Manchester jazz venue secures £1.4m expansion

Manchester’s Band on the Wall venue have confirmed they’ve secured over a million pounds in funding from the National Lottery to expand their premises and reopen the historic Victorian Cocozza building next door in the city’s Northern Quarter. The venue (which is wholly owned by the charity Inner City Music) will expand from 340 capacity to 520, plus they’ll have space for a new bar and community areas including flexible classrooms, rehearsal spaces and mini cinema. There will also be a programme of events for the community, rooted in the music and culture of Manchester’s migrant histories, inspiring the public to learn and develop new skills.

Band on the Wall’s CEO Gavin Sharp says this represents an important part of Manchester’s heritage and it gives them a chance to uncover the social and musical history of the two buildings. He told Jazz FM: “We are incredibly excited to be starting this new project and taking the Band on the Wall venue into its next phase of what is already a 200 year history. Manchester is a city of migrants, whether from rural England, Ireland or across the world and as people have travelled here to work they have brought amazing culture which Mancunians have embraced. Band on the Wall represents an important part of Manchester’s aspiration to become a truly global, outward-looking city and we are incredibly pleased that this has been recognised by all the supporters and funders of the project.”