Helena Kay leads Women In Jazz celebration at 100 Club

If we're talking women in jazz, the powerful lyricism of these great vocalists is often the first thing on our minds. While some of these legends were also fine players, the instrumental side of female-led jazz would appear to be much more meagre. A somewhat distressing stat comes courtesy of Deirdre Cartwright, compere of this special night at 100 club: women constitute only 5-6% of jazz instrumentalists. It's an uphill struggle, and much more has to be done to get women engaged, in the crowd and especially on the stage.

That said, there are notable green shoots emerging from the UK landscape, aided by events like this and hopefully indicative of a new wave of female jazz artistry. To name but a few – Camilla George, Nubya Garcia, Yazz Ahmed and Nérija are some of the most exciting acts around, regardless of gender.

And it doesn't stop there. This event, organised by Help Musicians UK and Independent Venue Week, turned the spotlight to Helena Kay (above) winner of HMUK's Peter Whittingham award, and Jasmine Whalley (below), saxophonist for Leeds-born group 'Tête de Pois'. Kay leads her 'KIM Trio' assuredly – sharp, jaunty improvisation and telepathic interplay between sax, bass and drums. Tête de Pois have a Snarky Puppy-esque eclecticism to their approach. A rich sound emerges as seven talented musicians lob genres into the communal melting pot.

One hitch was the absence of headliner Laura Jurd – afflicted by that uncommon but not unheard-of barrier to entry: food poisoning. She'll be back. Her band, led for the night by trumpeter Chris Batchelor, responded emphatically with a grooving run through some classic tunes. It's a shame that there weren't a few more female musicians performing, but those that did provided a great taster for what could, with more events like this, be a breakthrough year for women in jazz.

 – James Rybacki – @james_rybacki

– Photos by Darren Russell