Nishla Smith Quintet
Part of Gateshead Jazz 2020
“Nishla Smith’s original ballads sound like standards from the American Songbook … maudlin moments shoulder ecstatic reveries…” London Jazz News
Nishla is a singer and songwriter who defies easy categorisation. Her live sets include a breathtaking variety of material, from celebrated originals to dark jazz standards and devastating ballads. Her often dreamy and melancholic aura is offset by her energetic and imaginative band of Manchester’s finest young contemporary improvisers. The Nishla Smith Quintet have recently performed at the Manchester and Lancaster Jazz Festivals, NQ Jazz, The Vortex in London, and are currently part of Jazz North’s Northern Line roster
Over the course of the 2017/18 season, Nishla wrote, performed, and produced a major commission for Manchester Collective – ‘Cabaret’ received a national tour, was performed live on BBC3 In Tune, and was featured at Home MCR’s PUSH festival. Nishla rejoined the Collective this summer for the Cubitt Sessions, a set of live shows produced by Kings Place in London. Her other major project is a staged song cycle produced by Opera North: ‘What Happened to Agnes’, an immersive, cross-disciplinary show will tour the UK in the 19/20 season.
The Nishla Smith Quintet is a Jazz North Northern Line ambassador ensemble supported by Jazz North using public funding from Arts Council England.
Nishla Smith vocals / Aaron Wood trumpet / Richard Jones piano / Joshua Cavanagh-Brierley bass / Johnny Hunter drums