Cork Jazz returns: Where to see Macy Gray, Corrine Bailey Rae and more this October
Matthew Halsall, Kurt Elling and Macy Gray are among the acts announced for Guinness Cork Jazz Festival 2023.
The Guinness Cork Jazz Festival has revealed its first tranche of acts for the 2023 event. Among them are a mix of modern jazz stars and older acts, with a number of figures who hit the charts around the 1990s and Noughties due to visit Leeside over the weekend of October 26-30.
Macy Gray, Corinne Bailey Rae and Morcheeba are among the crossover acts on the bill, while jazz purists have the likes of Matthew Halsall and Kurt Elling to look forward to.
Cork City Hall also returns as a venue, with non-jazz acts such as DJ Jenny Greene, and former Spandau Ballet singer Tony Hadley performing.
“This year, we’re bringing in bigger acts, we have more venues and more ticketed shows at each venue,” said festival director Mark Murphy. “We’re also extending the Guinness music trail throughout Cork City’s vibrant venues, bars and restaurants, which provides a platform for local artists and an immersive experience for festival-goers.”
Among the early big sellers is likely to be Macy Gray at Cork Opera House on Thursday, October 26. The American singer broke through in 1999 with her worldwide smash ‘I Try’ and, as well as her own songs, the Cork concert also promises a set of classic hits from the 1970s.
Jazz fans will be delighted to hear about the return of Matthew Halsall, who played one of the festival’s best gigs of recent years, at the Everyman in 2021. The Manchester musician is to the fore of a resurgence of British jazz, and will play both an afternoon and night-time gigs at the Everyman.
Gilles Peterson was one of the first broadcasters to bring Halsall to a national audience, and the legendary BBC DJ is also manning the decks at Cyprus Avenue.
Funk fans can pay homage to Fred Wesley as the 80-year-old trombonist with such legends as James Brown and George Clinton brings his band to the Everyman. Among the other interesting gigs announced so far is the return of Brazilian pianist Amaro Freitas to Triskel Christchurch, and a continuation of the venue's association with the ECM label.
Organisers of the festival have promised further additions to the lineup in the coming months.
The 45th year of the jazz festival will round out a busy few months on the southern city’s music calendar, with Sounds From A Safe Harbour returning in early September with the likes of Feist and Wilco; and the city’s folk festival taking place September 28 to October 1.
- Tickets go on sale on Friday, July 7, at 10am via www.guinnesscorkjazz.com
- Macy Gray, Cork Opera House, 8pm
- Hailu Mergia, Venue and Time TBA
- Kurt Elling, The Everyman, 6pm
- Matthew Halsall, The Everyman, 10.15pm
- Adam Ben Ezra, Triskel Arts Centre, 6.30pm
- Morcheeba, Cork Opera House, 12am
- Hypnotic Brass Ensemble, Cork Opera House, 7pm
- The Charlatans, with special guests Pillow Queens, Cork City Hall, Time TBA
- Matthew Halsall, The Everyman, 2pm
- Kurt Elling, The Everyman, 6pm
- Muva of earth - Tawiah - Vega Trails, Live at St. Luke’s, 8pm
- Amaro Freitas, Triskel Arts Centre, 6.30pm
- Kevin Ingram Trio, Triskel Arts Centre, 10pm
- Corinne Bailey Rae, Cork Opera House, 7pm
- Fred Wesley & The New JBs, The Everyman, 6pm
- John Carroll Kirby Ensemble - Dorian Concept, Live at St. Luke’s, 2pm
- Bixiga 70, Live at St. Luke’s, 8pm
- Giles Peterson, time TBA
- ECM at Triskel 2023: Double bills with Oded Tzur Quartet & Marcin Wasilewski Trio, Triskel Arts Centre, time TBA
