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Bodley [2]
ZARA MCFARLANE AND CUJO
Reviewed by ANDRE BEAUMONT
This was a Cambridge University Jazz Orchestra show on 20 November 2022.
Cambridge Jazz Festival has come a long way in its seven years.
I had not intended to write a review tonight but as Zara McFarlane is the Festival's first artist in residence and the Festival might possibly continue the near exponential growth of its early years it is worth a mention.
This was entirely a student show but the biggest event.
It was held at the West Road Concert Hall, a 499-seat venue owned by the University and the largest all seat venue in Cambridge designed specifically for music. The audience I would estimate at about 350 which is very good for jazz in Cambridge.
Zara McFarlane has multiple releases that can be found on Spotify and has performed at SXSW and the Royal Festival Hall amongst other places.
This was a really enjoyable experience watching the 16-piece band plus pianist and soloists.
There were some engaging wind solos.
Zara McFarlane can make some interesting high, sustained sounds. She had two vocalist support acts, Angel and Laura.
Zara McFarlane and CUJO
The Orchestra had to find ways to cooperate during lockdowns and Covid so relished being back in front of real audiences. This matters quite a bit because most students are only there for three years.
Zara McFarlane also has a duo performance during the Festival at Jesus College.
Coda: Emma Rawicz and CUJO
On 26 November 2023 I went to the finale of the Cambridge Jazz Festival 2023 at West Road to listen to Emma Rawicz and CUJO. This time the concert hall was full.
Fresh from performing at the London Jazz Festival, Emma Rawicz is the second artist in residence. She is a tenor saxophonist, composer and band leader with two recent albums.
With this opportunity to work with a big band, she has written compositions for the band and adapted existing works for them. These showed the orchestra very well. As with many shows with student participation there was no programme with title list but she gamely remembered the names of all 18 playing with her, plus the soloist for the solitary vocal piece, in giving credits to them.
She is an outgoing and good bandleader who works easily with people.
She was commissioned to write a piece just for the Festival and the orchestra, which she entitled Quirky and which here gave individual instruments in CUJO the opportunity to feature while keeping the big band sound.
Emma Rawicz also performed at Cambridge Junction J2 with her quartet.