Taking place over two days at one of London’s most loved music venues, Vortex Jazz Club, the festival will bring you seasoned headliners and new fresh acts, all making exceptional music by bringing together the best of Middle Eastern and European musical ideas.
The music of the East and the jazz of the West is connected by the primacy of improvisation. In the dialogue between these styles of music, improvisation is taken to new heights as the rhythmic and melodic complexity of the East meets the harmonic mastery of Western jazz.
The Festival of the Between is the world’s first music festival focussed on showcasing these collaborations.
BAHLA – a quartet of exceptional jazz musicians who bring together Jewish folk music and Western jazz. Recently performed at Wigmore Hall and the BBC Proms.
Joseph Costi – piano
Tal Janes – guitar
Greg Gottlieb – bass
Ben Brown – drums
BALADI BLUES feat. Tarek Bitar – The Baladi Blues Ensemble plays the improvised urban Egyptian dance music known as Baladi. Their music reflects the sophisticated and fast-paced, urban lifestyle of 1950’s Cairo – all offered with a charming and enigmatic stage presence. Leading the group is the charismatic percussionist, dancer and record producer Guy Schalom, described as “one of the most interesting and versatile percussionists working in the UK today” (fROOTS).
Guy Shalom – percussion
Magdy Manga – quarter-tone accordion
Tarek Bitar – voice and oud
Hassan Reevis – percussion
Adam Warne – frame drum
With the support of Arts Council England
