Northern Edge Jazz Festival Returns

Two trail-blazing musicians are ready to set alight Aberdeen’s Northern Edge Jazz Festival this September.

American jazz vocalist, saxophonist, guitarist, and songwriter Curtis Stigers and legendary British saxophonist and contemporary jazz pioneer Courtney Pine CBE are to headline the Aberdeen Performing Arts 10-day event which kicks off on Thursday, September 9.

Also in the line-up are Stan Tracey CBE, Niki King, Brass Jaw, Mike Maran’s A Funny Valentine, Garry Gibb Quartet, Aberdeen Jazz Orchestra and the Scottish National Jazz Orchestra.

It is the second festival staged by APA – the inaugural Northern Edge Jazz festival was held in September last year – and the performances will staged largely in The Lemon Tree and The Music Hall, with some vocal workshops in the studio at His Majesty’s Theatre.

The finale of the festival will be a magnificent concert at His Majesty’s Theatre featuring one of the great musical masterpieces, Gershwin’s Rhapsody in Blue, performed by Tommy Smith’s Scottish National Jazz Orchestra.

“Following on from our successful first festival last year, we are delighted with the lineup for the second Northern Edge Jazz Festival,” said APA’s head of programming Ben Torrie.

“To have outstanding, world-renowned headline acts such as Curtis Stigers, Stan Tracey and Courtney Pine on the bill is a real coup for us, and demonstrates the high regard with which these great artists hold our event and venues.

“We are also thrilled to show off two of Scotland’s most exciting new jazz acts in Niki King and Brass Jaw. It is very important to us to give local acts a platform to showcase the wealth of talent originating from this area with performances by Graeme Stephen, Garry Gibb and the Aberdeen Jazz Orchestra.”

Ben added that the company were also building a great education programme to accompany the festival performances in an effort to inspire young people to interact with music and jazz specifically.

“We are really excited to be bringing such an exciting programme to Aberdeen and hope to build this event even further in the future.”

Tickets for the Northern Edge Jazz Festival, which is supported by Aberdeen City Council and EventScotland, go on sale to APA Friends this Friday and to the general public on Wednesday, July 7, online at www.boxofficeaberdeen.com, by phone at 01224 641122 and at Aberdeen Box Office at the Music Hall, His Majesty’s Theatre and The Lemon Tree.

Paul Bush OBE, Chief Operating Officer of EventScotland, the national events agency, said:
“The Northern Edge Jazz Festival is a unique and exciting event and EventScotland are delighted to be supporting it this year.  Our investment is for a UK wide marketing campaign which will ensure the continued growth and long term success of this fantastic event.”

Over the years, Curtis Stigers has rightly cemented his reputation as a formidable jazz singer, performing and recording with artists such as Gene Harris, Elton John, Eric Clapton, Prince, Bonnie Raitt, Rod Stewart, The Allman Brothers Band and Joe Cocker. He sang a duet with Julia Fordham on her re-recording of Where Does the Time Go?

According to Will Birch's book on pub rock, No Sleep Till Canvey Island, the royalties from Curtis Stigers' version of the song, (What's So Funny 'Bout) Peace, Love, and Understanding, made songwriter Nick Lowe independently wealthy. Stigers' version appeared on the soundtrack album for the film The Bodyguard, which sold 17 million copies in the United States alone.

Stigers also appears on the Dawson's Creek soundtracks and in 2006, he took part in BBC TV’s Just the Two of Us, where he sang with journalist Penny Smith.

He was one of the soloists at a concert celebrating the MGM musical, during the 2009 Proms season and his song This Life is used as the intro for the American show Sons of Anarchy.

Courtney Pine, whose achievements were recognised first with an OBE in 2000 and then a CBE in 2009 for his services to music and his influence and work within Britain’s black community, has come to represent the best in contemporary jazz in the UK and beyond.

Since he exploded on to the scene in 1987 with his debut album Journey to the Urge Within, he has continually strived to take his music in new directions.

He has worked with exciting musicians from across the globe and from many different genres, acting as an ambassador to bring jazz to new audiences and new generations. He also hosts BBC Radio 2’s Jazz Crusade and has presented several documentaries on jazz music’s influence in Britain and beyond.

On the live circuit, Courtney has toured for more than 25 years, playing all over the world, from the main stage at Glastonbury to the intimate Blue Note Tokyo, Japan, and continues to tour internationally with his award-winning band.