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Date: Saturday 17 May

Mali Hayes

mjf @ First Street (House of Social Main Stage)

Mali Hayes vocals / Thomas Fripp guitar / Max O’Hara keyboards / Jamie Moore bass / Tom Pattinson drums  

Mali is one of Manchester’s success stories and mjf is proud to welcome her back to open the Saturday programme on the Main Stage. Her music takes influence from jazz, neo-soul and R’n’B, perfumed with vibrant real-life stories and coloured with honesty and soul. Her relaxed yet impassioned delivery – compared to that of Jill Scott and Erykah Badu – has captured fans far and wide, and is endorsed by airplay from Jamie Cullum, Jamz Supernova and Gilles Peterson.  

Early experience singing backing vocals for Tito Jackson, JP Cooper, Mica Millar and more, has inspired Mali’s soulful sound. After support from Future Bubblers, Help Musicians UK, PRS and MOBO, as well as being featured as one of Clash Magazine’s ‘Artists Set To Rise’, Mali is set to continue the journey in 2025 and beyond.  

With performances at The Jazz Cafe and We Out Here, along with support slots for Bilal, Jamila Woods, Alfa Mist, Poppy Ajudha, Blue Lab Beats, Sons Of Kemet, and Yazmin Lacey – and a collaboration with Foreign Beggars and Maverick Sabre – under her belt, Mali continues to prove herself as an artist of vision, dedication and drive. 

“A really great new British female vocalist from Manchester…She’s got a real un-flashy kind of approach which I really like. Kind of a milder Jill Scott / Erykah Badu, definitely one to watch. We’ll be hearing a lot more from her, I’m sure!” – Jamie Cullum – BBC Radio 2 

 

Date: saturday 17 may

Time: 1:00 pm - 2:10 pm

Price: Free

Olivia Cuttill Quintet

mjf @ First Street (House of Social Main Stage)

Olivia Cuttill trumpet / Issey Chivers vocals / Tom Harris electric piano / Josh Vadiveloo double bass / Miles Pilinger drums  

Olivia Cuttill – trumpet player, composer, lyricist and band leader – brings her quintet of hand-picked young stars to the mjf Main Stage.  

Raised in East London, a recent graduate from Leeds Conservative and alumnus from mjf’s hothouse programme, Olivia comes from a musical family of three generations. Elements of soul, jazz and blues and run deep through her sound.  

Telling stories through song and improvisation, Olivia’s influences include Nina Simone, Aretha Franklin, Louis Armstrong and more. Featuring music from her quintet’s debut album, ‘The Whole Damn Plan’, their recent single ‘TV License Man’ and some soon-to-be-released new music, Olivia performs with fluency and conviction: a bright, fast-blossoming flower of the new generation of jazz artists, not to be missed.  

Date: saturday 17 may

Time: 3:15 pm - 4:25 pm

Price: Free

Beware of the Bear

mjf @ First Street (House of Social Main Stage)

Phil Meadows saxophone / TBC guitar / Joe Downard bass / Jay Davis drums  

Beware of the Bear seamlessly blend jazz and improvised music with electronica and beat, drawing from influences like Bonobo, Bill Frisell, Donny McCaslin and J-Dilla. Their signature sound interweaves swirling textures, soaring melodies and infectious grooves whilst creating space for all musicians to improvise.  

Band leader Phil Meadows began his saxophone journey at 12, inspired by Lisa Simpson’s duet with Bleeding Gums Murphy. He went on to study at Chets and Leeds Conservatoire, and his first band featured as one of the earliest mjf introduces gigs in 2009. Several years on, he’s one of the UK’s leading saxophonists, composers and conductors, with accolades including two Parliamentary Jazz Awards, a London Music Award, and the Peter Whittingham Jazz Award. 

Phil has worked with an impressive range of artists, from NYC jazz trumpeter Ingrid Jensen to European piano trio Phronesis, guitarist Femi Temowo, and UK jazz stars like Laura Jurd and Elliot Galvin. He’s toured Europe with electronic music pioneer Matthew Herbert and completed a residency in the Netherlands with acclaimed pianist Rogier Telderman. He also holds a longstanding residency at Ronnie Scott’s Jazz Club, showcasing the best in upcoming UK jazz talent under the Future Movers monocle. 

Beyond small-group jazz, Phil is celebrated for his innovative work with orchestras, specialising in cross-genre collaboration as a conductor and arranger with the Grammy-winning Metropole Orkest, BBC Concert Orchestra, and City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra.  

‘Future jazz gods on the rise’ – TimeOut London 

‘A great stage presence and an unforgettable instrumental style.’ – Jazzwise Magazine 

Date: saturday 17 may

Time: 5:30 pm - 6:40 pm

Price: Free

Cup Noods

mjf @ First Street (ask Garden Stage)

Personnel and instrument(s) – Leslie Wink a.k.a Cup Noods Piano & DJ  

Cup Noods is a space-inspired poet, DJ and jazz pianist. Part of the mjf Soundcheck development programme in 2024, focusing on bringing improvisation to unique performances, they ad lib on the keys whilst DJing, taking listeners on an ethereal crossing through the cosmos in a never-ending jam – with groovy house at its core. Cup Noods proves that even a bog-standard four-on-the-floor beat can facilitate jazz’s freedom of expression.

