The Jazz Room at Bass Festival
Sunday 13th June 2010 at The MAC (Midlands Art Centre) Birmingham at 5:00pm
The history of Jazz, from Funk to Fusion to Acid, will be brought firmly into the fore during this year’s BASS Festival (British Arts and Street Sounds). The figurehead of the UK Acid Jazz scene, Snowboy, will be master of ceremonies on Sunday 13th June at the new MAC and launch his new book. Audience members will be able to put their questions to Snowboy about the scene and he will be signing copies of his acclaimed new book ‘From Jazz Funk & Fusion to Acid jazz: The History Of The UK Jazz Dance Scene’. This book has taken over 15 years of research and interviews span the whole of the jazz/funk scene from Newcastle to Plymouth
A free jazz dance workshop will kick off the proceedings in the afternoon and participants will be able to learn some extra special moves ready for the evening when Mark ‘Snowboy’ Cotgrove’s will open his record collection and takes to the turntables. Dick Jewell’s film "The Jazz Room" will also be screened for only the third time in the UK
"The Jazz Room", shot on Super 8 and completed in 1987, was about the development of jazz dance at The Electric Ballroom, Camden. At the start of each night 'the film so far’ was projected above the dance floor, before continuing to shoot more material to incorporate into the film. This created an interaction between the dancers and the film that informed the development of the dance style. It premiered in 1986 at The Leicester Super 8 Film Festival and has more recently screened in 2005 within assume vivid astro focus featuring Dick Jewell at Tate Gallery Liverpool, Cargo in 2009 as part of Drum Festival's 'Beyond The Ballroom and at Kunsthalle Zurich in October 2009.