EJN Staff Exchange Programme

Sending EJN member: JazzLab/nona (Belgium)
Hosting EJN member: The Glasshouse International Centre for Music (United Kingdom)
Dates of the exchange: 24–28 July 2025

My staff exchange began with a series of jazz concerts at The Fire Station in Sunderland, organised as part of the BBC Proms. The Fire Station is a modern and impressive venue, and the jazz acts performing that evening — Rivkala, Joe Webb Trio, and Theo Croker — were diverse and of high quality. What struck me most was the number of different roles involved in organising the concert, especially given the venue’s relatively small size. Due to the involvement of the BBC Proms, the stakes were high and every potential risk had to be anticipated and managed. In many ways, it was similar to concert nights I was used to, but with more safety measures and a much larger team involved.

On Friday evening, the in-house orchestra of The Glasshouse, the Royal Northern Sinfonia, performed with local pop artist Jade in Sage 1, the venue’s main concert hall. This event operated on a much larger scale than anything I usually experience with JazzLab. Musically, it was closer to a pop concert, but it was very interesting to observe how a venue with more than 80 staff members manages a sold-out event of this size. In my work with JazzLab, a concert for around 100 people is often handled by one person responsible for production, whereas at this scale, each aspect of the work is divided into specialised roles.

The following day began with a roundtable discussion with Jon Collins, CEO of LIVE, the federation representing the UK’s live music and entertainment sector. The discussion included venues, artists, and promoters from the North East, focusing on how to strengthen the regional live music ecosystem. Historically, the North East has received less support than regions such as London or Manchester, and it was interesting to hear about the challenges faced by the local scene and to draw comparisons with the situation in Belgium and Flanders.

Throughout the weekend, a free BBC Introducing Stage was set up in the concourse and open to the public. It showcased emerging artists from across the UK, highlighting some of the strongest talent in the North East. I worked with the artist development team to run the stage and support the artists involved. While the work was similar to what I do at home, adapting to the scale of the building and the associated security measures was a new and valuable experience.