Celebrating A Jazz Revival With Norwich Arts Centre
In this feature we chat to Bradley Glasspoole, General Manager
& Head of Programming for Norwich Arts Centre
A: Firstly, who are you and what do you do?
B: My name is Bradley Glasspoole, I am the General Manager and the Head of Music Programming for NAC and the Artistic Director for the Norwich Jazz Festival. The majority of time I curate a mixed commercial programme of over 200 events a year that I think the people of Norwich will enjoy. I am also involved in ACE funding & reporting, EDI, accessibility and environmental sustainability.
Norwich Jazz Festival is back! Tell us about the event.
NAC first hosted the Norwich Jazz festival in the early 1980s we think and it ran for a number of years before sadly falling off the calendar. Jazz is incredibly popular again at the moment and there are some fantastic new artists coming through the ranks and touring across the UK. A whole new generation is getting excited by Jazz and so this felt like a great moment to seize an opportunity to revive and revitalise something in Norwich’s cultural calendar. If we can gather a lot of support and enthusiasm for the festival, then there will be no reason not to make this an exciting yearly addition.
What have you got lined up for the Norwich Jazz Festival?
From the 15th-24th May Norwich Arts Centre will be programming performances showcasing the best UK and international Jazz musicians across the city including EPIC Studios, Anteros, Duke Street Production Theatre and Cinema City. Our headliners are Norwich trio Mammal Hands, Brazilian Jazz-Funk legends, Azymuth, twenty-piece collective, National Youth Jazz Orchestra, Hip Hop-Jazz pioneers Ebi Soda, saxophonist and composer Jasmine Myra and Folk-Jazz artist Caoilfhionn Rose. There are some great local support acts and DJs booked for each event, a film screening of Soundtrack to a Coup D’Etat, an award-winning documentary about Jazz and decolonization at Cinema City, and a talk A History of the Jazz Festival, its Origins and Significance by Professor George McKay at Duke Street Theatre.
I am particularly looking forward to seeing Azymuth, a Jazz Funk Trio from Brazil, who first started in the 1970’s. I have been a long-time fan and so the opportunity to bring them to Norwich is hugely exciting for me. We are also really pleased that Norwich’s very own Mammal Hands are returning to Norwich Arts Centre, following an extensive European Tour. They had their first show with us back in 2012 so it’s great to have them heading our first festival. If you have never seen them, book tickets soon as theyare sure to sell out early.
Where’s your favourite place to visit in Norfolk and why?
That is impossible to narrow down to a single answer - I love exploring new places and returning to old favourites. Ideally being outside as much as possible and enjoying the landscape and nature that Norfolk has to offer. Brancaster, Stiffkey, Wells and Cromer are hard to beat when the weather is kind, when it is not, then I tend to head to the woods and parks in and around Norwich with my family. Best place for food – Market. Best place for a drink - Brewery Tap!