Monday Night Jazz at The White Horse

19/08/2025

Hello everyone,

I hope you are well! This week I shall be taking my cymbals and a few other things and moving over to New York to study a Master's Degree at The City College of New York.

Some of you may remember a trip I had planned back in 2020 where I visited for 3 months, which sadly coincided with the beginning of the pandemic and thus curtailed my musical endeavours at that time. I'm sure you'll remember my frequent visits to the city to soak up the Jazz scene so it's beyond exciting to have this opportunity to live and study over in New York.

It's been a few years since I ran the weekly Monday night Jazz at The White Horse/ Bedford Arms, however those years running the weekly Jazz nights helped shape me into the musician I am today and I will always be very grateful to everyone who supported that evening for so many years!

Of course moving to study is never cheap, particularly in America, so I have set up a gofundme page for those who might be interested in supporting this next stage of my career. Please take a look at my page if you're interested + feel free to share :)

Once again a heartfelt thanks to all who came to the Jazz nights whether it was only one time or a hundred times :)

Take care,
Mark x

Hey, thank you for finding your way to my gofundme page! For over a decade, I have pursued … mark hale needs your support for Master's Degree in New York

05/02/2023

Good evening all!

We're really excited for tomorrow night's Monday Night Jazz - Tom Syson & Tom Smith will be presenting some music by the great Alto Saxophonist Cannonball Adderley!
Sadly this will be our last evening at The White Horse Pub, we will be looking for a new venue in Bedford over the next few weeks and hope to be back in the not too distant future!

As ever, thanks to all who have been down to support all the musicians and we hope to see you one last time tomorrow night!

Music: 8.30pm
Tickets: £10 OTD
Table Reservations: 01234 409306

01/02/2023

This coming Monday 6th February we're excited to welcome Trumpeter Tom Syson and Alto Saxophonist Tom Smith to lead our first session of the month!

Joining them will be Hammond Organist David Ferris & Drummer Mark Hale!

Music: 8.30pm
Tickets: £10
Reservations: 01234 409306
We hope to see you :)

Vincent Bach Trumpet Artist Tom Syson is a highly regarded trumpeter, composer and producer based in the UK. He has released two critically acclaimed albums of all original music under his own name to date, and has been described as ‘one of the stars of the UK to look out for' (Sarah Ward, Jazz FM).


His 2019 release ‘Different Coloured Days’ received a large amount of press coverage, including radio plays on BBC Radio 3 and JazzFM and reviews from Jazzwise and UK Vibe. Tom’s debut album ‘Green’, which was released in 2017, also received high press coverage, including a feature interview on BBC Radio 3's 'Jazz Now'. It was produced by long term mentor Percy Pursglove and featured JazzFm Vocalist of the Year 2016 Lauren Kinsella on a track. Both albums were recorded at Peter Gabriel’s Real World Studios and were released alongside UK tours.


Tom also has vast experience performing in larger ensembles, having held the lead trumpet chair in the European Radio Jazz Orchestra 2018, the National Youth Jazz Orchestra and the Birmingham Jazz Orchestra, as well performing with the London Jazz Orchestra, Ronnie Scott’s Jazz Orchestra and the Syd Lawrence Orchestra. He has performed at venues/events such as the BBC Proms, Cheltenham Jazz Festival, Gibraltar International Jazz Festival, Glasgow International Jazz Festival, Ronnie Scotts, the Barbican and the Royal Albert Hall, and has performed with artists such as Pete Long, Jacqui Dankworth and Alex Garnett.

Tom Smith is a 24 year old saxophonist, bass clarinettist and composer from London. He was twice finalist of the BBC Young Jazz Musician of the Year programme in 2014 and 2016, and in 2018 won the Peter Whittingham Development Award from Help Musicians UK. He is preparing to release his debut album ‘Gecko’, to be released with Basho Records in November 2020.

Since finishing his degree at the Royal Academy of Music, he has performed and toured around the world and has brought his music to prestigious festivals and venues including the BBC Proms (Royal Albert Hall), Love Supreme Festival, Jazzinec Festival (Czech Republic), Generations Festival (Switzerland) and the Luxembourg ‘Blues ‘n Jazz Rallye’. Tom runs a number of his own bands including Queertet, a band celebrating the works of LGBTQI+ musicians, which sold out two headline shows at Ronnie Scott’s for London Pride 2018 with celebrated comedian Julian Clary and LGBT icons Ian Shaw and Sharon D. Clarke. He has also recorded a double album of original compositions with celebrated young Czech pianist Daniel Bulatkin and a host of other celebrated Czech musicians, ‘Drifter Days’, recorded after a 19-day continuous Czech Republic tour.

30/01/2023

We're super excited for tonight! Featuring..

