Schedule

American jazz trumpeter, composer, and bandleader Dizzy Gillespie (1917-1993) was one of the seminal figures of the bebop movement. He fuses all musical forms rooted in African culture, such as music from Cuba, Latin America and the Caribbean, into his music. On November 4, 1970 he played a concert in Denmark with the Kenny Clarke/Francy Boland Big Band, performing Con Alma, Brother K, Now Hear My Meanin’, Manteca, Let Me Outta Here, and Things Are Here.

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.

Jimmy Smith: Live in '69 boasts an incredible 90-minute concert from 1969 filmed in Paris. Working in his classic trio format with longtime guitarist Eddie McFadden and drummer Charlie Crosby, Jimmy shows why he is still the uncontested king of the jazz organ. Highlights include blues jams “Got My Mojo Working” and “Sonnymoon For Two”, the classic ballads “Alfie” and “Satin Doll”, as well as a 23-minute version of his showcase number “The Sermon”.

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!

Count Basie is one of the most important bandleaders of the swing era. With the exception of a brief period in the early '50s, he led a big band from 1935 until his death almost 50 years later. Basie's orchestra was characterized by a light, swinging rhythm section that he led from the piano, lively ensemble work, and generous soloing. Basie was not a composer like Duke Ellington or an important soloist like Benny Goodman. His instrument was his band, which was considered the epitome of swing and deeply influenced jazz. In this 1961 concert recording, Count Basie takes the stage in Charleroi.

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.

American trumpet player and occasional singer Chet Baker (1929-1988) was one of the most popular exponents of bebop and cool jazz. At the age of 10, Baker was introduced to music in a school orchestra, after which he discovered bebop in the army in 1946. After serving six months in prison in 1953 for drug possession, Baker formed his own quartet with West Coast jazz great, pianist Russ Freeman. His lifelong drug addiction forced him to concertize and record incessantly. Always popular in Europe, Chet Baker (trumpet, vocals) joined Jacques Pelzer (alto saxophone, flute), Luigi Trussardi (bass), Franco Manzecchi (drums), and René Urtreger (piano) for a set in Brussels, Belgium, on May 2, 1964. They performed Bye Bye Blackbird, Isn't It Romantic, Airegin, Time After Time and So What. On September 3, 1979, Baker appeared at the Kongsberg Jazz Festival in Norway. He was joined by Wolfgang Lackerschmid (vibraphone), Michel Graillier (piano), and Jean Louis Rassenfosse (bass) for performances of Blue Train, Softly, As In A Morning Sunrise, Five Years Ago, and Love For Sale.

Self-taught musician Les McCann became the international jazz superstar he is today after the release of his album “Swiss Movement” which he recorded in 1968 with the late Eddie Harris. Yet there is much more to this musician than that one record. McCann moves comfortably from one jazz style to the next, demonstrating impressive chops in all areas, from bop to fusion, and from vocals to the keys of the electric piano, clavinet, or synthesizer. His mix of church and swing music captures the spirit of the time perfectly, even when an illness prevented him from playing with more than one finger at a time in the early 1990s. In today’s broadcast, McCann takes gospel back to New Orleans, where he played this set in 1983. McCann’s vocals shine in the soulful performances of several of his hits, including “Just Like Magic”, backed by his wonderful “Magic Band” of saxophonist Bobby Bryant Jr., bassist Curtis Robertson Jr., and drummer Tony St. James.

The audience at the Montreal Jazz Festival in Canada was in for a treat on July 3, 1982, as a true musical innovator hit the stage: Jaco Pastorius, who transformed the electric bass into a formidable solo instrument. Combining intricate harmonics, fluid melodies, and unparalleled technical skill, Pastorius left a lasting impact on the music world. In this concert, he is accompanied by Peter Erskine (drums), Don Alias (percussion), Othello Molineaux (steel drums), Bob Mintzer (tenor sax and bass clarinet), and Randy Brecker (trumpet and electronics). They perform “Chicken”, “Donna Lee”, “Mr. Phone Bone”, and “Fannie Mae”. Don't miss this extraordinary opportunity to experience Jaco Pastorius’s electrifying performance at the Montreal Jazz Festival 1982!

'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.

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 1987, prominent guitarist George Benson brought his band to kick off day three of the North Sea Jazz Festival in The Hague. Joining him to play songs from their joint album "Collaborations" was Grammy award–winning acoustic guitarist Earl Klugh.

