About & Recordings


MOJO is a swinging, jazzing, funking 17-piece big band playing regularly across London. Our repertoire includes swing, latin and funk, ranging from traditional charts (Buddy Rich, Count Basie, Duke Ellington) through to the modern (Gordon Goodwin, Michel Camilo, NYJO, Tower of Power). Our gigs are family-friendly and bursting with energy. Formerly known as the Moderately Optimistic Jazz Orchestra ("MOJO").

​We play at events and venues across London throughout the year. Please reach out if you'd like to hire us - we'd love to hear from you.

Our rehearsals are every Wednesday night in East London. We advertise vacancies here. If you would like to​ try out, contact us via social media or email. Even if we don't have a specific vacancy, we have a dep list for rehearsals and gigs - this is often how people end up joining us!

​We post videos/photos from our live gigs on our social media (@mojobigbanduk on Facebook/Instagram/Twitter):
Check out our lockdown recordings:

Upcoming

Our next gig: 30 July 2023, 3pm at the Regent's Park Bandstand - free and open to all!
In the past we have played at the Vortex Jazz Club; the Mildmay Club, The Ivy House; Mirth, Marvel and Maud; Fox & Firkin; The Salisbury Hotel; and other venues across London.
 

Photos

Below you can see a few of our favourite photos, but ​more videos/photos from our gigs live on our social media (mainly Facebook and Instagram):
 

Members

Saxophones
Colin Izod
Will Rathbone
Rachel Bartlett
Sylvia Levy
Caitlin Jeffrey
 
Trumpets
Rob Ford
Graham Pike
Adam Palczewski
 
Trombones
Peter Thoms
James Ridgway (MD)
Jonathan Robson
George Pidgeon

Rhythm
Piano - Julien Lavergne
Guitar - John Blackwell
Bass - David Horler
Drums - Eden Longson
Header photo: Christmas Party at the Vortex Jazz Club with Giulia Marelli, 2019 (Photo: Julien Lavergne)