Anita Wardell - Vocals
Rob Barron - Piano
Jeremy Brown - Bass
Mark Hale - Drums

Music: 8.30pm
Tickets: £10
Reservations: 01234 409306
We hope to see you :)

Thanks to everyone who's been coming out to support us this month! What better what to bring January to a close than with the amazing vocalist, Anita Wardell!
Anita will be playing alongside Rob Barron on Piano, Jeremy Brown on Bass & Mark Hale on Drums.

Music: 8.30pm
Tickets: £10
Reservations: 01234 409306
We hope to see you :)

Anita Wardell's singing is exciting and breathtaking. She is noted for her
mesmerizing and captivating vocal improvisations and vocalese lyrics to instrumental solos. Anita is a musician who uses the voice as her instrument, displaying precision and agility, mixed with heartfelt emotion. Singer Norma Winstone praised her “unexpected vulnerability, which makes her reading of the ballads both beautiful and touching. Her honesty shines in this well-chosen collection of songs.”
Bebop pioneer, Mark Murphy, proclaimed Anita, "a gift from Australia", adding “What hits me, is how expressive her ballad singing is. Then she has the courage to s**t a ballad or two, not unlike a young lady disciple of the Ben Webster school.”

28/01/2023

Thanks to everyone who's been coming out to support us this month! What better what to bring January to a close than with the amazing vocalist, Anita Wardell!
Anita will be playing alongside Rob Barron on Piano, Jeremy Brown on Bass & Mark Hale on Drums.

Music: 8.30pm
Tickets: £10
Reservations: 01234 409306
We hope to see you :)

Anita Wardell's singing is exciting and breathtaking. She is noted for her
mesmerizing and captivating vocal improvisations and vocalese lyrics to instrumental solos. Anita is a musician who uses the voice as her instrument, displaying precision and agility, mixed with heartfelt emotion. Singer Norma Winstone praised her “unexpected vulnerability, which makes her reading of the ballads both beautiful and touching. Her honesty shines in this well-chosen collection of songs.”
Bebop pioneer, Mark Murphy, proclaimed Anita, "a gift from Australia", adding “What hits me, is how expressive her ballad singing is. Then she has the courage to s**t a ballad or two, not unlike a young lady disciple of the Ben Webster school.”

23/01/2023

We're looking forward to this tonight!

8.30pm start - £10 on the door - see you there! ✌️

20/01/2023

Happy Friday All!

We hope you'll be joining us this coming Monday 23rd January as we welcome superb Pianist, Matyas Gayer to lead our Monday Night session!

The London based Hungarian jazz pianist, Matyas Gayer is one of the leaders of his generation. The award winning young musician is successfully forging his own distinctive style and musical voice out of the greatness of the jazz piano tradition. The 2 times Montreux Jazz Piano Competition finalist released his first album (Never Ending Story) as a leader in 2018 on Fresh Sound New Talent Records. A regular performer on the London and European jazz scene, Matyas has collaborated with the greats of jazz, including Eddie Henderson, Scott Hamilton, Don Menza, Jim Rotondi, Luis Bonilla, Jesse Davis, Dusko Goykovich, Stjepko Gut, Grant Stewart, Carla Cook etc."

Also featuring alongside Matyas will be stellar Bassist Matyas Hofecker;

Matyas Hofecker is recognized as one of the leading musicians among the younger generation of jazz bassists in Europe. The London-based bassist acknowledges to be mainly influenced by Paul Chambers, Sam Jones, George Duvivier and Peter Washington. Hofecker has toured with the legendary Harold Mabern Trio, recorded an album with Sheila Jordan, and shared the stage with renowned jazz artists like Joe Farnsworth, Jesse Davis, Pete Van Nostrand, Jim Rotondi or Grant Stewart with a passion for straight-ahead jazz. He performs regularly around Europe, including Spain, France, Austria, Germany, Switzerland or Portugal. Currently, he is a member of the Stacey Kent Band, the Five-Way Split (Quentin Collins, Vasilis Xenopoulos, Rob Barron, Matt Home), and the Soul Time! (Steve Fishwick/Leon Greening Quartet). He can often be heard at UK’s premier jazz venues such as Ronnie Scott’s Jazz Club, 606 Jazz Club and the Peggy’s Skylight.

Completing the trio will be Mark Hale on Drums & the group will perform a selection of Standards and Compositions from the Jazz repertoire of the 50s and 60s. Another Monday not to be missed!

Time: 8.30pm
Location: The White Horse, 84 Newnham Avenue, MK41 9PX
Tickets: £10 cash on the door
Reservations: 01234 409306

16/01/2023

Who's joining us for this tonight?!

We're excited to be presenting another great evening of live music, don't miss out :)

Time: 8.30pm
Location: The White Horse, 84 Newnham Avenue, MK41 9PX
Tickets: £10 cash on the door
Reservations: 01234 409306

See you there!

