Orchestra tailors concert for older music lovers

The Scottish National Jazz Orchestra has added a special afternoon concert for older music lovers at the Queen’s Hall on Sunday 1 December to is upcoming Remembering Duke tour.

In partnership with Care UK, the SNJO will present a relaxed edition of its celebration of jazz legend Duke Ellington’s music which is specially tailored for an older audience with accompanying family members.

“We believe that music has the unique ability to evoke memories, lift spirits, and foster connections, and we recognise how important these experiences are for older people,” says SNJO founder-director, saxophonist Tommy Smith.

Using the Queen’s Hall’s cabaret-style seating and keeping the auditorium well-lit, says Smith, will provide a welcoming and inclusive environment to ensure that everyone can enjoy the music in a comfortable and supportive setting where people can move around or take breaks when required.

The concert will last between 45 minutes and an hour and will feature many of Duke Ellington’s most familiar compositions. Wheelchair spaces and welcoming front-of-house staff will be on hand and the doors will open forty-five minutes before the scheduled start time of 3pm to let everyone settle in.

Under Smith’s direction the SNJO has developed an international reputation for interpreting Ellington’s music, with its In the Spirit of Duke album from 2012 earning critical acclaim in the US and Europe as well as here at home.

The shorter afternoon concert will precede the scheduled evening performance of Remembering Duke which is part of a tour involving a thirty-four-strong cast. As well as a performance by the SNJO and special guest, vocalist Lucy-Anne Daniels, the evening concert will feature an opening set by the seventeen-piece Tommy Smith Youth Jazz Orchestra.

“We’re looking forward to playing this great music, which has so much depth and character,” Smith adds. “The audiences at both the afternoon and evening concerts will experience Ellington’s music in its authentic style in terms of staging, attire and musical equipment and we want everyone to enjoy listening to it as much as we enjoy playing it.”