Magic City Jazz Orchestra Lawler, trombonist Charlie Ard, saxophonist Neil McLean, arranger Steve Sample, Sr and pianist Ray Reach. SuperJazz has spawned a number of spin-off groups, such as the Night Flight Big Band and the Magic City Jazz Orchestra. In 1998, Ray Reach, then director of the UAB Jazz Ensemble and founding director of the Magic City Jazz Orchestra, contacted New York saxophonist Lou Marini in order to hire him to be guest artist and clinician for the annual "Weekend of Jazz" festival at the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB). Mr. Marini subsequently came to Birmingham, where he conducted jazz workshops and
London Jazz Festival Research Council (2015–16). McKay was the inaugural Professor in Residence at the 2014 festival, and Webster the Researcher-in-Residence in 2016. The book covers the history of London as a city of jazz festivals since about 1949 and includes material on festivals at Bracknell, Camden, Crawley, and Richmond/Reading. In 2018, the final of the BBC Young Jazz Musician competition formed part of the festival, and the performances at the Queen Elizabeth Hall were broadcast the following day by BBC Four. London Jazz Festival The London Jazz Festival is a music festival held every November. It takes place in London venues such