A MAJOR jazz festival has been launched in Middlesbrough for the first time in 40 years.

The recently re-opened Town Hall will include an action-packed jazz weekend in its opening season.

Programmed by Ros Rigby, who has produced the Gateshead International Jazz Festival over the last 14 years, the Middlesbrough Jazz Weekender will include a nod to the past, but also firmly look to the future.

The last time there was a major jazz festival in Middlesbrough was the ‘Newport Jazz Festival at Ayresome Park’ in July, 1978, where large crowds listened to jazz stars such as Dizzy Gillespie, Ella Fitzgerald and Lionel Hampton at the football ground.

Ros Rigby herself attended the event and thought it would be fun to involve at least a couple of the UK-based artists who appeared then and are still touring.

These include Chris Barber with his band and NYJO - the National Youth Jazz Orchestra, who will both feature in the weekend.

Ros Rigby said: “I was absolutely delighted to be asked to programme this first major jazz event in the beautiful newly refurbished Town Hall and hope that it creates a starting point for more jazz events in the venue in future, as well as growing an interest in jazz among younger players and audiences.”

The weekend will start with four contemporary jazz ensembles who are attracting a new younger audience via a scheme run by the development agency Jazz North called Alt-Shift-J.

And the newly reformed Teesside Youth Big Band will work with musicians from the National Youth Jazz Orchestra towards a short performance at the start of NYJO’s own concert.

The Big Band theme for the weekend continues with the Big Chris Barber Band on Saturday evening – not a conventional big-band as such but a ten-piece line-up playing music from the first half of the 20th century onwards.

Singers will also have a chance to work with outstanding vocal leader Pete Churchill, who will run a vocal workshop on Sunday morning helping singers to learn by ear and to move while singing. The group will then have a chance to perform what they’ve learnt on the free stage.

Full details and tickets for all shows are available from 10am on Friday, July 6 from www.middlesbroughtownhall.co.uk or by calling on 01642-729729.