The Sunbeam Theatre at London's Ladbroke Hall is a stunning venue that combines history, culture and design, retaining subtle hints of the outside world as light streams onto the bar from the street outside. For their new 'Friday Jazz' series, they are laying on some extraordinary musicians alongside the architectural, artistic and culinary wonders.
The launch night featured Zhenya Strigalev with his quintet, joined by guest singer Lucy-Anne Daniels
and the legend that is Soweto Kinch. Musically and culturally, the evening was a delight and we are all looking forward to more such events at this brand new venue.
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| Soweto Kinch in the shadow of some of Ladbroke Hall's impressive art |
The music included some surprising and lesser-known tunes like I'm Old Fashioned, Tea for Two, Honeysuckle Rose and After You've Gone. Lucy-Anne produced mature vocal renditions that assure her a long-time place among UK and international jazz vocalists. She is definitely one to watch. Her version of the fabulous What's New? was truly inspired.
Of course, these are internationally-acclaimed musicians and we would expect nothing less than stellar performances, but it was a real delight to hear both Strigalev and Kinch swapping effortlessly between alto and tenor saxes, and producing their own different takes on every tune. Their playing styles couldn't be more different and they each contributed and collaborated across a range of tunes.
Over all too soon, this launch night was a special event that gave a packed house the chance to experience the music, the food, the excellent service and this truly extraordinary venue at first hand. I suspect most of us will be paying a return visit soon.
The 'Friday Jazz' series brings everyone from Ian Shaw (24 November) to Giacomo Smith (13 October) and Jean Toussaint (27 October). Get your tickets booked now, before these all sell out.
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