It's become almost as much a tradition of the Nelson New Year as packing upper Trafalgar St to count out the old one, and recovering from a hangover on the sand at Tahunanui the next day: finding some time in lazy summer schedules to take in the annual Woollaston Jazz and Blues Festival, which kicks off its 20th year on January 2.
As always, there's a wide variety of performances – 60 in all, spread over eight days – including local, national and international acts, and not all strictly jazz or blues. That reflects festival organiser Rowena Richards' recognition that, in an increasingly packed events calendar at the start of the year, the festival needs to offer something for as many tastes as possible, and families in particular.
It will be comfortably familiar to anyone who has acquainted themselves with the festival over the past few years, kicking off with the popular Jazz in the Park show at Fairfield Park on January 2 – five bands over five hours on a Sunday afternoon and evening.
It became a ticketed event last summer, with an entry fee ($10 for pre-sales, $20 on the day), and Ms Richards admits that numbers took a hit – down from about 6000 to 4000. She hopes that there'll be a rebound this time, and has a headline act to help drag in the fans – dDub, perennial crowd-pleasers in Nelson.
Perhaps the biggest name in the festival reflects the reputation the event has gained in the wider world of jazz. Leading Australian jazzman James Morrison was convinced to make the trip here by fellow Aussie Emma Pask, a headliner at last year's festival.
Morrison, a multi-instrumentalist best known for his skills on trumpet and trombone, will be joined by Pask (vocals) and a four-piece band in what Ms Richards promises will be a "concert and a half" at the Theatre Royal on Saturday, January 8 (tickets $60, sellout expected).
Complete on >> http://i.stuff.co.nz/nelson-mail/entertainment/4489234/Time-for-all-that-jazz
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