Schedule

Belgian singer-songwriter Selah Sue performed at La Cigale in Paris as part of the digital Culturebox Festival 2020. The singer released her million-selling debut album 'Selah Sue' in March 2011, featuring her popular single 'Raggamuffin' and her duet 'Please' with American hip-hop artist Cee Lo Green. Months after its release, Selah was presented with a European Border Breakers Award (EBBA), for her cross-border success. At La Cigale in 2020, Selah Sue is accompanied by Joachim Saerens on keyboard and Simon Lenski on cello, opening her concert with a jazzed-up 'So This Is Love', a romantic ballad from Walt Disney’s film 'Cinderella'.

The Dutch world-class jazz pianist Peter Beets has shared the stage with jazz greats like Chick Corea, Wynton Marsalis, “Toots” Thielemans, Elvin Jones, George Coleman, Johnny Griffin, Benny Golson and John Clayton. From birth, Beets was surrounded by music: he heard classical music from his mother, who is a music pedagogue, and he heard jazz from his father, who has a great fan of Oscar Peterson and Art Blakey. Although Beets’ parents originally did not associate the word “musician” with the word “career”, music is definitely in the family’s blood. At this concert at the Kurhaus in Scheveningen, the Netherlands, Peter Beets teams up with the world-famous guitarist Kurt Rosenwinkel. With a career spanning almost twenty-five years and including collaborating with dynamic peers like Brad Mehldau, Brian Blade, Mark Turner, Joshua Redman, Chris Potter, as well as esteemed jazz legends like Joe Henderson, Paul Motian and Gary Burton, Rosenwinkel’s indelible mark in music is the consummation of being steeped in the rich and deep traditions of jazz, springing off of the shoulders of such vital underpinnings to elevate his own art to new heights, evolving the language in a way no other guitarist has since his arrival. This collaboration between Beets and Rosenwinkel guarantees brilliant music.

The Modern Jazz Quartet (MJQ) was composed of Milt 'Bags' Jackson on vibraphone, John Lewis on piano, Percy Heath on bass, and Connie Kay on drums. Milt Jackson and John Lewis were pioneer bebop musicians who had played together in Dizzy Gillespie's 1948 big band. They pursued separate careers before adding Heath and Lewis to form the Modern Jazz Quartet in the 1950s. Noted for its delicate percussion sonorities, innovative jazz forms, and high performance standards, the MJQ was an immensely popular jazz and “third stream” ensemble until its final concerts in the early 1990s.

Big hits, booty dancing, stage dives, fan freestyles and of course, controversy, A$AP Rocky's debut Down Under tour had it all! At his sold-out Sydney show, hip hop's hottest star and 5000 rowdy fans got wild for the night at the Hordern Pavilion and we captured it all exclusively.

The Australian-born singer-songwriter Sia Kate Isobelle Furler, simply known as Sia, is one of the most unique artists in today's popular music scene. However, her path to stardom has been nothing but rocky. Only after numerous musical experimentations, where the singer tried to establish herself in her home country as well as United Kingdom, Sia finally blossomed in United States around the second decade of the 21st century. The very beginnings of her mainstream recognition was captured on 25 March 2009, where the artist performed live at Metro Theatre in Sydney, Australia.

Since 1977, Estival is a summer jazz festival in Switzerland, Lugano. Estival offers a thrilling and particularly surprising line-up that explores the rich world of contemporary music whilst promoting the understanding of different cultures, tolerance, and co-existence. The Crusaders, an American jazz fusion group that was popular in the '70s employed a two-manned front-line horn section. The group’s sound was rooted in hard bop, with an emphasis on R&B and soul. Their performance at Estival is beyond soulful and an amazing show to watch.

Sarah Vaughan: Live in '58 & 64 features the ‘Divine One’ in her prime, wrapping her sultry voice around jazz standards such as ‘Lover Man’, ‘Misty’ and ‘I Got Rhythm’ and soaring on popular showtunes such as ‘Over The Rainbow’ and ‘Maria’. One of the greatest voices of the 20th Century, her renditions of songs by Harold Arlen, Leonard Bernstein, Johnny Burke, the Gershwins and Stephen Sondheim are pure diva magic. These three performances demonstrate why Sarah Vaughan is invariably mentioned in the same breath as Ella Fitzgerald and Billie Holiday.

