THE York Late Music Festival opens today with jazz, all part of the ever-broadening canvas of an event now in its 13th year.

The cutting-edge musicianship of pianist Frank Harrison and his trio sparks up the festival at 7.30pm this evening at the National Centre for Early Music, the old church home to all 16 concerts at the ten-day festival.

Guitar player Louis Stewart has withdrawn from this concert due to illness, and will be replaced by former Loose Tubes saxophonist Julian Arguelles.

Under the directorship of David Power, this year's festival of modern-day music has three main themes, the most prominent being a retrospective of the composer Robert Sherlaw Johnson, a founding member of the University of York's music department.

The final piano recital by Ian Pace, next Saturday at 7.30pm, includes two works by the composer, Piano Sonata No 3 and Seven Short Pieces For Piano, in context with the work of founding and contemporary faculty members David Blake, Wilfred Mellers, John Paynter, Edward Caine, Roger Marsh, Nicola LeFanu and Richard Orton. Paynter will give a pre-concert talk about the world premiere of his Five Reflections For Piano, at 6.45pm.

The Ossian Ensemble play Sherlaw Johnson's Quintet tomorrow at 1pm, along with a new piece by Edward Caine; Black Hair, the university's music theatre company, include Sherlaw Johnson's Triptych in its 7.30pm concert with Anna Myatt on Tuesday.

The Chimera Ensemble, the university's resident contemporary music group, has selected Sherlaw Johnson's Night Songs for its 1pm programme next Saturday. Arvo Part's Fur Alina, David Lumsdaine's Rain Drums and Steve Reich's New York Counterpoint, a piece for eight clarinets and three bass clarinets, will be performed too.

This lunchtime concert will be Chimera's first involvement in the festival, as part of a growing partnership with the university.

Another new development is the series of lunchtime recitals designed to showcase talented performers embarking on their fledgling careers in contemporary music, starting with the Ossian Ensemble tomorrow.

Michael Solomon Williams sings new works by Karen Wimhurst, Tom Armstrong and Richard Whalley and Eight Songs by festival director David Power on Monday, when his piano accompanist will be Melanie Jones in a late change from Tom Gibbs.

Cerys Jones presents a solo violin programme next Friday, featuring the Sonata No 1 in G minor by the late, but not exactly Late Music, J S Bach; a rare rendition of Bruno Maderna's Widmung; and a new piece by David Cutler.

Each concert starts at 1pm.

The 2007 festival's commitment to innovative programming brings a festival debut on Sunday for the eight kalbelia dancers, Sufi poets and folk musicians of the deserts of western Rajasthan, in a 7.30pm concert.

Further festival bows follow from Fitkin Wall on Monday at 7.30pm, and Eva Zoellner on Thursday at 1pm.

Keyboard player and composer Graham Fitkin and harpist Ruth Wall take the beguiling sound of the harp out of its comfort zone in a rhythmic and multi-layered performance of three harps and live and pre-recorded sounds, while the German Zoellner gives a solo recital on an instrument not usually associated with modern music, the accordion.

Steve Reich's Piano Phase, Bent Sorensen's Looking On Darkness and a new work by Jim O'Leary will be on her set list.

Parkinson Saunders and Anton Lukoszevieze align cello with improvised instruments and live electronics when performing Laurence Crane's Come Back To The Old Specimen Cabinet John Vigani, and Christian Wolff's Crazy Mad Love on Thursday at 7.30pm.

The festival's big summer signing, the Hilliard Ensemble, presents the Arkhangelos concert of music from four different Christian traditions next Friday.

In the 7.30pm programme will be traditional Sharakans from Armenia; laude from Italy; the Catholic traditions represented by James MacMillan; the Greek by Ivan Moody; the Russian by Alexander Raskatov and Arvo Part; plus prayers from the English mystical tradition set by Jonathan Wilde.

As a third theme, the festival is celebrating a series of anniversaries.

The centenary of the birth of both York poet WH Auden and composer Elizabeth Maconchy, and the 60th birthday of her daughter, Nicola LeFanu, will be marked in Sunday's programme selected by British soprano Eleanor Meynell, who performs with pianist Christopher Glynn at 1pm.

Each piece, whether established works by LeFanu, Maconchy, Benjamin Britten and John Dowland, or new commissions by David Power, Benjamin Wallfisch and Matthew Taylor, is a musical setting of Auden's texts.

The 70th birthday of Philip Glass and 60th birthday of John Adams will be celebrated in tomorrow's 7.30pm performance of their minimalist works by American pianist Matthew McCright in his festival debut.

Festival administrator Steve Crowther's new piece, Morris Dancers, has been added to the programme.

The festival is working with the City of York Council's music consultant Tim Brooks and composer Barry Russell on an education outreach programme, divided into composition and performance. The results of both parts will be showcased in 1pm and 7.30pm concerts on June 10.

York Late Music Festival runs from today until June 10 at National Centre for Early Music, Walmgate, York. Box office: 01904 658338 or on line at www.ncem.co.uk

Festival at a glance

Today: 7.30pm, Frank Harrison Trio, with Julian Arguelles.

Tomorrow: 1pm, Ossian Ensemble; 7.30pm, Matthew McCright, piano recital.

Sunday: 1pm, W H Auden Centenary Concert; 6.30pm Folk Music from Rajasthan.

Monday: 1pm, Michael Solomon Williams; 7.30pm Fitkin Wall.

Tuesday: 7.30pm, Black Hair.

Thursday: 1pm, Eva Zoellner, accordion; 7.30pm, Parkinson Saunders.

Friday, June 8: 1pm, Cerys Jones, solo violin; 7.30pm, The Hilliard Ensemble.

Saturday, June 9: 1pm, Chimera Ensemble; 7.30pm, Ian Pace, piano recital.

Sunday, June 10: 1pm, Music Education concert one; 7.30pm, Music Education concert two.