On Sunday 25th September in the afternoon, members of the South London Jazz Orchestra (SLJO) came to play at Antokol for the residents, their friends and relatives and the staff.
We were Micro-SLJO, a small subset of the main band, which has more than 100 members and would be far too big for such an occasion. We were definitely enough to fill the lounge and dining room with plenty of sound though! Our line up included drums, keyboard, bass guitar, trombone, tenor saxophone, alto saxophone, soprano saxophone and flute - all led by our wonderful conductor and leader James Keirle. We played a wide range of jazz greats including Basin Street Blues, In a Mellow Tone, Desafinado and Autumn Leaves - to match the season!
The audience were tapping their toes and waving their hands and it was wonderful to see everyone having such a good time. We really enjoyed ourselves and were thrilled to get such a warm welcome from everyone at Antokol, especially Izabela.
There is talk that we might come back to play for a special evening of jazz in the coming months which we are very excited about. One of the residents told us that she used to go to Ronnie Scotts when she was younger - hopefully we can recreate some of that magic for her!
This special project has been made possible by a generous grant from the Worshipful Company of Dyers.