For the best Dixieland Jazz, Classic Jazz, Bebop jazz, Modern Jazz, Ragtime, Swing Music, Jazz Shows in London and jazz festivals around the world, book the Jazz Repertory Company - appearing internationally at theatre shows, jazz clubs and music festivals.
Information For Venues, Bookers & Festivals
Over the last year The Jazz Repertory Company has repeatedly sold out London's 900 seater Cadogan Hall and has presented many of its shows at theatres and festivals throughout the UK.
The shows are designed to be highly entertaining to both knowledgeable jazz lovers as well as non specialist audiences and first timers. All are presented with a minimum of amplification to present the music as authentically as possible.
The Jazz Repertory Company's most popular show featuring six multi-instrumentalists performing the most significant music in jazz's history. Presented with wit and knowledge by all six musicians this is a hugely entertaining show for not only those who know and love jazz but for those who only have the vaguest notions of the music but quite like the noise it makes. Over the last five years the show has been performed everywhere from a drawing room in a country house for 60 people to a sell out show for 900 at London's Cadogan Hall.
Jazz At The Philharmonic. A Tribute.
2014 marks the 70th anniversary of the birth of this great jazz institution. Impresario Norman Granz began JATP in Los Angeles in 1944 and over the next four decades it became a world famous brand. His formula was to bring together the greatest names in jazz for wildly exciting jam sessions and cutting contests. For many youngsters of the time JATP was their introduction to jazz and the excitement of these concerts made an indelible impression on them. We aim to do the same in our recreation of the glory years of JATP and we're sure that today's young generation will be amazed at just how exciting jazz can be.
Benny Goodman's Famous 1938 Carnegie Hall Concert
Pete Long and the 15 piece Goodmen have performed this show more than fifty times throughout the UK. Arguably the most famous concert in jazz history, it featured Benny at the zenith of his fame as The King of Swing with music from his trio, quartet and big band as well as special guests from the Count Basie and Duke Ellington Orchestra. The music is performed acoustically with just one microphone for the vocals of Chicago chanteuse Joan Viskant.
Louis and Duke in London 1932-33
A recreation of the first appearances in the UK of the two greatest names in jazz, Louis Armstrong and Duke Ellington. They appeared on separate occasions at the London Palladium alongside a selection of the top variety artists of the day such as the cheeky chappie Max Miller. Keith Nichols and his Blue Devils perform as the Duke Ellington Orchestra and Enrico Tomasso is Louis.. Together they appear alongside a group of performers recreating the kind of vaudeville entertainment enjoyed by London audiences over 80 years ago - a unique evening of jazz entertainment.
The Newport Jazz Festival: the 1950's
2014 is the 60th anniversary of this famous festival and to celebrate we bring together three great celebrations of Newport in the 1950s. The second half of the show recreates the night that Duke Ellington appeared in 1956 and revived his band's fortunes with a set that has gone down in history as one of the great events in live jazz. In the first set we perform music from the movies Jazz On A Summer's Day and High Society.
First presented in 2009, the centenary year of this American jazz idol, the show presents Gene Krupa's small and big band music from the 1920s through to the 1960s. Krupa created some of the most exciting swinging music in his heyday and featured the great singer Anita O'Day and dynamic trumpeter Roy Eldridge. In this celebratory show Richard Pite plays the role of Gene Krupa, Pete Long is musical director, Enrico Tomasso is Roy Eldridge and Joan Viskant, Anita O'Day. Read the Evening Standard press review here.
Benny Goodman and Glenn Miller at Carnegie Hall 1939
A year after his triumph at Carnegie Hall Goodman returned and this time shared the bill with Glenn Miller. In the same year impresario John Hammond presented his Carnegie Hall concert "From Spirituals to Swing" which featured music from the likes of Count Basie and the Kansas City Six and we augment our programme with highlights from this historic event. A snapshot of the swing era at its apex in the late 30s.
A follow up to the highly successful 100 Years of Jazz. The original six musicians are augmented by a further dozen players to perform the greatest big band music from the years of the First World War (James Rees Europe's Hellfighters Band) through to the present day and culminating in an extraordinary arrangement of Tiger Rag incorporating every style of big band jazz of the last 100 years!
Excuse the video sound but we think the atmosphere is really great.
The Ray Charles Project
The Jazz Repertory Company presents Jeremy Sassoon's Ray Charles Project. Available as an 11 piece or with the full 17 piece ensemble, the show features a fantastic selection of classic hits including Hit The Road Jack, What’d I Say, Georgia On My Mind, You Don’t Know Me, I’ve Got A Woman and many more. Jeremy Sassoon perfectly captures the sound and style of Ray’s singing and piano playing and his band creates a hugely exciting accompaniment of dazzling horns and a burning rhythm section all topped off with the fabulous harmony vocals of the three girl singers “The Jaelettes”
The small band jazz of the era including the complex arrangements of the John Kirby Sextet, the carefree swing of The Hot Club De Paris, the delightful small band arrangements of Duke Ellington plus Artie Shaw's Gramercy Five and more. Curiously enough the music that was the most commercially successful of all in this concert is now almost totally forgotten - the eccentric cartoon like music of Raymond Scott - a revelation.
A show featuring singer Georgina Jackson as Peggy Lee with a quintet featuring vibraphone virtuoso Anthony Kerr, and clarinettist Pete Long. The big hits of Peggy Lee, the compositions of Duke Ellington and the sound of the Benny Goodman small groups - a unique swing potpourri.
Piano maestro and singer Keith Nichols is joined by guitarist and singer Thomas "Spats" Langham and multi-instrumentalist Richard Pite in this show bringing together hot jazz, ragtime, popular music, sweet sounds from the 20s and 30s and comedy and novelty turns. A dazzling show featuring three musicians at the top of their game.
The Vocal Groups
The great vocal groups of jazz and popular music from The Rhythm Boys of the 20's through to Manhattan Transfer. On the way is music from The Boswell Sisters, The Andrews Sisters, The Four Freshmen and many more. First performed at Ronnie Scotts in 2010 and then at Cadogan Hall this is a show featuring the dazzling vocal virtuosity of Iain Mackenzie's Itones and Hetaher Simmons vocal trio The Swinging Belles. Both groups are accompanied by Pete Long's 17 piece orchestra.
