Star rating: **** After an absence of some 12 years, Kidsamonium returned on Saturday afternoon as part of the festival's innovative Homegrown strand.

Star rating: ****

After an absence of some 12 years, Kidsamonium returned on Saturday afternoon as part of the festival's innovative Homegrown strand.

This colourful and raucous event, aimed squarely at kids, provided a fine introduction to the crazy world of jazz.

A first-class line-up of musicians donned various disguises to become characters in Tom Bancroft's jazz fantasy world. Bancroft, in 70s-style Elvis jumpsuit and exaggerated quiff, was The King, trumpeter Claude Deppa was The Judge, Bancroft's brother Phil was Prince Prince and support was provided by Oren Marshall on tuba and Norwegian trombonist Joost Buis. Oh, and there were some riotous interventions by a crazed clutch of saxophone-wielding chickens.

Surprisingly, the music was not merely jazz takes on well-known children's songs, but full-blown composition with a child-friendly slant, allowing the young 'uns to use their vivid imaginations. Thus, for Lucid Dreams we were encouraged to close our eyes and enter the sometimes scary world of Bancroft's head.

Things lightened up significantly when we were all given a kazoo and joined in for some improvisation on Jazz A Kazooki. We may have struggled to hold a tune but the smiles on the children's faces told the story.

Billy Jenkins as The Aviator, with his glove puppet friend Smelly, treated us to a Tom Waits-styled ode to the misery of the morning after the night before. The lyrical content may have gone straight over the heads of the kids, but surely struck a chord with parents.

There was of course a valuable educational purpose to all this madness, and hands-on sessions in percussive rhythm, harmony and creating chords meant that the weans went home with some new skills and knowledge.