazz standards & popular songs and from the Duncan Lamont Songbook.“Esther is a rare breed of performer who truly commits herself to expressing the lyrics of a song and bringing them to life in a new and innovative way” – Sound Generation Hannah Horton is a British Female Jazz Saxophonist whose music is rooted in jazz, folk and funk. She has performed with many great jazz artists including Ian Shaw, Amy Winehouse, John Etheridge, Tina May, Georgia Mancio, Polly Gibbons, Natalie Williams, Esther Bennett and Irene Serra; and at venues including Ronnie Scott’s, Pizza Express Dean St, The 606, The Pheasantry, Love Supreme Jazz Festival, Royal Festival Hall and The Barbican. She has also toured in Europe and USA with her own and other groups. Her latest album has been going down a storm across the world. “Hannah makes the big beast of a baritone sax sound like an angel” – Ian Shaw

Welcome to the eight episode in our podcast series ‘On The Bookcase’, featuring female authors from across the world, with host Fiona Ross, with original music from Hannah Horton. In this episode we welcome Paulette Jackson. You can find our podcasts at number 12 in the top 60 Best Jazz Podcasts in FeedSpot! Paulette Jackson, Founder/CEO of SCORP Radio Network and Jazz Zone Radio, host of "The Classic Soul Music Café", “The Jazz Zone” and Center Stage” Internet Radio Shows, Voiceover Artist (my company, Ms. Music’s Voice). Published author of the newest release, “My Test(Imony)”, "The Music In Me" and “The Music Through the Storm”, her current published books were accepted for consideration for the 2020 Author Academy Awards. Recently, Paulette has started working with several artists on promotions and show bookings. Also, creating several video series and other creative projects including SCORP Lady Ventures . Paulette has been featured in four magazine publications and is currently working on a monthly editorial as well as being a contributing editor for an online magazine publication and contributing writer for a music based magazine. Paulette is a proud member of ASCAP (American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers) member as a songwriter and music publishing. ‘I attended and graduated from the Cleveland School of the Arts as a Dance and Vocal Music Major, 1983-1987 and attended Master Voiceover Classes at Such A Voice, based in Burlington, VT. My love has always been music and entertainment and worked in many areas of the business. I continue to work on various artistic and creative ventures and will release two more books in the coming new year. I have two adult daughters, Paris 33 and Brooke 32 also have a love of music and dance’ linktr.ee/MsMusic1

Welcome to the seventh episode in our podcast series ‘On The Bookcase’, featuring female authors from across the world, with host Fiona Ross, with original music from Hannah Horton. In this episode we welcome Dr Joan Cartwright Born in Queens, NY, Dr Joan Cartwright is a poet, musician, composer, author, and historian. In addition to CDs, Cartwright is the author of 11 books including GaiaMind Poems, and the Joan Cartwright Song Book submitted to the Guinness Book of Records for designation as the "First woman in the world with a jazz and blues songbook." Her essays, articles, and interviews have been published locally and internationally online, in magazines, journals, anthologies, and newspapers. In 2007, Joan founded Women in Jazz South Florida, Inc. to promote women musicians, globally. She is a Doctor of Business Administration/Marketing and a Professor of Speech Communications She conducted workshops at United Cerebral Palsy facilities, Broward Schools and Libraries in South Florida. In New York, she presented Amazing Musicwomen at York College and Langston Hughes Library and was a guest of the International Women in Jazz Festival in 2008. In 2010, she performed in Kingston, Jamaica, for the U.S. Embassy at Blues on the Green. In 2013, her Amazing Musicwomen Ensemble performed at the Sunrise Civic Center and Biennes Center for the Arts in Fort Lauderdale. In 2014, she performed and presented a workshop for the Grand Bahama Performing Arts Society in Freeport, Grand Bahamas. Also, in 2014, Joan’s quartet was featured at Jazz on 4, on the Allure of the Seas of Royal Caribbean Cruises. Joan is an ASCAP publisher and songwriter, and a member of Women in Music, in New York. Her organization WIJSF is an International Honor Committee member of Fondazione Adkins Chiti: Donne in Musica in Rome, Italy, and Women in Music Serbia. . During her 40-year career, Joan performed with Jazz giants Lou Donaldson, Dr. Lonnie Smith, Freddie Hubbard, Dorothy Donegan, Philly Joe Jones, Shirley Scott, Trudy Pitts, Carline Ray, Paula Hampton, Bertha Hope, Kim Clarke, Giovanni Mazzarino, and hundreds of musicians in the U.S., Caribbean, Europe, and Asia! Joan Cartwright website Women in Jazz South Florida website

