Spring into the Manly Jazz Festival
It’s time for some foot tapping, finger snapping, hip swaying fun as Manly Jazz Festival (MJF) swings into town from 19 to 21 September. Australia’s longest running jazz festival promises to be better than ever with an impressive line-up featuring a wide variety of musicians with something for everyone, whether you’re a jazz aficionado or simply a music lover. And it’s free!
Performances will take place across four stages and in venues in and around Manly, showcasing the best traditional New Orleans jazz to soul, blues, roots, swing and funk.
The Beachfront Stage by Manly Beach will feature headline acts such as The Great Ladies of Jazz, with Nicki Parrott and Craig Calhoun, and the Brothers of Oz.
Sydney Road Stage has traditional and emerging musicians; St Mathews Stage will bring out the big band style, including Horns Plus Big Band, Blue Riff Big Band and Sussudio Big Band. There will of course be plenty of roving musicians too.
The dynamic and diverse festival program also includes some of our talented local school bands. Jazz orchestras from Northern Beaches Secondary College (Balgowlah Boys and Manly campuses) will be playing on the Jazz Stars of the Future stage over the weekend.
Eva Stokes teaches music at Bally Boys, who have played at the festival since 2019. She says performing at MJF is a positive experience for the Years 9 to 12 students.
“The boys thrive on having an audience and working as a team,” Eva says. “And they really love being able to show off the hard work they do. We’re quite lucky in that we’ve got such a thriving festival so close to home. And a lot of the boys have grown up around the Jazz Festival and have had parents that have been in and around it.
“But it’s also visibility of musicians that are outside of school as well,” Eva adds. “There’s that extension beyond school and that application beyond school too.”
The Bally Boys jazz orchestra plays an eclectic mix of funk and soul, and the audience can expect to hear anything from the Allman Brothers Band to Chuck Mangione’s flowing and tranquil trumpet lines. They’ve been known to do a Phil Collins piece too.
Whatever’s on the Bally Boys’ set list, you’ll be tapping along. Bally Boys Jazz Orchestra will perform on the morning of Saturday 20 September.
Manly Campus’s 24-strong jazz orchestra has also been playing at the MJF for many years. Aside from giving the students the chance to perform the repertoire they’ve been working hard on all year, school enrichment coordinator Lanneke Grace says it exposes the campus’s ‘wonderful band program’ to the community.
“The students love hearing other schools and professional groups performing,” says Lanneke. “The Manly Jazz festival has always been a highlight of our year, and our musicians really enjoy it.
“We have a really strong group this year,” explains Lanneke. “We often have trumpet, trombone, and alto saxophone solos. One of our Year 12 students in the ensemble is using the jazz orchestra as accompaniment for her HSC performance on trombone.”
And you’re in for a treat with a Year 10 female vocalist set to perform with the orchestra – she also played the lead role in the school’s musical this year.
Manly Campus Jazz Orchestra will be entertaining you with a wide variety of jazz pieces on Sunday 21 September at 4pm.
For a full program of events, visit the Northern Beaches Council website.
Manly
19 to 21 September
4pm Friday to 6pm Sunday
Free