UK JAZZ PLUS shines a spotlight on the exciting and growing genre of Jazz Singer Songwriters.
From diverse ethnic groups comes the emergence of a new band of UK Jazz Singer Songwriters conveying their cultural influences – social-political-economic-ethnic and creating a new hybrid space between jazz and rap, soul, rnb, hip-hop, indie, rock, art-pop.
UK Jazz Plus was created to capture this energy and provide a platform for these multi-genre artists who elude neat categorisation.
UK Jazz Plus sessions for 2024!
Excited to announce the new home for UKJAZZPLUS is at the world renowned PizzaExpress Live Soho
UKJAZZPLUS is proud to be included once more in the EFG London Jazz Festival 2024 programme.
UK JAZZ PLUS SESSIONS | 3 October 2024
Featuring Sofia Grant, Randolph Matthews, Naala and Martha D Lewis
UK JAZZ PLUS SESSIONS | 16 November 2024
Featuring Miss Baby Sol, Ellie Harris and Martha D Lewis
For EFG LONDN JAZZ FESTIVAL 2024
UK JAZZ PLUS SESSIONS 11 November 2023
Continuing our mission of presenting New Storytelling In Jazz, our 3rd event was a special programme for EFG London Jazz Festival , held at the iconic venue Rich Mix in Shoreditch , London’s home of cultural diversity .
Featured: Ese & the Vooduu People “a heady stew of improvised rock jazz soul” , Xantone Blacq “captures the tradition of great groove” Charlotte Lansman “a commanding poetic jazz songstress” Martha D Lewis “a perfect mix of jazz sensibilities and art-pop”…
UK JAZZ PLUS SESSIONS 11 March 2023
The 2nd venture for UK Jazz Plus sessions, following the head-turning launch of UK Jazz Plus at the EFG London Jazz Festival 2022 was a programme in association with WOW – the Women Of The World Festival London 2023- the worlds biggest, most comprehensive festival celebrating women girls and non-binary people.
Staged in the Royal Festival Hall, Clore Ballroom, this special programme of four women acts in a 90-minute set, add their voices to new storytelling in Jazz.
WOW in association with UK Jazz Plus Sessions presented a free gig featuring a powerhouse bill of artists – Miss Baby Sol, Emily Saunders, Martha D Lewis and Sacha T – from the growing genre of UK Jazz Singer Songwriters who are redefining what it means to be a jazz singer today.
UK JAZZ PLUS SESSIONS 15 – 19 November 2022
UK JAZZ PLUS was successfully launched in association with the EFG London Jazz Festival November 2022 and Theatro Technis @26 Crowndale and was curated by award-winning artists Martha D Lewis.
Featuring ;
Julie Sassoon , Diane McLoughlin , TyroneIsaacStuart, Sara Gute, Julia Biel , Miss Baby Sol, Amy Gadiaga and hosted by Martha D Lewis.
The concerts were held over 4 nights and featured 8 artists during the most competitive 10 days of London jazz programming in the yearly calendar and programmed in a venue not known for music gigs. Against these odds, the box office receipts showed that audiences are ready to hear and support original jazz song writing.
About the curator
Martha D Lewis is the curator of UK Jazz Plus Sessions.
Martha D Lewis is a British-born Cypriot recording artist of jazz and world music since early 1990s, whose career was notably launched with the trail blazing award-winning music-comedy duo Donna & Kebab in the early 1990s. The duo recorded three albums and a DVD of their show ‘Live at the Hackney Empire’ and garnered some 15 TV appearances and performances at Royal Festival Hall Glastonbury, Reading Festivals et al.
Martha’s solo career was launched in late 1990’s with numerous commissions for music composition for the Arts Council, PRS Foundation, London Arts Board, amongst others, as well as title and incidental music for theatre film and documentaries.
In a career spanning several decades, her debut solo release ‘‘Café Aman-Double Life’ was awarded ‘Best Album of the Year’ by BBC Radio in 2007; the classic re-imagined Greek blues album ‘Homage to Roza’ was released in 2015; Martha latest work ‘ALL THAT YOU SEE’ released in 2022 tackles social commentary in a lyrically relevant and musically adventurous 6th album. The Guardian reviewed Martha as a “distinctly live wire of musical independence and a formidable voice.”
