Cheltenham Jazz Festival Opens £5,000 Tony Dudley-Evans Commission for 2027

Cheltenham Jazz Festival has opened applications for a new £5,000 commission for jazz musicians based in the United Kingdom. Cheltenham Festivals announced the Tony Dudley-Evans Commission on Oct. 26, presenting it as a way to mark the festival's legacy after its 30th-anniversary edition in 2026.

The winning artist will develop and perform an original one-hour piece, which will premiere at the Parabola Arts Centre on Sunday, May 2, 2027, during the festival. The award will be paid in two parts: £3,000 for development, covering research, writing, rehearsal, travel, rehearsal space and fees for the other musicians, and £2,000 for the performance itself.

The call is open to musicians who are based in the UK, have at least three years of professional experience, work within the broad field of jazz and have "an original, ambitious idea for a new piece of music," according to the festival. Applicants are asked to submit an idea summary of up to 500 words, a budget outline, an audio example that communicates the proposed work, a CV covering the past three years and links to past work and online channels. The artist and their players must be available to perform in Cheltenham on May 2.

The deadline is midnight on Monday, Nov. 16, and the successful artist will be notified by email by Monday, Nov. 30, the festival says.

The commission is tied to the festival's programme at the Parabola Arts Centre, a strand known for more adventurous bookings. It is led by programmer Alex Carr, who is also head of music at the London venue KOKO. Cheltenham Festivals lists Laura Jurd, Piera Onacko, Olivia Murphy and Yazz Ahmed among the artists who have appeared on that stage.

"As we build on 30 years of Cheltenham Jazz Festival, it's vital that we continue to create opportunities for artists to take risks, explore new ideas and bring ambitious new music to life," Carr said in the announcement.

The commission's namesake also gave a statement. "Supporting musicians to create new work has always been at the heart of what makes jazz so exciting," Tony Dudley-Evans said. "This commission is about giving artists the opportunity to follow their creative instincts, take chances and bring something genuinely new to audiences."

Cheltenham Jazz Festival, held each spring in the Gloucestershire spa town, is one of the UK's major jazz events. Full details and the application link are on the Cheltenham Festivals website. The UK jazz press, including Jazzwise and UK Jazz News, also reported the call-out.