Seven Acts To Catch At The Cork Jazz Festival 2018
It’s that time of year again! For the next three days, Cork is about to inundated with some of the best Jazz bands and musicians that the world has to offer, as well as more pop-orientated artists. To help you get through the weekend and ensure that you do not miss the best of what the festival has to offer, the University Express has decided to compile a list of seven of the acts we are most excited about seeing at this year's festivities, as well as acts we think are not to be missed.
SOULÉ
CYPRUS AVENUE, FRIDAY @ 7.30PM
As a two-time Meteor Choice Music Song of the Year nominee, SOULÉ is set to cause a storm on Friday night to kick off the festival. With support from West Cork’s very own, RUSHES, it looks to be one hell of a night in Cyprus Avenue. With songs such as ‘Troublemaker’ and ‘What Do You Know’, which have flown well past the coveted multi-million stream mark, as well as a wealth of experience of performing live, including sets at some of the countries biggest music festivals, now is your chance to catch her before she blows up internationally.
HYPNOTIC BRASS ENSEMBLECORK OPERA HOUSE, FRIDAY @ 11.45pm
Hypnotic Brass Ensemble (also known as The Bad Boys of Jazz) are an seven-piece, Chicago-based brass ensemble consisting of seven sons of the jazz trumpeter Phil Cohran. Their musical style ranges from hip-hop to jazz to funk and rock, including calypso and gypsy music. They call their eclectic blend of sound “now music”, or “Hypnotic”. They take their stylistic cues from jazz, funk, hip-hop, and various strains of world music. For an eclectic musical experience, look no further, this is the band for you!
LAURA MVULACORK CITY HALL, SATURDAY @ 8PM
Innovative British singer songwriter, Mvula is a two time Mercury Prize nominee and two time MOBO award winner. Growing up in Birmingham, Mvula first sang in church and later with all female acapella group Black Voices. By 2008 she had formed and was composing for her own jazz/neo-soul outfit ‘Judy’s House’. Her debut album ‘Sing to the Moon’ and follow-up album ‘The Dreaming Room’ both garnered multiple award nominations and critical acclaim. As one of the most acclaimed acts of the whole weekend, now is your chance to check out what the rest of the world have been raving about for yourself for one night only!
T.S MONK SEXTETEVERYMAN THEATRE, SATURDAY @ 2.30PM
Ever seen Whiplash? Been in awe of Jazz drumming every since that J.K. Simmons acting masterclass as the conductor? Well, here we have the real thing, one of the worlds finest drummers, and almost certainly the one with the most awards! New York born T.S Monk is an accomplished jazz drummer, composer and bandleader. He started out playing trumpet and piano before switching to drums and began taking lessons from Max Roach when he was 13.He toured with his father’s quartet during 1970’s, then later played in his own bands including ‘Natural Essence’. Monk received the New York Jazz Awards First Annual “Recording of the Year” award and Downbeat’s prestigious 63rd annual Album of the Year Reader’s Choice Award for the “Monk on Monk” tribute album to his father.
MARIA SCHNEIDER ORCHESTRA CORK CITY HALL, SUNDAY @ 8PM
Something for the classical music fans amongst us, the Maria Schneider Orchestra has been hailed by critics as “evocative, majestic, magical, heart-stoppingly gorgeous, and beyond categorisation”.She and her orchestra became widely known in 1994 when they released their first recording, ‘Evanescence’. There, Schneider began to develop her personal way of writing for what would become her 18-member collective, made up of many of the finest musicians in jazz today, tailoring her compositions to distinctly highlight the uniquely creative voices of the group. In 2016, Schneider and her orchestra collaborated with iconic superstar David Bowie resulting in his single called ‘Sue’, which lead them to win a GRAMMY for best arrangement, instruments and vocals. If they are good enough for David Bowie they should be good enough for the rest of us!
DELORENTOS CYPRUS AVENUE, SUNDAY @ 7PM
One of Ireland’s most celebrated bands, Delorentos’ determined rise has been a wonderful (and, at times, tortuous) chaos – break-ups, labels collapsing, reformations and critical awards, worldwide tours and packed houses from Mexico City to Moscow. In a world where so much emphasis is placed on “brand new” they continue to revel in writing albums and playing live shows that are ever more passionate, raw and exciting! Their latest album, ‘True Surrender’ is the groups most critically acclaimed album yet, and with the hits already on their portfolio, this is a set of pure rock-and-roll. This is one to be experienced at all costs.
JENNY GREENECORK OPERA HOUSE, SUNDAY @ MIDNIGHT
Closing out this year's festival is RTÉ 2 presenter Jenny Greene. Following two sold out shows Live at the Marquee this summer, one of Ireland’s most successful DJs ever, Jenny Greene, returns to Cork to play a headliner at Cork Opera House with special guests and local mavericks Generic People supplying cutting-edge visuals. Following performances alongside the RTÉ Concert Orchestra earlier in the year, Greene will ensure that this year's festivities finish off with a bang! If you manage to find one of the rare and wonderful golden tickets to this set, go, go, go!!
