Culture And Memory

Uncovering 100 Years of Jazz Heritage in the East Midlands: “100 years of Jazz”

Cosmopolitan Arts (CA) will identify, document, preserve and make publicly accessible the under-researched jazz heritage of the East Midlands (Derby, Nottingham, Leicester, Lincoln and Northampton): a largely unrecognised part of the UK’s cultural history that is at risk of being lost. We will undertake community-led heritage research to uncover the people, places, venues and social contexts that have shaped regional jazz over the last 100 years to the present day. We will train and support 100 volunteers to carry out archival research and record 50 filmed oral history interviews, alongside the collection and digitisation of photographs, press material, programmes and personal ephemera. This body of primary research will be safeguarded and shared through a programme of accessible heritage outputs – including documentary films, a touring exhibition, public events and a dedicated website – ensuring the heritage is preserved, understood and valued by local communities beyond the life of the project.