Freedom Festival 2015

Spanning the clubwise modernist sensibilities of the Westside and the improv–central Eastside comes Warriors International’s Freedom:The Art of Improvisation Festival, a ground breaking mid-summer two day festival held at Hackney’s Vortex combining workshops, DJ sets and live music from midday.

The Freedom Festival builds on Orphy and Cleveland’s highly acclaimed monthly Freedom Sessions – boundary pushing, uplifting jam and DJ sessions – that began life at Charlie Wrights and is now at its new home at the Vortex. True to its original ethos, The Freedom Festival brings a unique Afro Caribbean perspective to the world of ‘improv’ and unites a scintillating cross generational, cross cultural collective of inspirational musicians to perform in a variety of multi-dimensional musical settings.

PERFORMANCE PROGRAMME:

12.00pm -1.15pm
AMPLIFIER SESSION - AACM ‘ancient to the future, great black music’. A Vinyl/Freeform Music & Spoken Word Opera: Byron Wallen – Trumpet, HKB Finn – Spoken Word/African Drums, Paul Bradshaw – Decks.

2.00pm -3.00pm
XENICIBIS FREEFORM ENSEMBLE: Cath Roberts – Baritone Sax, Phillip Achille – Harmonica, Nubya Garcia -Sax’s, Sahra Gure – Voice, Tori Handsley -Harp, Zuri Jarrett Boswell – Piano, Renell Shaw -Bass, Beibei Wang -Perc..

3.45pm -4.30pm:
TONY KOFI’S SPHINX TRIO: (Ornette Coleman Project) Tony Kofi – Alto Sax, Andrew Robb – Bass, Rod Youngs – Drums. Special Guest – Cleveland Watkiss.

4.45pm – 6.30pm
FREEDOM: The Art of Improvisation loft jam session!

7.30pm – 11.00pm
CLEVELAND WATKISS & ORPHY ROBINSON ‘DUKE JOINT’

WORKSHOPS PROGRAM

9.30am -10.10am.
SONGERAMA – Vocal Workshop with Cleveland Watkiss. Admission: £5.00

10.45am – 11.45am.
WARRIORS Music Workshop with Claude Deppa & Ray Carless. Admission: £5.00

SUNDAY 28TH JUNE

PERFORMANCE PROGRAMME

12.00pm -1.15pm:
FREEFORM IMPROV STRINGS JAM SESSION

2.00pm -3.00pm:
ROWLAND SUTHERLAND QUARTET

3.45pm – 4.30pm:
BLACK TOP: (Orphy Robinson – Vibes/ Perc /Keys. Pat Thomas – Piano / Electronics) Special Guests – Cleveland Watkiss – Voice/Looping. Rachel Musson – Sax, Roland Ramanan – Trumpet, Otto Williams – Bass, Mark Mondesir – Drums.

4.45pm – 6.30pm:
FREEDOM: The Art of Improvisation loft jam session!

WORKSHOPS PROGRAM

10.30am – 11.30am.
AN EXPLORATION OF IMPROVISATION TECHNIQUES WITH STEVE BERESFORD. Admission: £10

Visit freedom-festival.co.uk/ for more information.