Good evening all!

After a fantastic start to our 2023 programme last week, we want to let you know that this Monday evening (16th January) we highly recommend coming to hear the sounds of Guitarist Phil Stevenson at The White Horse Pub!

Phil Stevenson has studied a variety of guitar styles including Brasilian Samba, Sabar music from Sene-Gambia, 60s R’n’B, New Orleans Funk and Boogaloo, as well as the music of Jazz guitarists such as Grant Green and Wes Montgomery. He has toured in U.K., Europe and U.S. with various artists such as Fofoulah, Myles Sanko and Iness Mezel. He runs an Organ trio, blending Funk, improv and influences from West African guitar styles, and has played at Cambridge Junction, the Corn Exchange and London Jazz festivals.
This evening he will be performing a selection of well known standards as well as a few of his own compositions.

Phil will lead our Monday Jazz session alongside Tenor Saxophonist Sam Miles, Hammond Organist David Ferris & Drummer Mark Hale. Tonight the group will play a selection of well known standards as well as a couple of Phil’s original tunes - a night not to be missed!

Time: 8.30pm
Tickets: £10 cash on the door
Reservations: Please call 01234 409306
Location: White Horse Pub, 84 Newnham Avenue, MK41 9PX

13/01/2023

Good evening all!

After a fantastic start to our 2023 programme last week, we want to let you know that this Monday evening (16th January) we highly recommend coming to hear the sounds of Guitarist Phil Stevenson at The White Horse Pub!

Phil Stevenson has studied a variety of guitar styles including Brasilian Samba, Sabar music from Sene-Gambia, 60s R’n’B, New Orleans Funk and Boogaloo, as well as the music of Jazz guitarists such as Grant Green and Wes Montgomery. He has toured in U.K., Europe and U.S. with various artists such as Fofoulah, Myles Sanko and Iness Mezel. He runs an Organ trio, blending Funk, improv and influences from West African guitar styles, and has played at Cambridge Junction, the Corn Exchange and London Jazz festivals.
This evening he will be performing a selection of well known standards as well as a few of his own compositions.

Phil will lead our Monday Jazz session alongside Tenor Saxophonist Sam Miles, Hammond Organist David Ferris & Drummer Mark Hale. Tonight the group will play a selection of well known standards as well as a couple of Phil’s original tunes - a night not to be missed!

Time: 8.30pm
Tickets: £10 cash on the door
Reservations: Please call 01234 409306
Location: White Horse Pub, 84 Newnham Avenue, MK41 9PX

07/01/2023

We're getting excited for our first session of 2023!

Zoe Francis (Vocals) & Jim Mullen (Guitar) - Who's going to be joining us?

Full band line up/ more details below!

Time: 8.30pm
Reservations: 01234 409306
Tickets: £10 cash on the door

Happy New Year Everyone!

We hope you’ve enjoyed this festive season and feeling ready for what we have in store for you these upcoming Mondays in January!

We’re going to be kicking off 2023 in style this Monday 9th January with the amazing Vocal talents of Zoe Francis. Zoe will be performing alongside an exciting rhythm section of Jim Mullen on Guitar, Ross Stanley on Hammond Organ and Mark Hale on Drums.

"A breath of spring ... great interpreter of the great American song book." JAZZ JOURNAL

London-born Zoe Francis grew up in Northern Ireland in an artistic environment, her father John and grandfather Colin Middleton MBE were celebrated artists and encouraged a lifelong love of art.

When her parents separated she moved to Lincolnshire with her mum and sister. Zoe fell in love with dancing through films starring Fred Astaire, Ginger Rogers, Gene Kelly and Cyd Charisse and in her teenage years she toured with a contemporary dance company and acted in a local theatre group.

On a visit to New York while learning Tango and going to Jazz clubs, a musician introduced her to the vocal workshops of pianist Barry Harris. This was a turning point for Zoe. She discovered her love of great songs and lyrics and was encouraged to pursue singing. Alongside the weekly workshops Zoe began singing in the many jam sessions held around Manhattan, Brooklyn, and Harlem. This led to her performing in local clubs with musicians of the calibre of Harry Allen, Joe Cohn, Warren Vache, and Chris Flory.

Upon her return to the UK in 2013, Zoe recorded her first album “Looking For a Boy” with Pianist David Newton.
Following this, in 2014 at an engagement at one of London’s finest venue’s; The 606 Jazz Club, Zoe recorded her next album ’The Very Thought of You’. This featured an all star line up including Gareth Williams (Piano), Stan Sulzmann (Tenor Saxophone) and Jim Mullen (Guitar). A band that continued to perform in and around London over the next few years.

