The first of our regular series of free MOnday night concerst a the Atomic Weapons Establishment Recreation Society.  We kick off the year with an evening of Glenn Miller numbers - all your old favourites to enjoy. Concert starts at 8.15pm. Entrance is free. All welcome.

Our dances are always poplar and tickets are selling fast for this next one. Tickets cost £12.50 each and are available from Tadley Community Centre

The second of our free informal concerts at the AWE Recreation Society. Concert starts at 8.15pm - Admission is FREE - All welcome

Roundabout Basingstoke is a community folk opera by Martin Reid and Philip Sealey that tells the story of pregnant young Polly's journey round the town’s ring road as she tries to get to Winchester to have her baby.

On her journey she encounters a range of historical and fictional characters with local connections, including Macheath from the Beggar’s Opera, King Alfred, a political activist from the Civil War, and some Greenham Common women, all of whom in some way hinder her progress.

Polly is accompanied on her journey by a cynical and sarcastic Prologue who has plenty to say about bankers, shopping and the weather, and who likes nothing better than to ridicule the audience.

Each scene involves at least one of the town's adult music making ensembles, including the Basingstoke Choral Society, Basingstoke Concert Band, Basingstoke Silver Band, Innovations Jazz Orchestra and the Tadley Band.

The performance will take place outside the Anvil, in the foyers and in the auditorium, with the audience moving between these spaces


IJO has been given Scene 3 and full details can be found on Martin's blog at Roundabout Basingstoke


Tickets can be booked on-line from The Anvil box office

Our 8th year of supporting this wonderful charity.  For last years event we had the best day of summer and we have orderd the same stunning weather for this years open air jazz picnic.
This event always sells out so get your tickets early by contacting the Kennet Branch of Save The Children. Further details to follow

Back by popular demand - another evening of fantastic Ballroom and Latin dancing.  Tickets are £12 each and available by calling the Community Office on 01256 473698

An evening big band concert as part of St Micheal's Church 500th anniversary celebration.
Concert starts at7.30pm   Further details to follow about how to get tickets

After our "Sell Out" success last year we are delighted to announce that we have secured a return visit to The Haymarkt to celebreate IJO's ten year anniversary. Put the date in yoru diary and watch for more details

The 3rd of our free informal concerts this year at the AWE Recreation Society.
Concert starts at 8.15pm. All welcome

The 4th of our free, informal concerts at the AWE Recreation Society.
Concert starts at 8.15pm. All welcome

The last of our free concerts in 2009 at the AWE.  Thansk to all who came along for evening of festive cheer, great music, great dancing, and cheap beer !

The Surrey Swing Dance Society and IJO held a great joint event to celebrate Christmas.
A great evening of Swing, Jive, Rock and Roll and LindyHop dancing was had by all

Another sell-out evening of great ballroom and latin dancing

The thrid of our free informal concerts this year at the AWE Recreation Society. We continue to get a growing number of people coming along on selected Monday evenings throughout the year to listen to the band, have a dance and enjoy a drink or two with friends.

A great evening to celebrate the dance, cabaret and musical talent in and around Basingstoke.  All proceeds went to the Mayor's charty appeal.

What a great show ! Thanks to all those who came along to this SELL OUT show at The Haymarket

A yearly highlight on the IJO calednar.  Our seventh appearance to support Save The Children.  It was the best event yet - an audience of over 350 people and a perfect summer's evening.

Sold out again, where DO all these dancers come from?! A packed hall at the Richard Aldworth Science College for three sets of dances. IJO broke their Paso Doble duck and the band rattled through dance favourites and band favourites. Half time saw Lorna jiving with a man from Surrey, James got lucky in the raffle and Phil give Mrs Baldwin a spin on the floor. Another wonderful dance evening that the band and dancers enjoyed in equal measure. We hope to see you all again at Strictly Tadley in the Winter. Until then, as a well known popular entertainment programme tells us: Keeeeeeeeeep dancing!

Although this was an open rehearsal, we had our posh frocks on thanks to another photo shoot courtesy of our friends at TiWiGi (Think it, Want it, Get it), results of which should be gracing this site soon. A lovely big crowd egging the band on, especially Jamie on piano who'd brought his appreciation society with him ( he is appreciated). Gay Holden stood square at the front with some new songs we'd not played before but will definitely be playing again, some adventurous soloing and all in all another super-sounding bunch of tunes. The bar at the Social & Recreation club has an unexpectedly good acoustic for a big band so we look forward to returning there in the Autumn for another sound Open House. We hope you can join us!

