We are now well into our fifth year at The Marr’s Bar, bringing top quality live music to Worcester, providing opportunities for young and emerging artists to be heard by a wider audience in a part of the country they don’t usually get to and for local people to see musicians rarely seen outside of London.

From the start, with the exception of around £2,500 from Arts Council England, distributed through Jazz Midlands between August 2023 and September 2024, and a generous donation from Sumir Karayi to cover the cost of our Nord Stage 4 keyboard last year, the entire operation has been planned, executed and financially underwritten by Music Spoken Here instigator Dave Fuller. Our DJ MooreFeJazz, photographer Carl Freeman and journalist Ian Mann very kindly volunteer their time. Only the musicians and venue staff are getting paid when our gigs happen.

This project has remained focused on music of the highest standard, increasing awareness of contemporary jazz and jazz-adjacent music in the West Midlands and building a supportive community. We’ve been publishing the West Midlands’ most comprehensive jazz, funk & soul gig guide every week in our ‘Music Matters’ newsletter for over two years and have helped to fund the production of two albums from artists that have performed for us in the past. When Dave is not working on this project, he is out supporting gigs, venues and artists throughout the region and further afield and bringing attention to these events through the Music Spoken Here Instagram profile.

Our audience and revenue have grown every year and we are within reach of breaking even, but we need a real push over the next six months to increase our average turnout and secure the next five years of exceptional music in Worcester.

We are appealing for a small, one-off donation of just £5 to support the ongoing work in reaching a wider audience and growing the community further. If what we’re doing is important to you and you are able to spare a fiver, your donation would be hugely appreciated.