Nils Wogram

Metier, Dun Laoghaire Rathdown County Council's jazz ensemble in residence, begin a new series of concerts next week in Cabinteely House with the premiere of a specially commissioned work by German trombonist Nils Wogram. Supported by DLRCC and the Arts Council, the ensemble is the brainchild of Dun Laoghaire native, composer and bassist Ronan Guilfoyle, and most of the music on the group's debut album Cascade, released last year, came from the pen of the leader.

On this occasion, however, Guilfoyle has called on an outsider to write music for the group. Like Guilfoyle, Wogram has absorbed a wide range of influences but still has a healthy respect for the groove and, at times, sounds almost like an updated Duke Ellington. As a special bonus, the composer will be on hand in person to perform with the ensemble, which also includes saxophonist Michael Buckley and drummer Sean Carpio. The new piece, which Wogram has entitled 'First Thought, Best Thought', will be performed on Thursday 1 October.

Then on Thursday 8 October, it is the turn of the ensemble's superb guitarist, Tipperary-born and -raised Joe O'Callaghan, to flex his own compositional muscles with a concert entitled 'Jazz Reflections from Beyond the Pale'. He has assembled a new group to join him in his reflections, including Ireland's own jazz trombone prodigy Colm O'Hara and Yurodny founder Nick Roth on saxophone.

The series finishes on Thursday 15 October with an update of Guilfoyle's composition 'Terms and Conditions Apply'. When the group formed back in 2007, at the height of the boom, Guilfoyle composed his extended suite as a commentary on the Celtic Tiger. Now, with so much troubled water under the bridge, the composer returns to his theme, this time calling it 'Fiasco! Terms and Conditions Still Apply'. More info at www.dlrcoco.ie.

Solo bass virtuoso Michael Manring is the special guest for a day of music from the Sligo Jazz Project, which takes place in the Tobergal Lane Café on 2 October. To these ears, Californian Manring sails pretty close to the featureless shores of New Age and smooth jazz, but there is no doubting his astonishing facility with the bass guitar, which led none other than Jaco Pastorius, the tragic Messiah of that instrument, to aver that Manring was "one bad motherf**ker'. Which, er, meant he was very good, you understand.

For the real enthusiasts, there is a special all-in ticket available for the day at a price of €85, which includes attendance at Manring's workshop during the day, lunch and dinner from the Tobergal kitchen, and admission to a special concert in the evening, but the workshop, the concert and the food can also be purchased individually.

More info at www.sligojazz.ie.