Welcome to our latest episode of ‘In Conversation With’ featuring music from Hannah Horton! You can now find our podcasts in the top 60 Best Jazz Podcasts in FeedSpot! In this episode, host Hannah Horton welcomes our special guest, bassist, composer and vocalist Amy Gadiaga. Recently signed by Jazz Re:Freshed, Amy bridges the old school jazz tradition of musicians such as Betty Carter and Wayne Shorter with the modern bops of artists such as D'Angelo and Kimbra. Amy's band offers an energetic performance that celebrates art, freedom and black pride. Having already performed at the EFG London Jazz Festival, the Jazz Cafe and several festivals last year, Amy is currently working on her debut EP. Over almost three decades, Tomorrow’s Warriors has proved a crucial development platform for many of the artists now tearing up the international jazz scene – Moses Boyd, Nubya Garcia, Cassie Kinoshi and Nérija, Femi Koleoso and Ezra Collective, Binker Golding, Shabaka Hutchings and Sons Of Kemet, Cherise Adams-Burnett, Eska, Denys Baptiste, Soweto Kinch, Zara McFarlane, and so many more…An alumni of the Tomorrow's Warriors umbrella, Amy is now flying solo and has no limits in terms of genres and disciplines practiced and experimented with.  ‘Amy Gadiaga’s star is indeed rising and shining brightly. ’ Jazz in Europe linktr.ee/amygadiaga Hannah is a British Female Jazz Saxophonist whose music is rooted in jazz, folk and funk. She has performed with many great jazz artists including Ian Shaw, Amy Winehouse, John Etheridge, Tina May, Georgia Mancio, Polly Gibbons, Natalie Williams, Esther Bennett and Irene Serra; and at venues including Ronnie Scott’s, Pizza Express Dean St, The 606, The Pheasantry, Love Supreme Jazz Festival, Royal Festival Hall and The Barbican. She has also toured in Europe and USA with her own and other groups. Her latest album has been going down a storm across the world. “Hannah makes the big beast of a baritone sax sound like an angel” – Ian Shaw https://hannahhorton.com/

Welcome to our latest episode of ‘In Conversation With’ featuring music from Hannah Horton! You can now find our podcasts in the top 60 Best Jazz Podcasts in FeedSpot! Click here In this episode, host Hannah Horton welcomes our special guest, award winning British singer, songwriter, piano player, producer and guitarist Julia Biel. An award-winning original - singer, songwriter, piano player, producer and guitarist - whose neo mellow sound combines her jazz approach with art-pop sensibilities, Julia Biel’s unhurried, unmistakable and timeless voice drips with emotion with every syllable. Dubbed ‘fiercely gentle’ (Jazzwise) early on in her career, she continues to sooth and stir the listener in equal measure whether accompanying herself on her acoustic, stripped back piano versions in her current ‘Black and White’ series or singing over fuller studio productions. Critically acclaimed solo albums featuring her self-penned songs, ‘Black and White, Vol.1’ (2020), ‘Julia Biel’ (2018), ‘Love Letters and Other Missiles’ (2015) and ‘Not Alone’ (2005), as well as MOBO and Urban Music Award nominations have launched the British artist onto the worldwide stage whilst collaborations with the likes of Ben Watt (Everything But the Girl), Stimming, Polar Bear and Soothsayers have given added momentum to her word of mouth success. In 2019 her music reached the ears of Bob Dylan who hand-picked her to open for him at his concert in Schloßplatz, Stuttgart as part of the Jazzopen Festival. Her trademark warm and textured voice draws on the spirituality of gospel music, the joie-de-vivre of soul, the sorrow of the blues and the freedom of jazz, whilst poetic lyrics reveal a sharp perspective on life and love against a magical backdrop of contemporary musical soundscapes to lose yourself in. The sound of an intense inner musicality paired with a defiant passion and a burning and individualistic creative spirit, these are the qualities that have seen Julia Biel compared time and again to some of music’s most celebrated voices ranging from Joni Mitchell, Nina Simone and Billie Holiday to Björk, Radiohead, Amy Winehouse and Chet Baker. “There’s so much strength that shines through their vulnerabilities”, says Julia of these comparisons. “They inspire me to be fearless in mood and melody - that’s what I’m striving for.” https://www.juliabiel.com/ Hannah is a British Female Jazz Saxophonist whose music is rooted in jazz, folk and funk. She has performed with many great jazz artists including Ian Shaw, Amy Winehouse, John Etheridge, Tina May, Georgia Mancio, Polly Gibbons, Natalie Williams, Esther Bennett and Irene Serra; and at venues including Ronnie Scott’s, Pizza Express Dean St, The 606, The Pheasantry, Love Supreme Jazz Festival, Royal Festival Hall and The Barbican. She has also toured in Europe and USA with her own and other groups. Her latest album has been going down a storm across the world. “Hannah makes the big beast of a baritone sax sound like an angel” – Ian Shaw https://hannahhorton.com/

