Vocalists take center stage

At the festival this year, there are many examples of this. One is the Artist in Residence, Jacob Collier, who uses the entire audience as a living choir during his concerts by having listeners sing harmonies or deploying the sounds they make as percussion. Then we have Samara Joy who taps into a whole new audience with her distinctive vocals, and Lady Blackbird who, with her intense, raw vocals, is not infrequently compared to Etta James, Nina Simone and Billie Holiday. Three fast emerging vocalists are making their debut at this year’s festival: Christie Dashiell, who collaborated on Terri Lyne Carrington’s new project, Ganavya with her Indian influences and aja monet, a new discovery at the interface of poetry and jazz. It’s also the first appearance in Ahoy for the more experienced AHNONI and the Johnsons. Not so for legends Diana Ross and Norah Jones, who will once again showcase their vocal prowess.

That’s not all by far, since there’s also a strong revival of nineties R&B. Back then, no singer managed to fuse soul and hip-hop as artfully as American Mary J. Blige. Singer Maxwell, who debuted at North Sea Jazz in 1996, revitalized R&B and soul with Erykah Badu and D’Angelo. Both singers are returning to the festival after years of absence. The music of a new crop of singers, including Britain’s Celeste and Jorja Smith, as well as the duo MRCY and American singer Leon Thomas, is clearly influenced by the black pop sound of the nineties. The vintage soul and gospel of Thee Sacred Souls goes back even further – to the seventies! After a spectacular performance last year in Congo, this year they’re opening in Nile hall on Sunday.

But it’s not only Jacob Collier who likes using choirs; large vocal ensembles are also enjoying unprecedented popularity. ZO! Gospel Choir make a welcome return to the festival, and no doubt will have Nile hall swinging as much on Saturday as they did two years ago. Rotterdam-based multi-instrumentalist Arp Frique is performing with the Perpetual Singers, and Martin Fondse is bringing along his Voice Orchestra, including the six-member vocal collective Vox Sturnus. Kika Sprangers, who was commissioned this year for the North Sea Jazz Composition Project, is performing her work with the Nederlands Kamerkoor.