Cup Noods is also a music facilitator and a co-founder of “Manchester DJs”, working closely with Reform Radio to develop local artists’ careers.

Date: saturday 17 may

Time: 6:45 pm - 7:40 pm

Price: Free

Trees.R.Good

mjf @ First Street (ask Garden Stage)

Personnel and instrument(s) – Xaris Alexandratos tenor saxophone & bass / Nathan Stoker trumpet / Roz Fearnehough trombone / Georgia Clark keys / Izzy MacMahon drums / Emilio Yañez Ruíz percussion & bird whistles 

Trees.R.Good is on a mission: to bring jazz-infused electronica to the service of nature.  

Celebrating the vinyl release of their first EP ‘Trees Are Good’, the 6-piece live band turn into whistleblowers with an immersive musical exploration of trees. Weaving percussion, horns, bass and synths, they reveal the subtle cues nature offers us to think differently about the way we live, use, exploit and often pollute our surroundings.  

From the depth of the forest floor to the tip of trees’ canopy, Trees.R.Good reminds us not to take nature’s fragile balance for granted but to rekindle listeners to our very own essence: nature itself.  

Join them at manchester jazz festival’s 30th Anniversary for an afternoon to pause, reflect and wonder – and be the first to get your hands on a limited- edition “Jade Green 12” Vinyl of Trees.R.Good’s first-ever EP. 

Date: saturday 17 may

Time: 4:30 pm - 5:25 pm

Price: Free

José Dias: 25 in 25 Portuguese Revolution Revisited

mjf @ First Street (HOME Stage)

José Dias guitar & samples / Maria Fonseca trumpet / Juliana Mendonça bass / Johnny Hunter drums 

José Dias is a Portuguese musician based in Manchester. His widely acclaimed solo album, “After Silence, Vol.1” (Clean Feed 2019) was hailed ‘an introspective masterpiece’ (All About Jazz) and listed as both one of the best albums of 2019 by Giornale della Musica and the essential Portuguese Jazz Album of the New Century by Improvisando.  

As a composer, he has scored music for animation, film and television, as well as theatre and contemporary dance. His music is strongly inspired by the visual arts and literature. 

25 in 25/Portuguese Revolution Revisited is a commission from the Manchester Portuguese Consulate commemorating the 50th anniversary of the democratic revolution of April 25th. On the morning of April 25, 1974, two specific songs were broadcast on national radio as covert signals for the coup that successfully overthrew a 41-year dictatorship. This event marked the beginning of a liberation process that received overwhelming public support and saw the restoration of democracy and freedom of speech.  

It is these songs that Dias’ quartet, which includes two fast-rising musicians from Lisbon visiting especially for this concert, aims to reinterpret. The quartet will creatively reinterpret those songs, blending improvisation and archival sounds from that historic day. 

mjf acknowledges the generous support of the Portuguese Consul, Manchester in making this event possible 

 

 

 

Date: saturday 17 may

Time: 12:30 pm - 1:00 pm

Time: 2:10 pm - 3:00 pm

Price: Free

Thanda & Friends

mjf @ First Street (ask Garden Stage)

Thandanani Gumede is known as Thanda (pronounced like “Tanda”), for short—a Zulu name that means Love One Another. He is an award-winning vocalist and a multi-disciplinary artist of dual Zulu and Xhosa heritage, hailing from Durban, in South Africa.  

His performance will include a very special appearance from the Olympias choir, made up of families and young people from the Olympias music group. 

Thanda Gumede 

Thanda made his U.K. debut at the inaugural ‘Nelson Mandela Day’ which was officiated by the United Nations, in London. Thereafter, his base became the North of England where he now works as a vastly experienced African music workshop leader & versatile performer with UK Refugee Status. He is also an Opera North pilot Resonance alumnus; Jazz North Northern Line alumnus; mjf Hothouse (2019) & mjf Level Up alumnus (2021). As of November 2024, Thanda has joined the Board of Directors at Manchester Jazz Festival. 

Musically, Thanda draws inspiration from his heritage, amalgamated with: 

Jazz, Neo-Soul and Gospel amongst other contemporary styles, and beautifully punctuated by the signature click sounds of the southern Bantu languages. He collaborates with musicians across different styles and traditions including Indian and European Classical, Pop, Jazz, African Traditional and Gospel.  

His work ranges from specialised Vocal Tuition to Embodied Auto-Ethnography, Arts Industry Consultations as well as being a contributing author of ‘Books Without Borders’ which was commissioned by the University of Leeds (as part of the Arts and Humanities Research Council Project: ETHER) published in September 2024. 