Lex Jasper Trio: Happy Days Are Here Again - the title says is all… After an automobile accident and 15 years of revalidation, he is back! Together with his musical pals Edwin Corzilius (double bass) and Frits Landesbergen (drums), pianist and composer Lex Jasper celebrates his return to jazz club The Duke in the Dutch village of Nistelrode. Following his car accident, Lex nearly joined the leagues of Netherland's “forgotten” jazz heroes, though he is still considered one of the most important artists and composers of his generation and Dutch jazz history. Jasper played and recorded with all the greats, including Toots Thielemans, Clark Terry, Joe Pass, and Rita Reys.

Short Documentary about Jazz in The City: London.

World-renowned American blues singer and guitarist Magic Slim performed an electrifying set at the French festival Jazz à Vienne 2012. With bandmates John McDonald (guitar & vocals), Andre Howard (bass), and Brian Jones (drums), the blues giant played a string of classic Chicago blues hits. Ever energetic, the veritable blues veteran put on a dynamic show for an enthusiastic audience in the atmospheric ancient Roman theatre of Vienne.

Salif Keita’s music is a rich combination of traditional Malian music with European and American influences. We can hear this in the instrumentation of Keita’s music, which varies from traditional West-African instruments to Western European ones. The Malian singer was cast out by his family because of his albinism. In 1967 he moved to Bamako, where he started his musical career and joined Les Ambassadeurs (Internationaux). He achieved international acknowledgement with this band in the 1970s. After spending a couple of years in Ivory Coast, Salif has found his home base in Paris since 1984. During this 2010 concert, he proves to be rightfully referred to as “The Golden Voice of Africa”.

Jazzed Out proves that a jazz session can take place anywhere. Unusual locations, such as garage buildings, multi-storey car parks, street corners, subway trains, and parks, in several of the world’s metropoles, provide the setting for brief jazz performances. The sheer rawness of the metropoles merge with the musical creations of various artists in search of the perfect ‘urban stage’. In this episode, Tokyo serves as a backdrop for sets by Kyoto Jazz Massive, Sleep Walker, and Quasimode.

Formed in 1952 from the rhythm section of Dizzy Gillespie's big band, the Modern Jazz Quartet took its inspiration from classical chamber music as well as jazz's blues roots. The group enjoyed a decades-long career with multiple critically acclaimed albums, cementing their place in the history of the genre. Following concerts in Rotterdam and Amsterdam the days before, the Modern Jazz Quartet performed at Singer Concertzaal in Laren for Dutch TV on March 31, 1969. Composed of Milt Jackson on vibraphone, John Lewis on piano, Percy Heath on bass, and Connie Kay on drums, the foursome plays with elegance and style.

The North Sea Jazz Festival is the largest indoor music festival in the world, known globally as the event where the past, present and future of jazz are featured within three days. Next to a firm base of jazz as the festival’s staple music genre, many others, such as blues, soul, funk, or hip hop, pass by. In 1982, legendary swing band leader jazz clarinettist Benny Goodman performed two sets with his septet at the North Sea Jazz Festival in The Hague. True to form, with his concert the 'King of Swing' revisited the atmosphere of the swing era – the 1930s – when jazz enjoyed tremendous popularity. Goodman's septet includes Scott Hamilton (tenor saxophone), John Bunch (piano), Phil Flanigan (double bass), Mel Lewis (drums), Warren Vaché (trumpet), and Chris Flory (guitar). Here is the first of two sets recorded at the festival in 1982.

Buddy Rich: Live in '78 highlights the relentless power and unparalleled artistry of the man who was known as ‘The World’s Greatest Drummer.’ This concert, taped in Holland in 1978, showcases one of the tightest big bands in history, featuring acclaimed saxophonist Steve Marcus and other members of Buddy’s ‘Killer Force,’ the group he would later call ‘the best band I ever had.’ Standout performances include ‘Grand Concourse,’ ‘Big Swing Face,’ and ‘Channel One Suite,’ which climaxes in Buddy’s signature drum solo.