IJO's first concert of the year, the band brought out some old favourites (Miller, Nestico) and some new classics to entertain a hand-picked audience of friends, family and music fans. The Salty Dogs, Cathy Tornbohm Five and the Gay Holden Quintet held sway in the middle and the band played until late. There's nothing like playing for an audience, thanks to all those who ventured out - we look forward to seeing you at the next one!

A new format that we hope to repeat in 2009 of an 'open rehearsal' which this time was held at AWE's Social & Recreation Club. The room doesn't look like an auditorium but the sound was great for all but the electric instruments to remain 'unplugged'! For the audience, the chance to listen to our repertoire in informal surroundings and for the band, a rehearsal with a bar thrown in - musicians rarely need much more than that! The band played for 90 minutes to an audience of friends, relatives and innocent passers-by who heard the music and thought that there was a TV re-run of Austin Healey's exit from Strictly Come Dancing. Sadly, no 'guns' on show (band leader Simon kept his shirt on throughout) but a great selection from our music pad. Cathy Bamboo-zled us with her vocals as ever and Gay faced the music AND danced, more than once...  and one brave couple made full use of the dancefloor scoring 10 from the flute section. The band played on in a jam-session until closing time and all in all, it wasn't a bad way to spend a Monday evening out of the rain and wind of our beloved British Winter. We look forward to more of these next year - keep an eye on the site for more details.

IJO provided the sounds for another sold-out dance event at Tadley Community Centre during "Strictly Christmas". What a very good looking bunch the dancers of Tadley and surrounding areas are too! Waltz, foxtrot, rumba, paso-doble - something for everyone during an evening of ballroom where dancers and band alike could forget the weather outside for a few hours at least. Photographers from TiWiGi were there capturing the spirit of the evening - IJO have begun to work with this excellent studio and images will be used on our website and publicity for 2009. TiWiGi plan to display pictures from our events on their website - maybe you'll see yourself there! More details to follow.Our thanks to percussionist Stephen Lloyd for his excellent latin rhythms and to our new recruits for breaking their IJO ducks! We are really looking forward to the next dance - keep an eye out on this site for details of a special event in 2009.

Churches don't always have great acoustics for a big band but there's something about St Michaels in Basingstoke that sounds just right! With more deputies than the Wild West, IJO once again lit up the Michaelmas fair with a programme of old and new, familiar and not so familiar tunes. Our 'deps' were fantastic - Stephen on drums, Robin on piano and Graham on trumpet helped the band sound pretty good, if we say so ourselves! Cathy and Gay sang some wonderful songs and the audience were treated to some of our older repertoire as well as newer tunes including a version of the Sammy Nestico / Count Basie tour de force 'Wind Machine' at breakneck Buddy Rich-esque speed! The band had great fun - if you were in the audience, we hope you did too!

Take one field in Hampshire, a hot summer's afternoon, several hundred assorted audience members with hampers, a collection of jazz musicians and a stage and what do you have? Ellington At Wellington 2008 - a summer jazz concert in aid of Macmillan Cancer Support, in it's second year and set to be a terrific fixture in the music calendar. Innovations Jazz Orchestra shared the bill with the Barberettes, the brilliant Sounds of Steel Orchestra and the Laurie Holloway Trio featuring Becki Biggins and Kenny Lynch. A handful of IJO players were honoured to play with Laurie and his band for the finale and once all the Saints had marched in, the heavens shook with the mother of all firework displays lighting up the sky over the Duke's estate.
A wonderful occasion for IJO - many thanks to all our supporters and to everyone who came along in the heat to support the valuable work of Macmillan and to enjoy the music.

Al fresco this year, more people than ever there and, we understand, more money raised for STC than at previous events, Save The Children VI was considered to be a good one! Thanks to everyone who came, the wonderful folks from Little Manor, and to our deps who stood in, gallantly. We hope to see you all again for Number 7 next year?

