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During spring & summer you can join this friendly group of music-lovers on the banks of the Oxford canal for a wholesome Sunday session
Looking for a wonderful soundtrack on a Lazy Sunday afternoon? Head along to the Elizabeth Jennings Jam session in north Oxford, 2-4pm on Sundays throughout summer.
Enjoy music of the last six decades, from folk, country, blues, ragtime, early European and Latin American music. As Boima Rogers tells us, the genres and ambience can sometimes be a far cry from the tranquil Oxford city canal atmosphere, “notably bawdy English ballads going back a few centuries and haunting blues renditions harking back to the Mississippi delta at the beginning of the 20th century.
“An eclectic group combining professional and amateur musicians play a variety of contemporary and intriguing traditional musical instruments, such as Bowed Psaltery, accordions, musical saws, lutes, keyboards, string and percussion.”
While the Sunday afternoon sessions have yet to be “discovered” or placed on the regular tourist To-Do lists, visitors looking for a part of Oxford away from the maddening crowds of regular tours are enthusiastically welcomed and invited to join in; a hidden gem and refreshing experience.
The event is a child of Covid19 when the lead musician, Frank Underwood decided to go on the green looking for somewhere safe to play. Other musicians followed, leading to regular jam sessions and appreciative audiences – in keeping with the advice to avoid close contacts, spread out on the green. Frank, a classically trained musician, sings and plays lute, guitar, harmonica, piano and more. Originally from Banbury, brought up in Oxford, he has been making music for over half a century. He embodies that unique characteristic of Oxford life, namely ordinary people who turn out to have led extraordinary and well- known lives. The unassuming Frank led a band, Windsong, that featured Annie Lennox prior to her role in Eurythmics. He has also worked with and/or had links with Fairport Convention, Steeleye Span and James Blunt. He was commissioned to write and perform music to honour Bishop Desmond Tutu of
South Africa, featuring “Child of Soweto”. A Jane Austen buff, he has also established a group- Austentation- devoted to the author. He has released three CDs, featuring medieval material, folk and blues. Like his diverse musical genres, his musical journey started from busking in Greenpark tube station, London, to performances all over the UK and worldwide, including stints in France, India, Norway, Italy, Switzerland and America. His focus now is Oxfordshire and nearby counties.
Angela Mayorga who sings and plays guitar and percussion, also a key member of Austentation, has collaborated with Frank for thirteen years on various musical projects.
A regular “visitor” is Emma Welsh, Sally’s daughter, based in Brighton who sings and plays the guitar, backing her mother. Emma works in community music to assist mental health, disable and dementia patients and refugees and performs in Rainbow Chorus, an LGTB group.
The Elizabeth Jennings session is indeed a beautiful quirky part of Oxford but one that gives a lot of fun to session musicians, locals peering from their balconies, in whoever is lucky enough to escape from the hordes of tourists in Oxford city centre. Bystanders have also been known to occasionally introduce
a tune, a dance or unusual musical instrument. The group welcomes all people to join in and before you know it there is a tambourine or set of bells in your hand and you find yourself singing, humming or tapping your feet, “there is always a song or beat inside of you and you just have to let it out!”
So, take a picnic and a tune and join the fun on the Green at Elizabeth Jennings Way and look out for notices for performances at NOA in the off- season. There is no charge for the event.
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