For this sixth episode in our podcast series ‘On The Bookcase’, featuring female authors from across the world, with host Fiona Ross, we welcome guest Tish Oney. We have original music from Hannah Horton and you can now find our podcasts in the top 60 Best Jazz Podcasts in FeedSpot! International performing artist, author, and composer Dr. Tish Oney tours worldwide as a symphony pops and big band soloist, jazz vocalist, voice pedagogue, and musicologist. An avid arranger and composer, Oney has arranged several hundred pieces for jazz combo including contemporary jazz, Great American Songbook standards, and her originals. An esteemed conductor, she often works with professional, university, church or community choirs, vocal jazz ensembles, and solo singers as a guest clinician and master teacher. Oney has performed and/or recorded with scores of renowned jazz artists and has headlined at hundreds of performance venues worldwide. She was featured as a big band/symphony soloist in the PBS-broadcast concert recorded at Galen Center in Los Angeles: “We Love Ella! A Tribute to the First Lady of Song.” She has performed as soloist with Detroit Symphony Orchestra, Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra, Williamsburg Symphony, Spartanburg Philharmonic Orchestra, Symphoria, the U.S. Army Jazz Ambassadors, Army Voices, Army Blues (Pershing’s Own), SC Bach, Greenville Chorale, and other outstanding ensembles. She has headlined at international jazz festivals, Las Vegas casinos, and major stages throughout the world. She has appeared as headlining performer at many jazz hotspots including The Jazz Bakery (Los Angeles), The Jazz Corner (Hilton Head Island), Feinstein’s at Loews Regency, and the off-Broadway Triad Theatre (New York). An experienced film, stage, and television actress, Oney imbues her live performances with dramatic power and warmth. In addition to her full performing and recording career, Dr. Oney has served as a professor of music at several major universities and colleges, most recently as Coordinator of Music, Director of Jazz Studies and Commercial Music, Director of Voice, and Director of Choral Activities. Several of her former voice students have enjoyed major careers on Broadway, as well as in opera, jazz and commercial music. Considered an expert in multi-genre singing, Dr. Oney has served the National Association of Teachers of Singing as a workshop presenter and master teacher of jazz, classical, opera, music theatre, and commercial styles. She teaches online voice lessons for professional and pre-professional singers throughout the United States and abroad. As critically acclaimed musicologist and bestselling author of Peggy Lee: A Century of Song, Tish enjoys opportunities to travel and share her knowledge as part of the official Peggy Lee 100 worldwide centennial campaign. She was honored to be invited as musicologist/artist to the Grammy Museum panel discussion and toast for Lee’s 100th birthday (May 26, 2020). Following the worldwide acclaim for her book, Tish has been a guest on international talk shows “q with Tom Power” broadcast on the CBC, NPR, PRI, and Sirius XM networks, as well as “The Daily with Dave Hodgson” on Talk Radio Europe (broadcast to 120 countries). She is a frequent guest on talk radio, podcasts, and television, and has hosted her own podcast, “The Singer’s Muse” on WGJC in Greenville. Oney’s second book, Jazz Singing: A Guide to Pedagogy and Performance, released in February 2022. A prolific jazz journalist and contributing author to The Journal of Singing, JazzTimes, and Classical Singer Magazine, Oney also writes a column titled “Anatomy of a Standard” for All About Jazz. Her diverse artistic talents combine to form an outstanding performing artist-pedagogue with exceptional technique, improvisational skill, and expertise. https://tishoney.com/

