On top of existing offers, recent additions include:

• 10% discount on food and beverages when dining in The Wyvern restaurant at the Midland Hotel, Manchester
• 10% discount at In-Situ Architectural Antiques in Hulme, Manchester
• 10% discount at Nood fashion boutique in Chorlton Green, Manchester
• £10 off MOTs at Robins & Day Manchester in Salford

Members also receive, of course, 10% discount on all mjf Festival Pavilion tickets; an invitation to the launch and free entry (year round!) to Matt & Phred’s Jazz Club. Join today or give membership to a friend here.

See the mjf website for full details and terms & conditions.

Just click on the buy tickets button on each gig page (or here on the left!) to go through to the sales page. Of course, you can still purchase tickets on the door, but buying in advance guarantees you a ticket for less and beats the queues!

The buy tickets link will also take you directly to the booking pages for Band on the Wall and RNCM.

Our new Double Ticket deals also enable you to save money and get to more gigs for less of your hard-earned cash. Have a look at the deals below and check out the Double Ticket deal information on the relevant gigs pages.

Festival Pavilion Weekend Ticket, £20 (adv only)
Sat 14 July, Bugalu Foundation + Sun 15 July Rick Farrow & The Big Red Orchestra

Band on the Wall Double Ticket, £17.50 (adv only)
Weds 18 July, Zoe Rahman Quartet + Thurs 19 July Sons of Kemet & Anton Hunter Trio

Festival Pavilion Double Ticket £15.00 (adv), £17.00 (door)
Fri 20 July, Pete Moser + Ríoghnach Connolly’s Black Lung

Launching the festival on 13 July, with a big, bold and brassy celebration, is Manchester’s Pocket Central. Opening weekend continues on Saturday 14 with the energetic avant garde piano trio A Greater Horror, while The Bugalu Foundation take over Saturday night in the Festival Pavilion with a danceable, up tempo groove.

Across the festival venues, this year’s mjf highlights how jazz improvises with influences from folk, electronic, reggae, rock, classical, Irish, African and South American music, amongst many others. At the RNCM a 20 piece band join British jazz legend Stan Sulzmann with arrangements of the music of some of his favourite musicians – a genuine big band experience with players young and old, new and established, on Tuesday 17.The Band on the Wall programme includes Mercury prize nominee Zoe Rahman, with music from her current Kindred Spirits on Wednesday 18, and at Matt & Phred’s Jazz Club Manchester guitarist Stuart McCallum joins forces with celebrated vocalist Ríoghnach Connolly.

Presented in collaboration with Instituto Cervantes, Mastretta (14 July) bring a theatrical and fiery tone and Kind of Cai, (19 July) bring an Andalusian colouring to Miles Davis’ Kind of Blue. The mjf originals scheme presents not one but two premières of original works: George King’s Songs of the Caged Bird is a collaboration with Manchester Camerata, and Pete Moser’s Sound Games, in collaboration with More Music, is an unusual take on the Olympic frenzy about to grip the nation – inspired directly by sporting activity.

In addition, mjf once again welcomes BBC Radio 3 and the team from Jazz on 3, who’ll be recording a special edition of their show, featuring the best in unsigned bands (16 July).

If you are interested, please download and read the guidance notes here and make sure your application reaches us by Friday 27 April.

Doreen wowed everyone with her dexterity at the decks last year – so much so that we’ve invited her back to spin some rare and funky jazz and grooves from her personal record collection. Bring your dancing shoes!

Free

Neil Fairclough

Neil Fairclough – bass guitar, lead vocals
Kirsty Roberts – vocals
Phil Nicholas – trumpet, flugelhorn
Steve Parry – trumpet
Andy Morel – alto & baritone saxophones, vocals
Tim France – tenor saxophone, flute
Sam Healey – tenor saxophone
Johnny Hayes – guitar, vocals
Steve Hayes – guitar
Neil Edwards – keyboards, vocals
Johnny Musgrave – keyboards
Bryan Hargreaves – drums, vocals

Duration: 2 x 50 mins

First up, we welcome back a Manchester favourite: strong original songs in the vein of Tower of Power, James Brown and Steely Dan, underpinned by tight ensemble passages and performed with exceptional musicianship and a sense of fun. A celebratory vibe for the opening gig of this year’s festival, which will also see the launch of their long-awaited album. DJ sets after the gig.

£12 (adv) / £14 (door)

Presented in association with Band on the Wall

Alice Zawadzki

Alice Zawadzki – vocals
Ben Cottrell, Ben Watte – tenor saxophones
Stuart McCallum – guitar
Rosemary Toll – ’cello, vocals, percussion
Pete Turner – double bass
Dave Walsh – drums

Duration: 3 x 45 mins

Alice takes us on a journey across continents, bringing you beautiful and uplifting jazz inspired by music from Africa, Greece, Poland and Scandinavia, as well as original material inspired by John Coltrane, Joni Mitchell and Savina Yannatou, brought innovatively to life by Manchester’s finest musicians. Come and be transported!

£5 (free to mjf friends) – tickets available on the door

Presented by Matt & Phred’s

Alice Zawadzki Myspace

Phil Meadows

Phil Meadows – alto saxophone
Laura Jurd – trumpet
Elliot Galvin – piano
Conor Chaplin – double bass
Corrie Dick – drums

Duration: 60 mins

Intense, energetic and powerful grooves contrasted with emotive and delicate melodies, Phil’s original, intricate music keeps you guessing all the way, mixing a cocktail of influences from both the ECM and NinjaTune record labels.

Free

Phil Meadows Group Website
Phil Meadows Group Facebook

Lluis Mather

Lluis Mather – tenor saxophone, clarinet
Holly Thomas – vocals
Dan Nicholls – piano
Euan Palmer – drums

Duration: 60 mins

This ensemble combines influences from 20^th century composers (Messiaen, Debussy, Ligeti) and mathematical concepts such as fractal geometry; the seemingly intellectual approach produces surprisingly emotional responses in the music: extreme highs and lows, terrifying energy, spine-tingling beauty and quirky twists and turns.

Free

Lluis Mather Website

Roller Trio

James Mainwaring – tenor saxophone, electronics
Luke Wynter – guitar
Luke Reddin-Williams – drums

Duration: 60 mins

Thrashy noise, groovy riffs and evocative electronic soundscapes disguise complex structures and broader influences from reggae and Indian music in this free-spirited young jazz-rock band, whose achievements were recognised with a prestigious Peter Whittingham Jazz Award last year.

Free

Roller Trio Website
Roller Trio Facebook