Zoe’s album “Remembering Blossom Dearie” 2018 celebrates the reportoire of the singer/pianist Blossom Dearie with Jim Mullen, Barry Green and Mick Hutton.

Zoe's latest album, blue town, is a selection of bittersweet songs the lyrics of which capture our moods whether we are reminiscing or daydreaming, hopeful or heartbroken and features multi-award winning guitarist Jim Mullen and the incomparable Ross Stanley on Hammond organ.

Time: 8.30pm
Tickets: £10 cash on the door
Reservations: 01234 409306

04/01/2023

Happy New Year Everyone!

We hope you’ve enjoyed this festive season and feeling ready for what we have in store for you these upcoming Mondays in January!

We’re going to be kicking off 2023 in style this Monday 9th January with the amazing Vocal talents of Zoe Francis. Zoe will be performing alongside an exciting rhythm section of Jim Mullen on Guitar, Ross Stanley on Hammond Organ and Mark Hale on Drums.

"A breath of spring ... great interpreter of the great American song book." JAZZ JOURNAL

London-born Zoe Francis grew up in Northern Ireland in an artistic environment, her father John and grandfather Colin Middleton MBE were celebrated artists and encouraged a lifelong love of art.

When her parents separated she moved to Lincolnshire with her mum and sister. Zoe fell in love with dancing through films starring Fred Astaire, Ginger Rogers, Gene Kelly and Cyd Charisse and in her teenage years she toured with a contemporary dance company and acted in a local theatre group.

On a visit to New York while learning Tango and going to Jazz clubs, a musician introduced her to the vocal workshops of pianist Barry Harris. This was a turning point for Zoe. She discovered her love of great songs and lyrics and was encouraged to pursue singing. Alongside the weekly workshops Zoe began singing in the many jam sessions held around Manhattan, Brooklyn, and Harlem. This led to her performing in local clubs with musicians of the calibre of Harry Allen, Joe Cohn, Warren Vache, and Chris Flory.

Upon her return to the UK in 2013, Zoe recorded her first album “Looking For a Boy” with Pianist David Newton.
Following this, in 2014 at an engagement at one of London’s finest venue’s; The 606 Jazz Club, Zoe recorded her next album ’The Very Thought of You’. This featured an all star line up including Gareth Williams (Piano), Stan Sulzmann (Tenor Saxophone) and Jim Mullen (Guitar). A band that continued to perform in and around London over the next few years.

Zoe’s album “Remembering Blossom Dearie” 2018 celebrates the reportoire of the singer/pianist Blossom Dearie with Jim Mullen, Barry Green and Mick Hutton.

Zoe's latest album, blue town, is a selection of bittersweet songs the lyrics of which capture our moods whether we are reminiscing or daydreaming, hopeful or heartbroken and features multi-award winning guitarist Jim Mullen and the incomparable Ross Stanley on Hammond organ.

Time: 8.30pm
Tickets: £10 cash on the door
Reservations: 01234 409306

15/12/2022

This coming Monday 19th we’re extremely excited to welcome the wonderful Trumpeter Freddie Gavita! This will be our last session before Christmas so expect a few Christmas numbers as well as some American Songbook classics.

Joining Freddie will be Mike Gorman on Piano, Rob Anstey on Bass & Mark Hale on Drums.

Music from 8.30pm
Tickets: £10 cash on the door
Table reservations: 01234 409396
Location: 84 Newnham Avenue, MK41 9PX

“Clearly one to watch” Ivan Hewitt, The Daily Telegraph

Winner of the British Jazz Awards “Best Trumpet of 2017,” Freddie has cemented his place as a leading light on the British Jazz scene. With the release of his debut album “Transient” in April 2017, his star is certainly on the rise.He is a member of the Ronnie Scott’s Club Quintet and jazz-rock outfit Fletch’s Brew as well as being a band leader in his own right. A fearless improviser, “he solos with fluent authority, his tone ranging from the warmly conversational to the eloquently strident.”A graduate of the Royal Academy of Music and the National Youth Jazz Orchestra, he rose to prominence through the John Dankworth Orchestra, and has been a member of the Ronnie Scott’s Jazz Orchestra for ten years.He has appeared as soloist with the BBC Big Band, twice at the BBC Proms at the Royal Albert Hall, and brought Roger Michell’s 2013 film “Le Week-end” to life with his inimitable muted trumpet stylings. Freddie has played with, among others, Peter Erskine, Joe Locke, John Hendricks, Kenny Wheeler, Stan Sulzmann, Tim Garland, Jon Faddis, Gregory Porter, Curtis Stigers, Paloma Faith, Jess Glynne, Seth McFarlane and Dionne Warwick.Freddie has composed and arranged extensively, including Alexander Stewart’s masterpiece “I Thought About You” and the stunning “Beloved” commissioned by Calum Au for his 2012 release “Something’s Coming.”