Malta Jazz Festival opens on Thursday

Malta Independent Wednesday, 16 July 2014, 12:43 Last update: about 12 years ago

It’s jazz festival week in Malta – or weeks actually, as this year’s Jazz on the Fringe – which kicked off just last week - will continue well throughout July. Forming part of the larger Malta Jazz Festival, the fringe provides plenty of jazz for free throughout the festival.

From squares to bars and palaces, the sounds of jazzy music will fill Malta’s summer evenings with a festival atmosphere. “Jazz on the Fringe”, a programme of local jazz music, will bring together some of Malta's renowned jazz musicians as well as international jazz artists to perform in various music venues, restaurants and bars around the island.

Part of the internationally-acclaimed Malta Jazz Festival, the programme features a series of events held in the days preceding and following the Malta Jazz Festival, created under the auspices of Arts Council Malta and sponsored by the Valletta 2018 Foundation.

Running from 17 to 19 July in the open-air setting of Ta’ Liesse, the Malta Jazz Festival – now in its 24th edition - will host some of the biggest names in jazz, including Mehliana (featuring Brad Mehldau and Mark Guiliana), Tom Harrell Colors of a Dream and Brecker Brothers Band Reunion “The Heavy Metal Bebop Tour”. Evenings will commence at 8pm.

Karl Jannuska - Photo by Nicholas Mead

Running for the fourth consecutive year as part of the main festival, the Fringe Festival aims to create an awareness of the Malta Jazz Festival and jazz music in general and further expand the scope of this internationally acclaimed festival through workshops and performances.

"The aim of Jazz on the Fringe is to stimulate the local jazz scene and expose Maltese audiences to jazz beyond the confines of Ta' Liesse,” said Sandro Zerafa, artistic director of the Malta Jazz Festival and Jazz on the Fringe.

The daily festival programme kicked off on 8 July and will run until 26 July, excluding Malta Jazz Festival dates, with gigs typically commencing at 8.30pm till late.

Renato D'Aiello

The Malta Jazz Contest will be the highlight of the Jazz on the Fringe festival, which will be held on 20 July at Fort St Elmo, Valletta. Five local finalists will participate in the competition for jazz soloists. The shortlisted musicians in this year’s Jazz Contest are Justin Galea, Carlo Muscat, Warren Galea, Sarah Marie Bugeja and Michelle Paris.

Sandro Zerafa

Malta Jazz Festival ticket info

Tickets for the Malta Jazz Festival 2014 cost €30 for a single-day ticket (seated) or €75 for a 3-day block ticket (seated). Standing single-day tickets are also available for €20 (free seating available) while a three-day block ticket (standing) can be bought for €40 (free seating available).

Tickets can be bought from www.maltajazzfestival.org, Embassy cinemas or at the door. Concession tickets for students and seniors (standing, free seating available): €30 three-day block ticket, €15 single-day ticket. These concession tickets can be purchased from the Embassy Cinema Valletta or at the door of The Malta Jazz Festival on presentation of a valid student card or senior citizens card.

Yoni Zelnik

Malta Summer Jazz Camp

The Malta Jazz Festival in collaboration with the Valletta 2018 Foundation is proud to present the second Malta Summer Jazz Camp featuring notable musicians/educators in the European jazz scene today. These workshops/masterclasses will be held at the Euro Institute of Music (Hamrun) between 15 and 19 July and are FREE of charge. Places are limited and pre-booking is required. Observers are welcome. For pre-booking please send an email to [email protected] indicating the class which you would like to attend. The teachers in this year's Jazz Camp are:

Renato D'Aiello - jazz fundamentals, saxophone (www.renatodaiello.net) Renato is one of the most active musicians on the London jazz scene. A Berklee graduate, he has shared the stage with Art Farmer, Kirk Lightsey, Bruce Forman, Gilad Atzmon and Tony Scott.

Claudio Angeleri - piano, jazz harmony (www.claudioangeleri.com) Claudio is director of the renowned school CDpM in Bergamo. He has collaborated with Franco Ambrosetti, Gianluigi Trovesi, Steve Lacy, Herb Pomeroy, Kenny Wheeler and Bob Mintzer amongst others.

Sandro Zerafa - guitar (www.sandrozerafa.com). Sandro is the director of the Malta Jazz Festival and a jazz guitarist / educator based in Paris. He has released three critically-acclaimed albums as a leader and has collaborated with artists as diverse as Chico Buarque, Laurent Coq, Youn Sun Nah and Manu Katche.

Gabriele Comeglio - arranging. Gabriele performed for 13 consecutive years with the Orchestra Ritmica della Rai in Milan. He has worked as an arranger in various contexts - jazz, TV, pop music with artists as diverse as Randy Brecker, Bob Mintzer, Zucchero and Franco Ambrosetti.

Karl Jannuska - drums / rhythm section (www.karljannuska.com). Canadian drummer Karl Jannuska is one of the most in-demand sideman in France. He has several albums as a leader and has shared the bandstand with artists such as Lee Konitz, Enrico Pieranunzi, Brad Mehldau, Pierre de Bethmann.

Yoni Zelnik - doublebass/ rhythm section. Yoni is one of the most in-demand sideman in France. He has collaborated with Billy Hart, Avishai Cohen, Nasheet Waits, Youn Sun Nah, David Doruzka, Yonathan Avishai, Laurent Coq, Dave Douglas, Geraldine Laurent, Sandro Zerafa and Romain Pilon amongst others. He is a member of the collective Paris Jazz Underground.

The Malta Jazz Festival is organised by Arts Council Malta under the auspices of Fondazzjoni Celebrazzjonijiet Nazzjonali (FCN) with the support of The Ministry for Justice, Culture and Local Government, Malta Tourism Authority, MSV Life, Switch, Cyberpass, The Phoenicia Hotel, Nescafe Dolce Gusto, Marsovin, Orienta, Valletta 2018 Foundation and TVM.

A special word of thanks goes to Valletta 2018 Foundation, Malta International Airport and Baystreet for making the Jazz on the Fringe possible.