In my post on New British jazz I mentioned Yazz Ahmed (site; wiki), so I was glad to hear her quintet at the London Jazz Festival this Saturday.

“High priestess of psychedelic Arabic jazz” is an alluring tagline, but doesn’t do justice to such a serious composer. Grand Junction in Paddington, a former church, made a striking venue, suitable for the reflective mood of her work, its architecture compensating for the intimacy of many jazz venues.

With her British-Bahraini background, Yazz Ahmed reflects in interview on exploring her Arabic heritage, but not limited to an ethnic bubble, she creates her own voice. Focusing on collaboration, she plays an unassuming role on trumpet and flugelhorn, modulating timbres with the aid of a Kaoss pad, highlighting ensemble textures—besides drums and bass guitar, the quintet is enriched by vibes and bass clarinet, joined in the second half by vocalist Randolph Matthews.

Source.

Here’s her first album FInding my way home (2011) (playlist):

La Saboteuse (2017) (playlist):

Her studio album Polyhymnia (2019) is a six-movement suite devoted to “six women of exceptional qualities, role models with whom she felt a strong bond”: Rosa Parks, Malala Yousafzai, Ruby Bridges, Haaifa Al-Mansour, Barbara Thompson, and the Suffragettes (playlist):

And a foretaste of her forthcoming album A paradise in the hold:

In This Day and Age™, while it would be churlish to write off new creativity in Western Art Music, I find far more relevant all the activity going on beneath the broad umbrella of “jazz”—further enhanced in live performance by the major factor of atmosphere. I’ve explored the theme of “serious music” at length here. 

For a wide range of classic and world jazz, see this extensive roundup. And you can work through the plethora of posts under the world music category in the sidebar, including not just China and India but flamenco, Turkish music, and much more…