Category Archives: Press Reviews

RIP Madiba

Death is something inevitable. When a man has done what he considers to be his duty to his people and his country, he can rest in peace. I believe I have made that effort and that is, therefore, why I will sleep for the eternity.
– Nelson Mandela (1918-2013)

TOMORROW'S WARRIORS

RIP Nelson Mandela (Courtesy of Nelson Mandela Foundation)

What counts in life is not the mere fact that we have lived. It is what difference we have made to the lives of others that will determine the significance of the life we lead.
Nelson Mandela

Individually and collectively, we are heartbroken at your passing, but rejoice in your life, your leadership, your truth, and your inspiration. Most of all we rejoice in your love. You are a true Warrior. Thank you, Madiba. May you rest in beautiful peace.

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Listen again: Robert Elms interviews Denys Baptiste on BBC London

BBC Robert Elms-Denys Baptiste interview

Great interview with Denys Baptiste by the wonderful Robert Elms on BBC Radio London last week ahead of his show at Harrow Arts Centre. Lovely to hear Robert acclaim Denys’ album, Let Freedom Ring! (Dune Records, DUNECD010) as ‘one of the most eloquent statements to have come out of British jazz in years’. We agree! It is an extraordinary, very special piece of music that has become a modern-day jazz classic.

Just a couple more days left to catch the interview on the BBC iPlayer. Click here, then scroll through to 02:34:22. Enjoy!

So what do YOU think happened the only time Bix Beiderbecke and Louis Armstrong played together?

Bix: Singing The Blues

Denys BaptisteDenys Baptiste has been interviewed on BBC Radio 3 to provide a bit of a prelude to a new BBC Radio 3 drama, Bix: Singing The Blues  by Robert Forrest to be broadcast this Sunday 17 November at 10.00pm. Set against a backdrop of racial and musical segregation in the 1920s, the play gives a fictionalised version of the one and only time Bix and Louis Armstrong played together in a private, after-hours session.

According to the BBC programme notes:

Louis ArmstrongApart from their genius, the musicians Bix Beiderbecke and Louis Armstrong had little in common. Armstrong was black and Beiderbecke was white and musical segregation was complete in the 1920’s. Armstrong would go on to be one of the first musicians to challenge this racial divide, and his life story is well documented. Beiderbecke was an alcoholic who died young – but perhaps his greatest tragedy was that he never got to play with the best – because in his view the best were black.

Set your reminder now! BBC Radio 3 Sunday 17 November at 10.00pm

“Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that.” Martin Luther King

Through music we remember Martin Luther King, his words and the movements of peace and equality that he stood for.

Some shots from Now Is The Time…Let Freedom Ring at the Queen Elizabeth Hall, Southbank last month:

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Look exciting? Theres still time!

And if you missed the gig last month – we’re still on tour and will be at the Harrow Arts Centre on November 21st with Denys Baptiste, the full 13-piece band (as seen above) and the stirring voices of Lemn Sissay and Ben Okri delivering poetry which not only underlines Yeast Culture’s archival Civil Rights footage, but also incites a united sense of social change among audience and performer alike. Tickets are now on sale for just £15!

Now is the time…

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4 stars review for Denys Baptiste: NOW IS THE TIME…LET FREEDOM RING!

Denys Baptiste - Now Is The Time...Let Freedom Ring @ QEHAnd here’s a very nice 4-stars review from the Financial Times:

An 80-voice choir and a string quartet served notice of the ambitions of saxophonist Denys Baptiste’s reworked celebration of Martin Luther King’s “I Have a Dream” speech….Read on

Edinburgh review: ‘Ambitious, heart-rending, spine-tingling, exquisite, moving…powerful stuff indeed’

Another review just in of Now Is The Time…Let Freedom Ring!, this time from Rhythmaning who saw the concert at Usher Hall in bonny Edinburgh.  Clearly, this show is having a real impact on audiences ‘Ambitious…heart-rending…spine-tingling…exquisite…moving…powerful stuff indeed’. This is a MUST-SEE show!!

Read the full review here…

Hear the phenomenal Love Music Community Choir singing with the orchestra:

We can’t wait to be at Turner Sims Concert Hall in Southampton on the 25th!

A Concert of Deep Social Significance

“This was a concert of deep social significance…a masterful merge of composition and soloists which may ultimately be comparable with the extended works of Ellington, Mingus or Gil Evans.” – Lance at bebop spoken here

A wonderful review by Bepop Spoken Here of Denys Baptiste’s wonderful Now Is The Time…Let Freedom Ring! concert at Sage Gateshead –  click for the full interview. Four generations of Tomorrow’s Warriors appear in this fabulous band – testament to its impact and significant legacy over the past 22 years. After kicking-off the tour in Gateshead we’re moving to Usher Hall in Edinburgh – Tickets still available so don’t miss out! See you there tonight!

Dr Martin Luther King

4-star REVIEW for CATCH A FIRE at Usher Hall

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Wow! Another 4-star review for Jazz Jamaica All Stars, Urban Soul Orchestra and Brinsley Forde, this time from Rob Adams writing for the Herald about the grand finale to the Catch A Fire tour and closing night of the Lively Up! Festival. And what a night it was!

Warm and very special thanks go to the Tinderbox Orchestra for setting the fuse for the final gig of our first Catch A Fire tour (we hope to do more!), and helping to make the closing night of the Lively Up! Festival utterly electric. You guys didn’t get a mention in the Herald review, but we were all seriously impressed with your performance and look forward to working with you under the aegis of Tomorrow’s Warriors. Soon come…!

We had a ball at Usher Hall. Big thanks to Karl Chapman for keeping faith with our ability to deliver the most amazing show. With over 1,000 pre-sales, we knew we were going to have a fantastic audience for our last night and what better place to have our party than in Edinburgh. It was a blast and we’re all still buzzing from it. Brilliant! 

We’ll post up the video from Edinburgh shortly, including the train journey home when we were joined by some Scottish footie fans on their way to Newcastle who refused to let Brinsley continue his journey without a song! One Love – it was a hoot! Watch this space…

Meantime, here is the 4-star review (thanks Rob!):

“Tweet if you’re having fun!” was the instruction from the stage and the information sheet handed out on arrival. It took a song or four before visible signs of enjoyment broke out in the audience, which wasn’t due, surely, to bassist and artistic director Gary Crosby’s mock-stern “don’t dance, this is serious music” directive being taken literally. But once one lone dancer had led the way, there was as much of a party going on in the stalls as there was on the stage. READ ON…

 

 

VIDEO: CATCH A FIRE – What the Leeds audience thought of it

We said the lovely people of Leeds had a fantastic time at Catch A Fire at the Town Hall last week. Don’t just take our word for it…watch this! And this response has been replicated at every venue the Lively Up! Festival has been to! AWESOME! Congratulations to all of our wonderful Festival artists!