A critically acclaimed Jazz singer-songwriter is bringing London Jazz Festival to Twickenham for the first time.

Emily Saunders, who lives in Twickenham, has been preparing for the festival; which will be held at The Exchange on November 23 for much of the summer. 

She will be joined by house music star Angie Brown and emerging talent Marcus Joseph. 

Emily is an internationally renowned vocalist, songwriter, producer broadcaster and will lead an exceptional band through her original songs, which "reflect on society, the fragility of people and strength of connectivity". 

She grew up in south London in an intensely musical family and began performing at the age of four. She was given a scholarship to musical college as a classical clarinettist and after was drawn to Twickenham for its "creative artistic atmosphere and gorgeous riverside". 

She says the reason she chose The Exchange as her venue of choice was because ‘Twickenham is a beautifully creative artistic hub’.

“The Exchange is an amazing and I wanted to bring a new sound to the area,” Emily said.

“I want to support the music scene in Twickenham and in doing this festival here, I hope not only to bring a new sound to Twickenham but support an amazing hub.” 

Jazz music has seen something of a revival in recent times because of a newfound appreciation for the genre among new generations. 

Emily said: “Jazz is a genre which absorbs sounds from the contemporary world. People think it is a reflection on the past, but the genre is influenced from the time. It reflects the musical development at the time. 

“When I moved to Twickenham after music college, I damaged my hand so couldn’t play clarinet professionally anymore, initially it broke my heart, but in a wonderful twist of fate it brought me back to my first love of singing and writing music - and I happily never looked back.” 

The talented singer-songwriter draws a great deal of influence from her surroundings and as a self-proclaimed river lover, Emily is really at home in Twickenham. 

She will often take walks down the river and record her thoughts, which she said inspires her. She says that Twickenham has a long connection with arts and she wants to support The Exchange and music scene. 

Following the Jazz Festival, Emily will be back in the studio working on her album, Broken, which will be out in 2019. 

Tickets for Emily Saunders and Friends are available online from £10. For more information and to buy tickets to Emily’s show click here.