Jazzahead! 2026: day three

There was lots of music and plenty of people to meet on the second full day of activities at jazzahead! 

My interviews have been fascinating, with more musicians from around the world, and a couple more scheduled in for tomorrow. There have also been some interesting discussions with record labels and festival organisers: we’re all working with a similar passion for jazz.

And then there has been some outstanding music …

Richard Koch’s ‘Rays of Light’

Afternoon jazz can be particularly enjoyable and that was definitely true of Richard Koch’s Rays of Light performance, There was a real joy in evidence on both stage and audience. Koch’s trumpet was accompanied by Fabiana Striffler (violin), Valentin Butt (accordion), Igor Spallati (bass) and Nora Thiele (frame drum).

The Jeremy Leadbetter Trio

A little later, I caught Canadian pianist Jeremy Leadbetter with his trio of Rich Brown (bass) and Larnell Lewis (drums). Their new album is Gravity, and I’ll be reviewing that as soon as I get hold of a copy. Leadbetter talked about the tune Suspirito and how it came to be composed and take on a new meaning. He said: “Music can take us back in time … music is so powerful.”

I was glad to have caught that set, and seen moments when Leadbetter’s hands were a blur on the keyboard. Simply extraordinary.

‘Veda & The String Machine’

The evening took me to a Luxembourg showcase that included guitarist Veda Bartringer (guitar) with a glimpse of her forthcoming project Veda & The String Machine. For this performance, she was joined by Julien Cuvelier (sax), Laurent Peckels (bass) and Maxime Magotteaux (drums).

Laura Jurd presents ‘Rites and Revelations’

My night ended with one of my favourite UK artists - trumpeter Laura Jurd. I’ve watched her ascent with interest, having first seen her at Hitchin’s JazzUp! several years ago.  She didn’t fail to impress the huge jazzahead! audience with just a hint of her 2025 albums Rites and Revelations. Her band was simply stunning, with Ultan O'Brien (viola), Tara Cunningham (guitar), Ruth Goller (bass) and Corrie Dick (drums).

The final day of jazzahead! beckons, and there are more very classy acts scheduled in