World premiere: Songs of the Caged Bird at Manchester Jazz Festival

As part of Manchester Jazz Festival’s mjf originals series, composer George King is joined by jazz vocalist Doreen Edwards and the Manchester Camerata’s Chamber Strings for the world premiere of his song cycle exploring texts connected to the African-American civil rights movement, Songs of the Caged Bird. One of two world premieres at this year’s festival – the other being Pete Moser’s Sound Games (Festival Pavilion, 20 Jul, 6pm) – the piece provides something of a thematic jumping-off point, with a related talk presented by Lifting the Lid, Un-Caged Birds: Justice and Jazz, Then and Now (Matt & Phred’s Jazz Club, 17 Jul, 6pm) drawing together panelists including historian Alan Rice, Jason Toynbee from the Black British Jazz Research Project and a host of musicians to discuss the connections between jazz, black history and current racial dynamics. For those interested in exploring King’s work even further, a talk between King, the Camerata and Lifting the Lid takes place after the show, while spectators may drop in to an open rehearsal at the RNCM on 16 July at 6pm.

Thu 19 Jul, RNCM, 124 Oxford Road, M13 9RD, Tel: 0161 907 5555, 7.30pm, £17/£14, www.manchesterjazz.com