Johnny Hunter’s Let There Be Peace

Name: Johnny Hunter’s Let There Be Peace
Start: 2025-10-01T20:00:00+01:00
Location: The Lescar, 303 Sharrow Vale Rd, S11 8ZF Sheffield, United Kingdom

Schedule

Wed, 01 Oct, 2025 at 08:00 pm

UTC+01:00

Location

The Lescar, 303 Sharrow Vale Rd, S11 8ZF Sheffield, United Kingdom | Sheffield, EN

Resonant and relevant new music based on a poem by Lemn Sissay, composed by drummer Johnny Hunter, and performed by an all-star ensemble featuring Zoe Gilby (voice), Johnny Hunter (drums, voice), Aby Vulliamy (viola, voice) Gemma Bass (violin, voice) Michael Bardon (cello, voice), Graham South (flugelhorn, piccolo trumpet, voice) Charlotte Keefe (trumpet, voice) and George Murray (trombone, voice).

TICKETS: £10 or £7 for students.
Pay on the door, or alternatively get advance tickets by emailing [email protected] or messaging the Jazz at The Lescar.
Doors 8pm, music 8.30pm
Composed during Johnny’s participation in Serious Music’s Take Five scheme, this will be one of the first times that he has expanded his musical vision to a larger ensemble, and the first time he has included both voice and text. The composition will be interspersed with a setting of the poem 'Enough For Me', written by Palestinian poet Fadwa Tuqan.
An energising and creative force, Johnny Hunter’s reputation continues to grow, working with musicians including Ingrid Laubrock, Liam Noble, Gerry Hemingway, Laura Cole, Alicia Gardener-Trejo and John Pope. As both a drummer and a composer, he’s an inspiring presence who’s music always pushes forward and develops in original and unexpected ways.
This band brings together some of the most exciting and distinctive voices on the UK improvised music scene, all of whom have brought something special to The Lescar on previous visits. We’re excited to hear them performing this music together.
Zoë Gilby was awarded Jazz Vocalist of the Year at the 2019 Parliamentary Jazz Awards, a compelling vocalist, she brings an adventurous and stylishly distinctive approach to all her music, drawing on influences from Kate Bush to Thelonious Monk, and amongst many varied projects, well as a long standing duo with bassist Andy Champion, with whom she has also recorded a brand new project, Living in Shadows, drawing on English alt pop and progressive rock.
Aby Vulliamy (viola, voice) has shared the stage, recorded and collaborated with artists including John Tchicai, Evan Parker, Maggie Nichols, Matt Bourne, Annie Whitehead, Bridget St John and Mary Hampton, Stevie Jackson (Belle and Sebastian), Norman Blake (Teenage Fanclub), Aidan Moffat (Arab Strap), The Scottish Chamber Orchestra and the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra, as well as featuring on around 50 albums, including her own solo album Spin Cycle, a collection of piano-based songs reflecting on her experience of motherhood.
Gemma Bass (violin, voice) is a member of Little Pillars, Manchester Camerata and the BBC Philharmonic, and has released two albums on efpi records, ‘Missing Pieces | part 1 (me)’ and ‘Missing Pieces | part 2 (us)’ both on efpi records, and she appears with Royal Northern Sinfonia, Manchester Collective, Manchester Baroque and other chamber ensembles across the UK, as well as collaborating with Gwilym Simcock and Efpi All Stars.
Michael Bardon (cello, voice) has worked with a variety of musicians including Shatner's Bassoon, Keeley Forsyth, Matthew Bourne, Dave Kane, Tipping Point, James Mainwaring, Jaktar, Hassan Erraji, Craig Scott’s Lobotomy and Nat Birchall Quintet, as well as performing across the UK and Europe including at Experimenta Festival, (Bari, Italy) Locomotive Jazz Fest (Italy), Jazz Od Nowa Fest (Poland), Manchester Jazz Festival, The Vortex, Club Integral (London).
Graham South (flugelhorn, piccolo trumpet, voice) has appeared at The Lescar many times including with the Johnny Hunter Quartet, Anton Hunter’s Article XI, Beats and Pieces Big Band and the Manchester Jazz Collective. He also performs with the BBC Philharmonic, Manchester Camerata and the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra.
Charlotte Keefe (trumpet, voice) released her debut album, Right Here, Right Now on Sheffield’s excellent Discus Music label in 2021, to widespread acclaim, and leading to performances including Germany’s moers festival, the Southbank Centre's Purcell Room, the Royal Albert Hall’s Elgar Room, London Jazz Festival, Leeds Jazz Festival, Manchester Jazz Festival, Lancaster Jazz Festival, where she was Artist in Residence 2024, Cheltenham Jazz Festival, Cambridge's LISTEN!, and London's Café OTO, as well as performing alongside Dave Douglas, Pat Thomas, Paul Dunmall and many others.

A member of the Glasgow Improvisers Orchestra George Murray (trombone, voice) has also recorded and collaborated with Aby Vulliamy, Seth Bennett, Martin Archer (Engine Room Favourites), and toured extensively across Europe and recording in Germany with legends saxophonist John Tchicai and Joachim Irmler (Faust).