The Scottish National Jazz Orchestra, corto.alto and singer Georgia Cécile head up the jazz contingent at Glasgow’s Celtic Connections festival, which takes place across the city from Thursday 16 January to Sunday 2 February 2025.
The SNJO features in two concerts, joining forces with Highland folk group Breabach at Glasgow Royal Concert Hall on Thursday 23 January and staging its ambitious sci-fi adventure Nu-Age Sounds: Planet World at the Old Fruitmarket on the closing night of the festival.
corto.alto, who have been nominated in the Mercury Music Prize, the Scottish Album of the Year Award and the Parliamentary Jazz Awards, play at the iconic Barrowland Ballroom on Saturday 18th January before joining the SNJO’s Planet World cast.
Georgia Cécile plays the Old Fruitmarket on 21st January followed by fellow singers kitti (Drygate Brewery 22nd), Mary Coughlan (Mackintosh Church 30th) and Lady Blackbird (Pavilion Theatre 2nd Feb). Folk-jazz adventurers Norman&Corrie (aka saxophonist Norman Willmore and drummer-percussionist Corrie Dick) bring their experimental melding of two traditions to the Drygate Brewery on 24th January.
“We’re really pleased to be presenting Planet World as part of this great festival,” says SNJO founder-director, saxophonist Tommy Smith. “Eight of Scotland’s internationally acclaimed young jazz stars – corto.alto, trombonist Anoushka Nanguy, saxophonists Helena Kay and Matt Carmichael, pianist Fergus McCreadie, singer kitti, bassist Ewan Hastie and KARMA have been commissioned to write new music for this second Nu-Age Sounds project. After the success of the 2024 project, to be back at the Old Fruitmarket, a unique setting with an amazing atmosphere, is really exciting.”
