Three minutes and five seconds. The average length of a song played on the radio in the UK. Also, the time it takes to walk, at a fairly leisurely stroll (or, the pace of your average Vortex employee), from Cafe OTO on Ashwin Street, to Servant Jazz Quarters on Bradbury Street, passing Vortex as you go. When you think about it, it is a pretty incredible thing that three such prestigious venues are situated in such close proximity, and lately, we have been thinking about it, quite a lot. So much so that on Saturday 7th December, for the first time all three venues are working together to put on a spectacular 30 hours of live music – all in one day. With a line-up of twenty-five acts and finishing off at Vortex with one of our fabulous late night jam sessions (led by Hannes Riepler), each venue has live music planned from 4pm til the early hours of Sunday morning.
Each venue has its own distinct character and subtle nuances of musical taste. Cafe OTO love to adventure right to the very edges of musical experimentation, and pride themselves on “providing a home for creative new music that exists outside of the mainstream.” Servant Jazz Quarters loves local talent and “is dedicated to music from many genres and supports innovative artists from all backgrounds, and particularly those from the Hackney area.” And at Vortex we are passionate about cultivating and propagating what we call ‘the spirit of jazz’: our programme showcases music across all kinds of genres, but all with that same spirit of innovation, experimentation and improvisation that for us defines what jazz is all about. This festival is about exploring that point at which our differences intersect and our musical palettes overlap. And, of course, it’s about the simple and wonderful fact that we are all just the sing of a song away from one another. We very much hope to see you there.