Major jazz tour of the North pilots new model for sustainable touring

The Glasshousemanchester jazz festival, and Music Meeting Festival in the Netherlands have joined forces to programme two tours which will travel between venues exclusively by train. The tour serves as a pilot for a new model for sustainable touring and to help build local relationships. Flights are one the biggest sources of carbon emissions in the music industry. By taking the train, artists can significantly reduce their impact on the planet.

Taking place in May 2024, both tours stop off at the three venues, as well as travelling to other venues and festivals in the UK and the Netherlands. These will include Leeds Jazz Festival, Ronnie Scotts, Bimhuis (Amsterdam) and De Doelen Concert Hall (Rotterdam). The tours will set a positive example and gather useful data about touring by train that can be shared with other musicians and venues.

Fusing jazz-rock and Arab traditional music, SARĀB tour across the UK and Netherlands, visiting Music Meeting Festival (19th May), manchester jazz festival (25th May) and The Glasshouse (26th May). German saxophonist Daniel Erdmann will also present Thérapie de Couple, a new German-French sextet at Music Meeting Festival (20th May), manchester jazz festival (21st May), and The Glasshouse (22nd May).

The tours are funded by European Jazz Network’s Green Pilot Tour Fund which was created to support EJN members in organising tours based on the principles of sustainability, fair remuneration, inclusion, and gender balance.