News and Stories
Over this year, JAM on the Marsh will run fun, free, art and singing projects in collaboration with the Romney Marsh Community Hub and local artists to boost creativity and connection across the Marsh.
A series of four free printmaking workshops, creating your own artwork inspired by music, from orchestral to tango, to be performed at this year’s JAM on the Marsh festival. Artist Jillian Bain Christie will lead participants through the watercolour monotype and drypoint processes.
A series of four free printmaking workshops, creating your own artwork inspired by music, from orchestral to tango, to be performed at this year’s JAM on the Marsh festival. Artist Jillian Bain Christie will lead participants through the watercolour monotype and drypoint processes.
From 2-15 September JAM on the Marsh: VIRTUAL gives access to highlights from this year’s festival, featuring artists from the international stage. All are available to watch on our website for free.
From 2-15 September JAM on the Marsh: VIRTUAL gives access to highlights from this year’s festival, featuring artists from the international stage. All are available to watch on our website for free.
JAM proudly concluded its 11th festival season. For 11 days, JAM on the Marsh provided entertainment for young and old with inspiring programme of concerts, exhibitions, theatre plays, film screenings and poetry readings.
Visual Arts is an important part of the JAM on the Marsh festival. This year we are thrilled to host five outstanding, free exhibitions on display daily at JAM on the Marsh, featuring a variety of genres: from paintings to prints, cyanotypes to pen and ink drawings.
JAM on the Marsh embraces the ‘old’ and the ‘new’ with many concerts featuring essential classics but equally promoting new compositions. The festival invites the audience to enjoy masterpieces by Bach, Fauré, Mozart and more whilst also encouraging festival goers to discover 13 contemporary works by renowned and up-and-coming composers.
From 4-14 July, JAM on the Marsh returns to the unspoiled landscape of Kent’s Romney Marsh for its 11th festival. The programme features a stunning array of international and local artists, lighting up the Kent coast with music, theatre, film, poetry and art.
At its core JAM was created to enable, commission and promote new music. The commissioning of composers born, studying or living in the UK has a long tradition for us and we are proud that many composers have benefitted from JAM’s commissioning programme, including Judith Bingham, Gabriel Jackson, Thea Musgrave, Jonathan Dove and Mark-Anthony Turnage.
For many years JAM has been proud to work, collaborate and celebrate Romney Marsh talent in dedicated community-led projects. This year three exceptional projects underline our commitment to boost creativity and connection within the local community. Together with our partners, London Mozart Players, the Romney Marsh Community Hub and Rebecca Lodge Birkebaek, we are proud to offer invaluable opportunities for the community to participate in and enjoy the arts.
For over 20 years, JAM has enabled, promoted and commissioned new music in the UK. We are proud to say that we have premiered over 180 pieces at Music of Our Time and JAM on the Marsh.
On 20 March JAM will continue this tradition with a concert of new music for choir, brass and organ. Nine contemporary works will receive their world / London premieres, including the world premiere of a JAM Commission from Isabelle Ryder (Illumination) and a revisit of JAM's 2010 Commission from Tarik O'Regan (The Night's Untruth).
Taking place as part of JAM on the Marsh festival from 1-13 July 2024, our next residential course will focus on writing for opera and is designed to take the participants’ compositional skills to the next level. We are thrilled to collaborate with some of Britain’s biggest names in opera composition for this year’s residency; composers will receive tutoring from Jonathan Dove CBE, Professor Shirley Thompson OBE, Professor Paul Mealor LVO CStG, Dr John Frederick Hudson, Grahame Davies LVO and Nicholas Cleobury.
Ever since the first JAM on the Marsh in 2014, with music at its core, JAM has been eager to represent a wide range of artforms at the festival: from poetry to photography, ceramics to sculptures, mosaics to sand art, opera to theatre and dance, and everything in between. We are proud to have featured and supported many local, as well as national artists over the years, giving them a platform to present their works in Kent’s atmospheric Romney Marsh.
Since 2002 JAM has invited composers to submit to its Call for Music, giving them the chance to have their work performed at JAM’s season opening concert in central London. Each year the panel has the difficult task of choosing a handful of compositions, from an ever-growing pool of submissions. In 2022’s Call for Music we received 150 submissions.
Following the huge success of July’s sold-out arts festival, JAM now presents a selection of performances and exhibitions to a wider audience online. Under the inspirational leadership of curator Nicholas Cleobury, this year was our most dynamic festival yet.