Manu Katché is one of France's most famous jazz drummers, who originally studied piano at the Conservatory in Paris before he switched to percussion. He presented his tenth album, “The scOpe”, which incorporates elements of jazz, rock, and world music, at the 2020 edition of Festival Jazz au Sommet in France. Katché is joined on stage by Jérôme Regard on bass, Alfio Origlio on piano, Walter Ricci on vocals, and Patrick Manouguian on guitar.

One vocalist from Paris and the other from Bern, and two contrasting personalities. Brought together by a chance encounter in 2014, the two singers were surprised to discover how much they had in common: they both do more than just sing well. Leïla Martial and Andreas Schaerer intend to explore and experiment, stretching their vocal boundaries. From the deepest abyss to the most exquisite tones the human voice can produce, they leave no stone unturned in their quest to express themselves, each in their own individual way and always with a generous dose of humour and zest.

While always keeping one foot firmly anchored in the traditions of his home country, Cuba, Omar Sosa tirelessly explores music from the Caribbean to India, and West Africa to the Arab world. Since he left Cuba in 1993, the pianist has been blending his Afro-Cuban roots with jazz, hip hop, electro and world music. For his 2018 performance at Théâtre de Villefranche-sur-Saône, he brings to stage his Quarteto Afrocubano members Childo Tomas (electric bass & vocals), Ernesto Simpson (drums), and Leandro Saint-Hill (saxophones, flute, percussion & vocals). Together, they create a riveting instrumental dialogue. Celebrating rhythm in all its forms, this Omar Sosa concert is an intense and mystical experience.

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, Berlin serves as a backdrop for sets by pianist Wolfert Brederode, guitarist Kurt Rosenwinkel, and Hyperactive Kid.

The world-renowned North Sea Jazz Festival features a wide variety of genres, including traditional New Orleans jazz, swing, bop, free jazz, fusion, avant-garde and electronic jazz, blues, gospel, funk, soul, R&B, hip hop, world beat and Latin. The festival was founded by entrepreneur and jazz fan Paul Acket, who sold his highly successful pop magazine publishing house to organize and fund the first edition of the festival in 1976. This broadcast from the North Sea Jazz Archives presents a compilation with music of Ray Charles.

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.

Estival Jazz Lugano is an annual, open-air music festival that takes place over five days in the picturesque city of Lugano, Switzerland. Since 1979, this musical Mecca has been a must-attend event for all jazz and world music fans worldwide. In July 1996, renowned American saxophonist Wayne Shorter and his quintet performed at Estival Jazz Lugano. Together with pianist Jim Beard, guitarist David Gilmore, bassist Alphonso Johnson, and drummer Rodney van Holmes, Shorter shows he is still at his best.

‘Jazz à Vienne’ is one of the world's most prestigious jazz festivals. Ever since 1981 it has attracted leading jazz artists, with many of them playing return engagements. Unsurprisingly, the festival's 2013 edition did not fall short of expectations: the lineup was filled with the biggest names in music. Among them was the wonderful Richard Bona. He conquered the world with his bass and voice a long time ago. Joined on stage by Mike Rodrigues on trumpet, Luisito and Robert Quinteros on percussions, Ozzy Melendez on trombone, and Osmandy Paredes on piano, Bona once again shows why audiences around the world fall for his music.

Since 1994, World Music Expo (WOMEX) has been attracting musicians, agents, a great number of press agencies, as well as media companies from all over the world. Its main exposition event has been held in various locations throughout Europe, including Berlin, Brussels, Marseille, Stockholm, Seville, Cardiff, and Budapest. In 2018, WOMEX was held in Las Palmas, Gran Canaria. One of its showcase participants, Nelida Karr, sings and plays guitar, piano, cello and percussion. She writes songs suffused with the many influences she assimilated growing up in Malabo in Africa’s only Spanish-speaking country, Equatorial Guinea. The result is an eclectic mix that she nevertheless incorporates into a sound all her own.

30 minutes of... Orquestra Jazz de Matosinhos and Orquestra Sinfónica do Porto Casa da Música conducted by Dirk Brossé. Casa da Música is a performance hall located in Porto, in northern Portugal. Brossé, born in Ghent, Belgium in 1960, is a versatile composer and a respected conductor on the international music scene. Pianist Jason Moran and cellist J.A. Pereira de Sousa accompany both sets.