A live jazz club will launch at The Boathouse on Friday.
The Nick Tomalin Group, which features local residents alongside world class professional musicians, will kick off the opening night of London East Jazz in the Ice House Quarter as part of the Boathouse Fridays sessions.
The London East Jazz Network has been created by Mark Kass – former head of the Barking Enterprise Centre and chair of the Barking and Dagenham Skills, Jobs and Enterprise Board – who is a huge jazz fan and wants to showcase the recent resurgence of quality jazz music across east London and beyond.
“It’s an absolute no-brainer to launch the London East Jazz Network at The Boathouse studios,” he told the Post.
“The diverse, multi-culturalism across the borough, the change taking place in Barking town centre, the exciting regeneration of the Icehouse Quarter at Abbey Road’s Roding Riverside and the teamwork and creativity involved across the community in launching The Boathouse studios bar and café meant we just had to launch the London East Jazz Network here.”
His vision is to bring together local jazz clubs, musical organisations, musicians, composers, venues and media sources to demonstrate the power of jazz music.
“Jazz demonstrates the incredible power of music and when you see it live and up close in an intimate venue like The Boathouse, you’ll realise how hard these musicians work to collaborate and innovate together at the drop of a hat,” Mark enthused. “It’s mind-blowing, inspirational and ridiculously annoying as they make it look so easy – and at the same time it’s a fantastic release after a hard week and a great way to start off a weekend.”
Carole Pluckrose, The Boathouse’s creative director, is equally excited about the new project.
“Recently we’ve brought opera, Bollywood dancing and folk music to Barking and Dagenham,” she said.
“Hosting exciting live music and in particular jazz at the studios compliments the fast developing art, culture and cultural feel of our exciting borough and we look forward to seeing and hearing more over the months to come.”
The live music starts at 8pm, but the bar and cafe will be open from 6pm.
Tickets cost £8 to £10 on the door or can be booked in advance. Visit ticketsource.co.uk/date/GEEKIE
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