00:00
Crossroads: From Highlife to Musette
A two-part documentary, narrated by Dee Dee Bridgewater. Part 2: From Highlife to Musette On the road where European and African music converge, we discover the diverse influences of Jazz and her offshoots that exist today. New styles and revivals of past traditions enrich Jazz and render it the essential element of our entire music culture.
01:21
jazzahead! 2022 - Fuchsthone Orchestra
Annual trade fair, exhibition, and festival jazzahead! is one of the international jazz community's most important events. Hosted in Bremen, Germany, jazzahead! brings together musicians, bookers, agents, organizers, jazz experts, and music enthusiasts at the world’s largest jazz event. In 2022, jazzahead! paid special attention to Canada’s jazz scene and invited forty jazz acts from all over the world to perform over the course of three days. Possibly the largest ensemble performing at jazzahead! 2022, the Fuchsthone Orchestra was founded by conductors and composers Christina Fuchs and Caroline Thon in 2018. This spectacular Cologne-based orchestra, which is comprised of twenty-two outstanding artists, offers an exciting experimental new sound that stretches the conventional limits of the traditional big band. The rhythm section of pianist Laia Genc, guitarist Andreas Wahl, bassist Alexander Morsey, drummer Jens Düppe, and electronics artist Eva Pöpplein is augmented by saxophonists Roger Hanschel, Theresia Philipp, Matthew Halpin, Jens Böckamp, and Susanne Weidinger, trumpeters Christian Mehler, Matthias Knoop, John-Dennis Renken, and Matthias Bergmann, trombonists Philipp Schittek, Matthias Schuller, Matthias Muche, and Wolf Schenk, vocalist Filippa Gojo, and violinist Zuzana Leharovà.
01:54
jazzahead! 2024 - Marmoucha Orchestra
Annual trade fair, exhibition, and festival jazzahead! is one of the international jazz community’s most important events. Hosted in Bremen, Germany, jazzahead! brings together musicians, bookers, agents, organizers, jazz experts, and music enthusiasts at the world’s largest jazz event. In 2024, jazzahead! paid special attention to the jazz scene of the Netherlands and invited over forty jazz acts to perform over the course of three days. Among the ensembles presenting themselves at jazzahead! 2024 is Amsterdam’s 12-piece Marmoucha Orchestra. In collaboration with Moroccan guembri virtuoso Mehdi Nasouli, they present their vibrant project ‘Sonic Bridges’. Established in 2002, Marmoucha has been at the forefront of projects that celebrate the cultural heritage of North Africa and the Middle East, aiming to connect a diverse array of artists and audiences. Mehdi Nasouli brings his deep passion for Moroccan music and his dynamic presence to this partnership, which melds Gnawa traditions with Western musical techniques. The full lineup consists of Arin Keshishi (bass, artistic director, arranger), Mehdi Nassouli (vocals, guembri), Maripepa Contreras (oboe, arranger), Tuur Moens (drums), Timothy Banchet (keys), Antonio Moreno Glazkov (trumpet), Pablo Martinez (trombone), Mohamed Ahaddaf (oud), María Cristina González (flute), Emad Ghajjou (darbuka), Yishay Aharon Glück (guitar), and Ahmed Hammou and Khalid Ezzahiri (krakebs, background vocals).
02:30
MotorMusic Jazz Sessions: WRaP!
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. This episode MotorMusic invites the jazz trio ‘WRaP!’, consisting of singer Barbara Wiernik, guitarist Alain Pierre, and Chet Baker’s former bassist: Jean-Louis Rassinfosse. The trio plays one of their most beautiful compositions of ‘Endless’. In this fine composition, Wiernik’s beautiful voice, Pierre’s crystal chords of the 12-string guitar, and the warm sounds of the contrabass come to full bloom.
03:26
Sing Jazz, Singapore
Raul Midón appeared at 2017’s Sing Jazz Festival in Singapore with double bassist Romeir Mendez and drummer Billy Williams. Blind since birth, Raul Midón is a singer, guitarist, and songwriter from New Mexico. With a vocal range as dynamic as his guitar playing and a remarkable talent for trumpet mimicry, Midón’s performances transcend musical boundaries, effortlessly blending rock, jazz, folk, and Latin pop into his unique sound. He has worked with numerous legends, including Bill Withers, Herbie Hancock, Sting, and Dianne Reeves, and his album ‘Bad Ass and Blind’ was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Jazz Vocal Album in 2018. No wonder the Sing Jazz audience were ecstatic!