Schedule

Aki Rissanen's interest in jazz came after he started taking classical piano lessons. His deep interest in improvised music placed him among top jazz pianist in his home country - Finland. While composing and performing his own music, Rissanen has also collaborated with Verneri Pohjola and Dave Liebman, and today his name appears among the top European jazz musicians. Live from 'Jazzclub Unterfahrt' in Munich, Germany, together with Antti Lotjonen on bass and Teppo Makynen on drums, Rissanen showcases the best of Scandinavian jazz and its DNA - the Nordic Tone.

The Brussels Jazz Club was filled to the brim with both musicians and audience members when the Maynard Ferguson Big Band performed there during their Winter Tour of 1980. From the first notes of the cover of Weather Report’s “Birdland” that opens the performance to the final notes of “Gonna Fly Now” that closes it, Ferguson gives his young sidemen ample time to shine. The mutual admiration shared by the leader and his sidemen makes this performance a delight to watch.

Legendary Cuban pianist Chucho Valdés brought his band ‘Jazz Batá 2’ to the Malta Jazz Festival on July 19, 2019. The air was thick with anticipation as Valdés took to the stage, revisiting the small-group concept of his mythical 1972 Cuban album ‘Jazz Batá’. The batá repertoire – the deep classical music of West Africa – permeates Valdés’ piano solos throughout the concert. Valdés’s band consists of Dreiser Durruthy (Batas and vocals), Yaroldy Abreu (percussions and vocals), Abraham Mansfarroll (percussion), Ramón Vazquez Martirena-Bajo (bass guitar). They delivered a performance that reverberated through the historic island.

Georgie Fame, known for "Yeh, Yeh" and "The Ballad of Bonnie and Clyde" makes a triumphant comeback with The Blue Flames. Georgie Fame and the Blue Flames was a popular band in the UK in the '60s, celebrated for its R&B, soul, jazz, ska, and pop sounds. The training was largely inspired by ska, a popular musical style in Jamaican cafes in London at the time. It was the song "Green Onions" from the Booker T & The MG that inspired Georgie to incorporate the Hammond organ into her compositions. This performance by Georgie Fame and the Blue Flames is brimming with blues and soulful sounds that will delight the group's old and new fans.

Hailing from a long tradition of Malian kora players, Ballake Sissoko has worked with renowned musicians such as Toumani Diabaté and Taj Mahal. He met the French born Vincent Ségal by chance, and the two began jamming together, uncertain of what kind of music might result. As a former member of the French National Orchestra, Ségal's Western classical training does not prevent him from exploring a wide variety of extended techniques, rendering his cello a flexible partner to Sissoko's kora. A childhood spent in the Pigalle district of Paris surrounded by immigrant communities exposed Ségal to African music from an early age. As such, he possesses a natural sensitivity to Sissoko's West-African style. The concert shows a brilliant interplay between the two musicians and combines the several worlds of jazz, Malian and classical music.

The 1964 edition of the Antibes Jazz Festival in Juan-les-Pins saw the return of the First Lady of Song, Ella Fitzgerald. Together with Roy Eldridge on trumpet, Tommy Flanagan on piano, Bill Yancey on double bass, and Gus Johnson on drums, the tireless singer performed such classics from the Great American songbook such as 'Them There Eyes', 'The Lady Is a Tramp', 'Summertime', 'I'm Putting all My Eggs in One Basket', 'St. Louis Blues', and 'Perdido', and a few novelties, such as Steve Allen and Ray Brown's 'Cutie Pants'. It is no surprise this legendary concert from Juan-les-Pins was released on LP!

Wes Montgomery: Live in '65 shines a light on one of the most unique and influential guitarists in music history. These beautifully filmed programs from the spring of 1965 feature Wes, in intimate studio settings, leading three different lineups through some of his best-known tunes, including “Four On Six”, “Jingles”, and “West Coast Blues”. This rare footage, featuring rehearsals, between-song banter, and closeup camera angles, illuminates Wes's extraordinary musical vocabulary and unconventional picking technique.