Welcome to our 13th episode of ‘In Conversation With’ hosted by Hannah Horton. You can now find our podcasts in the top 60 Best Jazz Podcasts in FeedSpot! In this episode, host Hannah Horton welcomes our special guest British singer-songwriter, actor, podcast host and all-round artist extraordinaire Collette Cooper. Music by Hannah Horton too! Collette Cooper is a critically acclaimed artist signed to the independent label Thelonious Punk Records championed by BBC Introducing, BBC Radio 2, BBC Radio 6 Music, Soho Radio and Jazz FM. Her influences go back as far as Bessie Smith, Sister Rosetta Tharpe, Nina Simone, Kurt Weill, and Billie Holiday. Collette is difficult to fit into any box – she has a unique sound of her own. Her music is eclectic with dramatic, dark, and sometimes theatrical tones, with a strong blues and jazz influence. Her truly unique style and visually captivating performance leave audiences enchanted and wanting more with her raspy, hauntingly unique vocals. Her vocal style is often described as ‘Janis Joplin channeling Edith Piaf with a sprinkling of Esther Phillips’. Her original work is timeless yet fresh, and her versions of covers are unlike anything else you’ve ever heard, she completely makes them her own. Collette plays at all major venues in and around London with sold-out performances at the Jazz Café, the Blues Kitchen, The 100 Club, The Roundhouse, The Piano Bar Soho, amongst others. Alongside her musical and acting career, Collette is also an activist. She currently has a piece of her artwork in The Now Exhibition curated By Leah Wood. An exhibition bringing awareness to the current climate and helping raise money for Drop4Drop charity. Collette has performed for Samuel l Jackson’s charity One For The Boys at Abbey Road Studios recently performed for Vivienne Westwood’s Cool Earth charity in an effort to save the planet and is an ambassador for the Nordoff Robbins Music Therapy Charity. She recently performed a gala night in their honor at the Grosvenor House Hotel alongside KT Tunstall and Texas. Collette is also a proud ambassador for the Wild at Heart Foundation, a London-based dog rescue charity. https://www.collettecooper.com/ Hannah is a British Female Jazz Saxophonist whose music is rooted in jazz, folk and funk. She has performed with many great jazz artists including Ian Shaw, Amy Winehouse, John Etheridge, Tina May, Georgia Mancio, Polly Gibbons, Natalie Williams, Esther Bennett and Irene Serra; and at venues including Ronnie Scott’s, Pizza Express Dean St, The 606, The Pheasantry, Love Supreme Jazz Festival, Royal Festival Hall and The Barbican. She has also toured in Europe and USA with her own and other groups. Her latest album has been going down a storm across the world. “Hannah makes the big beast of a baritone sax sound like an angel” – Ian Shaw https://hannahhorton.com/

Excited to launch the first episode of our new drummer focussed series ‘Sticks and Thrones’ with host Migdalia Van Der Hoven, with our first guest Ciara Chinniah. Theme music 'Girl Facing South' by Migdalia Van Der Hoven Migdalia van der Hoven is an International Award winning Mexican drummer currently touring with SIX the Musical across the UK. She is also a Vater Drumsticks, Bosphorus Cymbals and RTOM Corporation artist and a Berklee College of Music graduate (where she studied and performed with Jackie Santos, Terri Lynn Carrington, Victor Mendoza and Mark Walker). She is known for her groove, sensitivity and versatility across multiple genres such as funk, jazz, fusion, latin jazz, pop and world music. She became the first Mexican Female drummer to ever perform at Ronnie Scott’s and the EFG London Jazz Festival. Migdalia has become “Woman of the year 2022” in Mexico in arts and culture for her contribution in music nationally and internationally. https://www.migdaliavanderhoven.com/ Ciara Chinniah is a British Drummer and Educator from Essex in the UK with a love of Odd Time signatures, Ciara has been described as a Pop/Rock drummer with a progressive/fusion edge. Upon graduating from the ACM, Ciara has played many theatre shows, performed in bands across the UK, Europe and America. Everything from folk, fusion and blues to Rock, pop and metal! Aside from ACM, Ciara went on to study intensively at LAMA in LA under Ralph Humphrey and Joe Porcaro. Subsequently she returned and studied with the great Jazz drummer Bob Armstrong. Ciara currently has a busy schedule, teaching and recording from her home studio in Essex. She is the co-host of the Podcast ‘Drum Education Live’ and 'Drummer Mamas' a podcast opening up the conversation about juggling parenthood and a career in drums.Ciara plays for Electro Pop duo The Penelopes who regularly gig in Paris and London. Whilst she explores her love of odd meters with her band Red Monster and on her social media. Ciara endorses NickyMoon cymbals. For more info please see www.ciaradrums.com