Under Thirty Five - And Do Like Jazz

If you are in Manchester, England of a Wednesday evening check out The Indigo Bar. 460 Withington Rd. Withington, South Manchester, M20 4AN. Its a delight. You will find a weekly jam session organised and directed by saxophonist Ed Kainyek.

This dynamic individual knows just how to keep the proceedings under control in a manner that renders his underlying firmness almost imperceptible. Instances of fourteen front-men playing sixty four chorus each do not occur. There is usually a very good house rhythm section and Ed devotes time to communicating with both the musicians and the audience.

With any jam sessions there is always a disparity between the levels of musical ability and competence doing its stuff on The Stand. However in general everyone does get their moment and the overall level is in fact agreeably high.

But for me the real significance is the average age of the audience. Once into the session the bar is packed to minimum elbow room with individuals in their early twenties. There is a real buzz ! Sure The Indigo is a place for a great hang, but the observable fact is that a large percentage of the people are there because of the music.

This poses a question against the assumption that younger people are not interested in jazz. Well at The Indigo you can see for yourself that this assumption is in fact incorrect. There is a lesson to be learned here for anyone interested in promoting jazz to a younger and wider potential audience.

The Indigo Bar. 460 Withington Rd. Withington, South Manchester, M20 4AN

Jam session every Wednesday. Starts around 10.00pm until 12.30am

Note: Read: Under Thirty Five - And Do Like Jazz - But the bar owner doesn't. A familer story. New owner. Jazz fills the place. But he thinks he can do better with some other attraction.