DON’T miss the Jacqui Dankworth Quartet at 7.30pm tomorrow at the National Centre for Early Music. As the daughter of Dame Cleo Laine and Sir John Dankworth, it is perhaps understandable that she took a sideways direction into theatre, rather than jazz.

An actress with the Royal Shakespeare Company and the National Theatre, she also took leading roles on the West End stage. Her return to jazz singing some years ago has been celebrated wherever she appears and her CDs are beautifully considered gems.

It is musical chairs time at the Phoenix Inn, George Street, and the Black Swan, Peasholme Green. The alternate Thursdays with Jules and The Gang, with Frank Brooker will move from the Phoenix to the Victoria Vaults, Nunnery Lane, next Thursday and fortnightly thereafter.

Moving into the Phoenix, after a long association with the Black Swan, the tireless Paul Baxter will team up with Andy Cox on alternate Thursdays, dates to be announced.

The Wednesday sessions at the Black Swan will continue with trumpeter James Lancaster and pianist Chris Moore. John Marley takes over Paul’s bass position. To confirm dates, phone The Phoenix on 656401, the Black Swan on 679131 and the Victoria Vaults on 654307.

Now in its 25th year, Wakefield Jazz presents Centre Line tonight (01977 680542).

Young co-leaders Darren Altman (drums) and Russell van den Berg (tenor saxophone) have played with most of the UK’s jazz greats.

Close behind, Jazz In The Spa has ploughed its mainly Traditional furrow for 22 years.

Tomorrow night’s band will be Spirit of New Orleans, from “Jelly Roll to the Revivalist”

(01937 842544).

On Tuesday at 8.30pm, the Harrogate Jazz Club, at the West Park Hotel, will present the ambitious Atlantic Project by Jim Corry and James Russell, a tribute to the prestigious Atlantic Records roster of jazz.

Scarborough Jazz matches Wakefield’s 25 years of presenting the best of British jazz.

Their latest home is the Cask, Cambridge Terrace (01723 500570) and Wednesday’s guests will be the Lee Jones Quintet. Young guitarist Lee has a jazz degree from the Birmingham Conservatoire (did you know Birmingham had one of those?) and was Martin Taylor’s special guest at London’s Pizza Express.

The Old White Swan, Goodramgate, has been sponsoring Thursday jazz for 16 years, with Bejazzled and Mike Riley alternating with the Mardi Gras Band. Next Thursday will be Bejazzled night (01904 540911).

Curios, the trio led by pianist Tom Cawley, played at Wakefield Jazz last month, won Best Band at the last BBC Jazz Awards and have two acclaimed albums out. Their third, The Other Place (Edition Records), is an intricate and subtle collection of tunes.

Pursuit begins with a simple walking bass line by Sam Burgess, joined by a spacey, declamatory piano melody. It builds into intense, two-handed piano explorations and features an extensive solo from Burgess.

Many of the melodies (Roadster, Impure) are oblique and introspective; others evoke the lyrical quality of Michel Legrand’s ballads.

Cawley employs occasional electronics by way of a Loop Station, which seems to produce extra-terrestrial bleeps or backwardstape effect.

The CD cover shot of a racing car is a clue to two tracks celebrating racing driver Jenson Button. Belief is an anthemic, stately theme, but it is difficult to associate the closing track, an oblique melody titled 2009 World Champion, with motor racing, except perhaps as a soundtrack to film footage of Button at work.

The Other Place has been acclaimed for its many variations in tempo and mood, with classical overtones but with a definitive jazz sensibility.