Who else but IJO would offer the choice of tango, waltz, foxtrot or the Gay Gordon? The Big May Dance Party saw Aldworth Science College's hall heaving with over 120 dancers. With music from IJO's dance repertoire and very special guests The Kick Shins whose half time ceilidh put paid to any ideas anyone might have had about a rest. A reel good time was had by all, we sang happy birthday to our Roger and Charlie made a splash in the trombone section. Adios Muchachos wasn't the same without Lucy (bonjour Mlle Wain) but she was there in spirit. Dance music is very dear to IJO's heart so we look forward to our next one and hope you'll be able to join us. Our thanks to The Kick Shins and to everyone who came to make the event go with a swing/jig/doh-si-doh!

On a cold February evening, the hall at Tadley's community centre became Romance Central where temperatures, tempos and hemlines rose as the dancers of the region converged to celebrate St. Valentine's day. The signature tune of the evening was definitely 'I Only Have Eyes For You' as once again, the dancing was a real spectacle. A small handful of the band members, in an anonymous post-concert survey, confessed to the odd suspect note, such was the elegance and grace of the dancers. If music was the food of love but the stomach is the way to a man's heart then we were alright on both counts with the IJO soundtrack and packets of Love Hearts on offer to all who came along. The band had a grand time, as we hope the dancers and onlookers did too. We can't wait until the next one and we look forward to seeing everyone again soon for the next edition of Strictly IJO ... Happy Valentine's Day everyone!

IJO's New Year's concert at the William Penney Theatre. On a damp and cold evening, the audience were kept warm throughout in a programme of band favourites and new tunes to banish the Winter blues for at least a couple of hours. In an evening of mistaken identity, our beloved Keith Bird on trombone got called Phil, saxophonist James Avison became Benny, flautist Gemma Wilson became Gemma Jones (much to her Dad's dismay) and band leader Simon Ward insisted on being called Barry. All very strange even in our native tongue of English, let alone Brazilian as demonstrated by vocalist Gay Holden who waxed lyrical ... A terrific start to the IJO year - thanks to all those who braved the elements and gave the band such a warm welcome. We hope to see you again very soon at the Penney. 

                  Paul Eshelby (left) with IJO Band Leader Simon Ward

Sales of lip salve in the Tadley area rose briefly following IJO's masterclass with renowned trumpeter Paul Eshelby who put the band through their paces for the day at the William Penney Theatre.
Working through some of our most challenging numbers, Paul rehearsed us thoroughly and gave us the opportunity to concentrate on dynamics and rhythmic patterns. A session looking at blues improvisation introduced the  concept of the Cycle of Fifths. Many of the band  hadn't been on any sort of bike for a while although some had recent experience in how to 'handle bars'...
A thoroughly educational and enjoyable day, Paul was an excellent tutor and the band sounded fabulous. Our sincere thanks to Paul for all his guidance.

Now an Innovations Jazz Orchestra favourite, the band played whilst over 150 dancers including the irrepressible Reading University Ballroom Society foxtrotted, tangoed and waltzed the night away at Basingstoke's Richard Aldworth Science College. Percussionist Tom Earwaker brought the spirit of Latin America to the set with his timbales, congas and assorted shakers - muchas gracias Tom. Keep an eye out on the IJO website for your next opportunity to 'Come Dancing'.

Friends of IJO and big band aficionados Alison and Hilary Nickell celebrated their silver wedding anniversary at the Paramount Country Hotel in Basingstoke with IJO providing a soundtrack of Miller, Basie and Duke Ellington. A moving vocal tribute by their sons meant that none of us will ever listen to Billy Joel's 'Just The Way You Are' in quite the same way again ... A terrific evening for the band and a delight to be playing for such a great couple. Here's to another 25!

This is now another IJO regular and we are delighted to support this excellent charity. Many thanks to the organisers and our friends at Little Manor, Burghfield for rallying round to ensure the concert went ahead despite distinctly damp conditions. The Dunkirk spirit was alive and well as concert-goers huddled under the flotilla of gazebos to enjoy the hog-roast before joining us in the church for a concert of big band favourites. One of the band favourites is Simon's rendition of 'Get Me To The Church On Time' ; once again, it was performed in inimitable style and only outdone by an athletic performance during 'Yakety Sax' involving a wig and a clown hat.