Since 1977, Estival is a summer jazz festival in Switzerland, Lugano. Estival offers a thrilling and particularly surprising line-up that explores the rich world of contemporary music whilst promoting the understanding of different cultures, tolerance, and co-existence. Discover the special bond between pianist Carla Bley and bassist Steve Swallow. The two have performed in the same bands since the '60s and have been romantic partners for more than two decades. Watching them perform is the definition of musical telepathy. Together with musicians Wayne Krantz, Victor Lewis, Larry Willis, and Don Alias, they form an amazing sextet at Estival in 1986.

The MotorMusic Studios in Mechelen, Belgium, attract many great musicians to the city. A wide variety of visiting international jazz musicians share their art of making jazz music with us in the DJAZZ series ‘Belgium Sessions’. In these sessions, some of Europe’s finest musicians perform their own, original music. The Dutch-Belgian acoustic-electronic piano threesome ‘De Beren Gieren’ (‘The Bears Shriek’, ‘Les Ours Vautours’) are known for their unique energetic sound, sparkling melodies, complex song structures and quirky song titles. ‘De Beren Gieren’ brings a fresh yet familiar blend of polyrhythmic soundscapes, sing-alongs, and elitist twists, building a sonorous bridge between early 20th century classical compositions and more contemporary escapades. ‘De Beren Gieren’ show an ability to change mood quite suddenly in a way that constantly holds the audience’s attention. A surprising live experience not to be missed!

As a 25-year-old saxophonist, Maceo Parker played in the band of James Brown, but he is also known for his collaborations with George Clinton's Parliament-Funkadelic and Bootsy Collins' Rubber Band. Maceo has proven his star quality by creating a special chemistry between all the different styles of American black music. As a pioneer in the ‘groove’, he blends funky jazz with roots and blues with gospel. The result? Overheated concert halls, with enthusiastic audiences that completely surrender themselves to the music's boundless energy.

To celebrate the release of Django, the Parisian New Morning Club pays tribute to the legendary guitarist Django Reinhardt. The program showcases the magic of Reinhardt’s compositions, as well as the virtuosity of one of his most famous heirs: Stochelo Rosenberg. With unbridled passion and enthusiasm, Rosenberg interprets the music that marked French musical heritage: gypsy jazz. Rosenberg cultivates an exceptional technique with a unique vibrato and sets an example for guitarists and other instrumentalists who aim to keep music alive. On stage at New Morning Club, Rosenberg is supported by Hono Winterstein (guitar), Mathias Levy (violin), Rocky Gresset (guitar), and Xavier Nikqi (double bass).

Since 2005, the Morgenland Festival, held in Osnabrueck, has dedicated itself to the fascinating music culture of the Near and Middle East. From traditional and classical music to avant-garde, jazz, and rock, the festival program also features art, such as visual arts, dance, and theatre of interdisciplinary projects. Jivan Gasparyan Jr has always been inspired by the folk melodies of his native Armenia. His grandfather, also a musician, taught him the art of duduk, an instrument of Armenian origin.

This broadcast is the first part of a concert performed by Art Blakey and the Jazz Messengers, recorded at the Théâtre des Champs Elysées in Paris in December 1959. Co-founded in the early 1950s by American jazz drummer Art Blakey and pianist Horace Silver, this hard bop ensemble performed and recorded until Blakey died in 1990. Many jazz greats got their start in this band, including trumpeters Lee Morgan and Wynton Marsalis, saxophonists Benny Golson and Wayne Shorter, pianists Joanne Brackeen and Keith Jarrett.

Considered one of the most technically brilliant players in the history of the trumpet, jazz musician Wynton Marsalis is also a master of classical music and a fine composer. Marsalis takes the cameras with him around New York, to his home town of New Orleans, and to his rehearsal studios where he and his assembled band of musicians are seen putting together the album Blood on the Fields. He also talks about his music and his way of working.