Accolades and notable appearances include: 

– a Parliamentary Jazz Award — Ensemble of the Year 2023 with Ubunye 

– an exclusive performance for Her Majesty, Queen Elizabeth II and 43 members of the British Royal Family at Buckingham Palace (Royal Enclosure) 

– Warner Classics commissioned performance for the late Emeritus, Bishop Desmond Tutu, alongside the prodigious cellists: Abel Selaocoe & the x19 Grammy Award winner, Yo-Yo Ma 

– BBC Proms at the Royal Albert Hall 

– as well as appearances on SKY 1, BBC Radio & BBC TV, SABC 1 and ITV (scheduled appearance on Channel 5 in December 2024) 

– The Opera North Howard Assembly Room, Jazz Festival, manchester jazz festival, Buxton Jazz & Blues Festival and the Theatre Royale in London, West End —to name but a few. 

Olympias Choir

Olympias Music Foundation is an award-winning music charity based in Manchester. Olympias work to champion diversity in music – from instrumental lessons for children on free-school meals, to community choirs for diverse women and school children and believe that everyone should be given the opportunity to participate in music. 

Date: saturday 17 may

Time: 2:15 pm - 3:10 pm

Price: Free

Ferg’s Imaginary Big Band

mjf @ First Street (House of Social Main Stage)

mjf partners with Jazz North to present a showcase of the latest northern artists to be selected for the groundbreaking touring programme Northern Line. 

Ferg’s Imaginary Big Band is an organic and fluid ensemble of young jazz musicians drawn from across both Leeds and the wider UK jazz scene. The band’s origins were as an informal five-piece Sun Ra tribute project but quickly grew into a dynamic 25+ strong musical force with a reputation for energetic live performances and experimental arrangements. 

Winners of 2023 The Peter Whittingham Jazz Award and returning to mjf after their raucous showstopping gig at mjf2023, they have since played shows at Leeds, Lancaster and London Jazz Festivals and Love Supreme. 

Date: saturday 17 may

Time: 7:45 pm - 9:00 pm

Price: Free

mjf2025 piano trail walking tour with FMWT

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Corn Exchange

After two years of sold-out tours, Free Manchester Walking Tours are back, following manchester jazz festival’s famous piano trail across the city centre… 

A first for Manchester: a walking tour accompanied by live band, Sherpa K! 

Free Manchester Walking Tours are going to follow manchester jazz festival’s famous piano trail across the city centre, exploring the fabulous interiors of Manchester’s theatres, art galleries and music venues, as well as uncovering secret street art and learning about the origins of a famous Manchester fruit drink and its artists. There are two piano trail walking tours with an additional tour taking place Sunday 18 May from 12pm-2pm. 

Sherpa K

(Joshua Val Martin, Josh Dawson, Adam Summers, David Martin and Jez Dolan)

Meet Sherpa K – the makers of art-folk with a knowing twink; boasting a musical arsenal from saxophone and flute to piano and double bass, the five Sherpas are on a mission to confuse, charm, and promote universal joy.  

Please note tickets go off sale for this event via mjf at 11am on the day of the trail. 

WHERE TO MEET AND WHEN 

Meet Josh near the piano inside the Corn Exchange. The tour will start promptly at 12pm and last approximately for 2 hours. Wear comfortable shoes and bring water! 

FREE MANCHESTER WALKING TOURS: 

Free Manchester Walking Tours (www.fmwt.co.uk) was set up nearly a decade ago, by storyteller, History MA graduate and Mancunian Josh. They’ve since grown into a small team dedicated to sharing Manchester’s story with the world. They run a tour every day at 11am from the Alan Turing Memorial, as well as offering specialised LGBT+ and Northern Quarter walking tours. 

Kids go free, but please select a ticket, one per child attending. Please note children under the age of 14 must be accompanied by an adult. 

Date: saturday 17 may

Time: 12:00 pm - 2:00 pm

Price: £10 for adults, free for children

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Mojo

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Matt and Phreds

Felipe Schrieberg vocals, bass, lap steel guitar / Tomek Kruk bass, guitar, lap steel guitar / Michal Mantaj keyboards, accordion / Piotr Augustynowicz guitar / Igor Augustynowicz drums 

Mojo is a new five-piece band hailing from the Trójmiasto (Tri-City) region of Poland, bringing a heady high-energy sound inspired by American influences and vintage grooves, spiced up with a contemporary Polish touch. Their on-stage energy leads to the best kind of wild gigs, creating an intimate connection between band and audience throughout the performance. 

Mojo blends together influences of Cajun, soul and rhythm and blues – music that would shake the rafters in barrelhouse piano bars, Memphis clubs and Louisiana’s Fais Dodos – with the mischief often found in traditional Polish folk music. Intense, tight grooves, infectious riffs and the natural chemistry of a band made up of deeply experienced performers results in a potent brew perfect for a late-night party. 

Call 0161 273 5495 to reserve a table.

 

Date: saturday 17 may

Time: 9:30 pm - 12:30 am

Price: from £7

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