World-class Dutch jazz pianist Peter Beets has shared the stage with jazz greats Chick Corea, Wynton Marsalis, “Toots” Thielemans, Elvin Jones, George Coleman, Johnny Griffin, Benny Golson, and John Clayton. His mother a music teacher and his father an Oscar Peterson and Art Blakey enthusiast, Beets was surrounded by music from an early age. And though music was in their blood, neither parent associated the word “musician” with a career. In this broadcast, Peter Beets teams up with gipsy jazz heros Stochelo Rosenberg, Martin Limberger and Frans van Geest. The strength and precision of Van Geests' rhythms and tempo, and the ease with which Stochelo's lead guitar soars above them, make this band a cohesive collective - unique in their renditions of standards, Django's classic compositions, and original tunes composed by Stochelo himself.

Jazz à Vienne is one of the world's most prestigious jazz festivals. Ever since 1981, it has attracted a mix of jazz legends and exciting newcomers, with many of them playing return engagements. Each year welcomes outstanding international stars to the historical Le Théâtre Antique to impress and inspire their audiences. In 2019, French guitarist Paul Jarret performed with renowned New York drummer Jim Black at Jazz à Vienne. Together they present ‘Ghost Songs’, a hybrid of rock and jazz. They are joined by saxophonist Julien Pontvianne and pianist Jozef Dumoulin.

Charles Mingus showcases an exceptional concert performed in April 1965 featuring his most celebrated lineup: Jaki Byard (piano), Dannie Richmond (drums), Johnny Coles (trumpet), Clifford Jordan (tenor sax) and the great Eric Dolphy (alto sax, flute and bass clarinet). Recorded within an eight-day span, less than three months before Dolphy's death, the three concerts showcase Mingus's visionary leadership and the band's incredible depth and diversity with unique performances and arrangements of classics including ‘So Long Eric’ and the groundbreaking ‘Meditations On Integration’.

By the time this set was recorded at Brussels Jazz Club in the summer of 1980, trumpeter Freddie Hubbard had already built an impressive resume. During the 1960s he became a leading voice in the hard bop movement while not shying away from avant-garde sessions with the likes of John Coltrane and Eric Dolphy. In the 1970s, Hubbard expanded his palette by recording in more diverse settings that included electric instruments and orchestral arrangements. On this club date, Hubbard showcases all of the experience he had accumulated up to this point. The working group consists includes David Schnitter on tenor saxophone, Billy Childs on keyboards, Larry Klein on bass, and Sinclair Lott on drums. Watch as the quintet deftly switches between acoustic and electric instruments and Hubbard entertains the crowd with his onstage antics.

Singer Dee Dee Bridgewater walks in with considerable credentials, but this documentary related to her album ‘Red Earth’ trumps them all: Red Earth is a Malian journey that merges and melts all borders. While world-beat listeners will recognize the grooves, this is Bridgewater's first time bringing her own experiences as an African-American woman back to the motherland. It results in a fusion of feeling, visions, and music.

Thalma de Freitas is a Brazilian singer, songwriter, and actress from Rio de Janeiro. Daughter of the renowned pianist Laércio de Freitas, her work is a masterful fusion of MPB (Brazilian Popular Music), jazz, and Afro-Brazilian influences. In 2019, her album ‘Sorte!’ was nominated for a Grammy Award. For this intimate performance, she is joined by guitarist Helô Ferreira. How do contemporary artists reinterpret tradition and create new forms of expression within MPB? Da Pá Virada Sessions' MPB Series investigates this question. Hosted by Dani Gurgel, this episode features a live performance and thought-provoking conversation with Thalma de Freitas, exploring her unique fusion of styles and inviting audiences to discover the richness of modern Brazilian music. Continue your journey into the rich world of contemporary Brazilian popular music on Stingray DJAZZ.

Rotterdam’s BIRD is a club, café, and restaurant with a live music program that's deeply rooted in jazz, soul, funk, hip-hop, and electronic. Its name BIRD refers to the nickname of legendary New York jazz saxophonist, bebop co-founder Charlie Parker. BIRD serves Neapolitan pizzas, fine wines, no-nonsense beers, and an all-round metropolitan rawness. Since 2014, this urban jazz club and DJAZZ.tv have been collaborating for a series of music programs: BIRD.tv, allowing you to experience the best BIRD concerts and interviews as from a first-row seat! Discover an irresistible live act; STUFF is full of unflagging energy. The Belgian band was founded in 2012 when drummer Lander Gyselinck was asked to play live music between DJ sets at a local bar. He gathered a bunch of friends, who also were musicians. The band could be considered an avant-garde jazz band who play a mix of funk, hip-hop, and electro. Andrew Claes (saxophone), Dries Laheye (bass guitar), Lander Gyselinck (drums), Mixmonster Menno (samples), and Joris Caluwaerts (keyboards) share an exceptional connection in music. They take over every stage and melt the hearts of music lovers.

