We are delighted to announced that registration is now open for the 2022 Jazz Promotion Network conference, ‘Where Pathways Meet’. Taking place at The MAC, in Belfast’s vibrant Cathedral Quarter on Wednesday 3 & Thursday 4 November, the conference will bring the UK and Irish jazz sector together to focus on the most important issues and topics in jazz right now. Inspired by the Sun Ra composition of the same name, ‘Where Pathways Meet’ will have a firm focus on the future of jazz in these islands and beyond.
Programmed in partnership with Moving On Music in Belfast and the Improvised Music Company in Dublin, ‘Where Pathways Meet’ will feature a range of speakers from across the jazz sector, alongside a showcase of jazz talent from Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland. The conference will cover a broad range of topics, with panels featuring musicians, educators, promoters, agents and managers from all five nations.
The panels will feature a wide range of speakers, including musicians Orphy Robinson, Georgia Mancio, Claude Deppa, Tomos Williams, Scott Flanigan and David Lyttle, educators Pauline Black, Paula Gardiner and Helena Summerfield (Jazz Camp for Girls), academics Sarah Raine and Nick Gebhardt, plus representatives of key organisations including Black Lives In Music , Attitude is Everything and Jazz Newblood. We’re also thrilled that Belfast-born composer Brian Irvine MBE will join us on Thursday for a keynote speech on the theme of ‘Jazz as a Beacon of Hope’.
Delegates will have a chance to hear some of the most exciting jazz artists from across the island of Ireland in the relaxed surroundings of The Black Box (a few minutes from the MAC) in an unmissable programme curated by our conference partners Moving On Music and Improvised Music Company. Thrill to the sounds of Scott Flanigan Quartet, RBG Trio, Izumi Kimura and Lina Andonovska, Robocobra Quartet. There will be further live music slots throughout the daytime, including sets from MOBO award winning percussionist David Lyttle and composer and drummer Stephen Davis.
“The 2022 JPN Conference will be a chance for the jazz community right across the UK and Ireland to come together in a great setting to enjoy, finally, meeting up with friends and colleagues face to face.” says Ros Rigby, JPN Chair, “Crammed with sessions on a whole range of relevant topics, the event should provide delegates with ideas and approaches that will help in their day to day lives as musicians, promoters, agents and more. And we will get the chance to hear some great music from across the island of Ireland. See you in Belfast!”