Newcastle and the Gateshead International Jazz Festival.
Gateshead International Jazz Festival 05:49
At the weekend, the Sage Gateshead held its legendary International Jazz Festival (15-17 April) As someone who knows nothing about jazz I had no idea what to expect. My friend Nic is a massive music geek and a huge jazz fan though. So when she asked me to go with her on Saturday, I thought I'd see what all of the fuss was about.
The program boasted there would be jazz of all kinds, some funk, soul and blues, a mixture of UK, European and International Jazz icons. Something for the hardcore fans, people who like a little listen now and again, and then people like me who only thought there was one type of jazz out there. It seems I had a lot to learn.
The weather wasn't too bad, so before we went into the Sage, we stopped to have a little look on the Quayside. The Sage is in a prime location and it would be rude not to have a little peek. As we were walking down I spotted some graffiti in some of the archways. There was an amazing one of Bowie and Mozart (I think.) I love looking at graffiti, especially works of art and quirky writing.
The festival went on throughout the day. We started off standing right near the stage, but later went up the stairs, pulled up a seat and watched from the balcony. Jazz is all about feeling the music, swaying in your seat and listening to the tempo. (See I'm learning already.)
The Jazz Line-up stage (where we were) was part of BBC Radio 3 and was being recorded for a future show. It featured artists such as Northern Monkey Brass Band and Jazz vocalist Ian Shaw. It was free to watch and enjoy. There were other artists and performances that you could buy tickets for and watch, but I'm guessing a lot of those were already fully booked. As a first time listener I think just sampling a few different people and bands was good. Hearing the saxophones and the piano going was amazing.
In between sets, Nic and I chatted and had a little catch up. She told me all about the different kinds of jazz. Who knew there were so many. We rifled through leaflets and found other similar events we could plan to go to. I wandered around and took pictures of Newcastle from inside. I love how you can see the industrial lines of the window frames in the photos.
Later on we went back to the Quayside for another little look around. All in all it was a canny day. I always feel so cultured and adult-like when I got to galleries and events with a bit more about them (if that makes sense.) It was great being in a room surrounded by people who were just there to enjoy a bit of jazz on a Saturday afternoon.
I liked being there to try something new and to learn a bit about music. I might not be as big a fan as Nic, but it was still a good experience nonetheless. Sometimes its just nice doing something for your friends too. I mean I enjoyed it, but for Nic it probably meant so much more.
Did any of you check out the Gateshead International Jazz Festival?