What happens when two musicians are "trapped" on a cruise ship for a week? Naturally, a new album sees the light of day - at least that’s what happened when Anne Chris and pianist Daan Herweg found themselves on a journey by ship together. After a week of providing their fellow passengers with musical entertainment, the two headed to the studio and within a year, Anne Chris’s new album Just Kissed the Sun saw its release. The Dutch singer presents her third album at the North Sea Jazz Club, accompanied by guest artist Bas van der Wal on guitar. Next to the sun, the sound of Robert Glasper, Gretchen Parlato, John Mayer, Esperanza Spalding, Jill Scott and Michael Jackson also seem to have inspired this joyful record.

'Münchner Klaviersommer' was an annual concerts series that took place from 1981 to 1998 in Munich, Germany. Although the festival's name suggests a strong focus on piano music, it featured countless famous musicians from jazz and classical music – not just pianists. The concerts were usually held in July at The Gasteig, home of the Munich Philharmonic. In 1987, American pianist Armando Anthony "Chick" Corea was one of the artists appearing here. Together with Frank Gambale on guitar, Eric Marienthal on saxophone, John Patitucci on bass and Dave Weckl on drums, Corea performed jazz fusion with his Elektric Band - a jazz subgenre inspired by the rock music and electronic instruments of the day. The band was nominated for two Grammy Awards.

Unlike many of his fellow jazz cats, vocalist Gregory Porter transcends the jazz bubble. After sustaining a shoulder injury, this former American football player turned to jazz singing. He was discovered in a Californian jazz club by pianist, saxophonist and composer Kamau Kenyatta. Porter lent his vocal skills to gospel choirs across the country and a string of successful musicals before turning his talent to his own compositions. His rise since then has been meteoric. Porter’s magnificent, burnished baritone can sink into a lyric with luxurious ease, the melody gently sculpted into new shapes at every turn, with the rhythm tugging subtly back and forth across the bar line. This live performance at the Olympia showcases this man's worth, and is a truly amazing experience!

The term "jam-session" was born in the 1920s, when black and white musicians gathered in smoke-filled bars after their respective concerts to enjoy the kind of jazz they could not play in traditional sets. Bing Crosby was a regular at these sessions, and had fun marking the first and third beats of musical phrases by clapping hands, which the musicians call "jammin 'the beat". Today, the Seine Sessions revive the happy years of "jam sessions", while the cream of jazz, blues, gipsy and funk Parisian scenes occurs on the boards of the legendary restaurant and jazz club Le Réservoir. Entitled "Free & Afro Jazz," this episode hosted by Eddy King features unique performances by artists playing together for the first time, and interviews with Fantazio, Eddy Lopez, Banoit Savard, and many others.

Although its music might sound like the sound track of any 1970s American car chase movie, the band Sven Hammond Soul is from the Netherlands. This steaming soul machine is headed by Sven Figee, who prefers to attack rather than play his Hammond organ. In April 2012, the band was augmented with vocalist Jenny Lane. Today’s recordings were made at a steaming live performance at Utrecht’s Tivoli in 2012.

Misha Mengelberg, the forgetting has begun. He is waiting for a taxi he didn’t call to go to a performance that won’t take place. Dutch composer/pianist and grand duke of jazz Misha Mengelberg (1935) has been submerged in the shadow of dementia, ending his life as a musician. At the London jazz club Vortex in 2013 he impressively says his goodbyes to the international stage. It’s also his last major performance with his band, the Instant Composers Pool Orchestra. The musicians find it hard to let him go, but Misha’s decline is constant, and he slowly fades away from their midst. A film about exceptional loyalty, dilemmas, respect and dedication. And about music, the music of Misha Mengelberg.

Montreal's very own jazz group SHPIK offers a bold and impressionistic music, drawing its inspirations from jazz, nature, and film. Evoking the great outdoors, self-discovery, and navigating between the immense and the infinitely small, this first album offers an intricate musical journey that is both energetic and reflective. Consisting of pianist and composer Arnaud Spick-Saucier, bassist Etienne Dextraze, drummer Philippe Lussier-Baillargeon, and saxophonist/flutist Alex Dodier, SHPIK has performed at famous jazz events, including the Montreal International Jazz Festival. Do yourself a favour by not missing this extraordinary breath of fresh air.