World-famous jazz musicians in Istanbul for Akbank jazz fest
Tuesday, October 3, 2006


The 16th edition of the festival is dedicated to the late producer Arif Mardin, 'a jazz legend whose point of view was undoubtedly shaped by the sound of Istanbul,' according to the festival’s organizers

Istanbul is set for 10 cool and rhythmic days from this Wednesday when the 16th Akbank Jazz Festival gets under way. This year's festival, which will run through Oct. 14, will also travel to İzmir and Ankara with selected performances.

This year's festival will focus on the diverse sounds of daily life of Istanbul. Jazz fans will once again have the opportunity to see some of the greatest jazz musicians take to the stage, as they enliven historic concert halls and continue to shape the sound of Istanbul.

The 16th edition of the festival is dedicated to the late producer Arif Mardin, “a jazz legend whose point of view was undoubtedly shaped by the sound of Istanbul,” according to the festival's organizers.

Composer, lyricist, and organizer Kurt Elling will open the festival with a concert on Wednesday at the historic Hagia Eireni.

Famous for her crystal-clear vocals and a range that includes everything from blues to soul, funk, jazz and even gospel, Alice Russell will turn up the temperature at Babylon with her performance on Friday night.

Istanbul-based percussionist William Cardoso will bring the traditional sounds of Cuba to Turkey with his high-energy project “El Pluma Band.” The seven-member ensemble also includes American bassist Tony Jones and accomplished young pianist Çağrı Sertel.

The Alvin Curran, Fred Frith, and Cenk Ergun Trio will provide the perfect closure for a whirlwind weekend and provide audiences with a reservoir of energy for the week ahead when they perform at Babylon. Following their performance, “CazYapJazz” will carry the audience around the world with their set, which includes Romany sounds from the streets of Kasımpaşa, electronic sounds from the clubs of London and jazz improvisations from the basement bars of New York.

Grammy-winning Cuban piano sensation Gonzalo Rubalcaba and legendary Brazilian soloist, composer, and guitar master João Bosco will bland their gifts for what is sure to be a memorable dialogue between two musicians in rhythmic, melodic, and thematic explorations into how Latin American sounds travel.

The festival will wrap up on Oct. 14 with a magical night. Musically ambidextrous Wadada Leo Smith is first and foremost a trumpet player as well as a composer whose original ideas set him in a magna cum laude class of his own. Smith will be joined by Süleyman Ergüner, one of the most important figures in the Sufi community, at the Cemal Reşit Rey Concert Hall.

Lou Donaldson, whose career as a musician spans five decades during which he has mastered the art of alto saxophone and experimented with hard bop, soul, and jazz, will also be on stage for the finale concert. Donaldson will be joined by Dr. Lonnie.

Over at Babylon, French guitarist Nicolas Repac will be performing his interpretations of '50s and '60s swing classics for the final concert Babylon will host. Repac will present his latest project made up of electro jazz beats, new discoveries, ideas, and emotions brimming with light and sounds prepared with innocence to carry the listener on a hallucinogenic, magic carpet ride of a journey.

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Program of the 16th Akbank Jazz Festival:



Hagia Eireni Museum:

Kurt Elling -- Oct. 4 at 8:30 p.m.



Cemal Reşit Rey Concert Hall:

Dhafer Youssef & Divine Shadows Strings -- Oct. 11 at 8:30 p.m.

Lee Konitz & Ohad Talmor String Project feat. The Spring String Quartet -- Oct. 12 at 8:30 p.m.

Joao Bosco & Gonzalo Rubalcaba Group -- Oct. 13 at 7:00 p.m.

Richard Galliano Septet “Piazzolla Forever” -- Oct. 13 at 9:30 p.m.

Wadada Leo Smith & Süleyman Ergüner: Tabligh -- Oct. 14 at 7:00 p.m.

The Lou Donaldson Quartet featuring Dr. Lonnie Smith -- Oct. 14 at 9:30 p.m.



Yeni Melek Show Center:

Psapp -- Oct. 7 at 10:00 p.m.

King Britt presents Nova Dream Sequence “Live” -- Oct. 7 at 11:00 p.m.



Babylon Performance Center:

Dave Burrell Db3 -- Oct. 4 at 10:00 p.m.

Acoustic Ladyland & Polar Bear -- Oct. 5 at 9:30 p.m.

Alice Russell featuring TM Juke Live & Quantic (DJ Set) -- Oct. 6 at 11:00 p.m.

Ayşe Tütüncü Trio -- Oct. 7 at 8:00 p.m.

The Ramon Valle Quartet -- Oct. 7 at 11:00 p.m.

Alvin Curran, Fred Frith, Cenk Ergün Trio -- Oct. 8 at 7:00 p.m.

Cazyapjazz -- Oct. 8 at 9:00 p.m.

El Pluma Band “William Cardoso Project” -- Oct. 9 at 9:30 p.m.

Supersilent -- Oct. 10 at 9:30 p.m.

Cuong Vu & Scratch -- Oct. 11 at 9:30 p.m.

Birdy Nam Nam -- Oct. 12 at 10:00 p.m.

Orient Expressions - İmer Demirer - Leo Tardin -- Oct. 13 at 11:00 p.m.

Nicolas Repac “Swing Swing” -- Oct. 14 at 11:00 p.m.



Akbank Art Center:

Atölye - Dave Burrell -- Oct. 5 at 6:00 p.m.

Uzel Ametist Klarnet Quintet -- Oct. 6 at 7:30 p.m.

Candy and Milkshake -- Oct. 7 at 7:30 p.m.

Yurdal Çağlar Trio -- Oct. 12 at 7:30 p.m.

Islak Köpek -- Oct. 13 at 7:30 p.m.

Atmosfer -- Oct. 14 at 7:30 p.m.

[HH İzmir Atatürk Culture Center:

Dhafer Youssef & Divine Shadows Strings -- Oct. 9 at 8:30 p.m.

El Pluma Band “William Cardoso Project” -- Oct. 10 at 8:30 p.m.



Ankara Education Ministry (MEB) Assembly Hall:

Dhafer Youssef & Divine Shadows Strings -- Oct. 10 at 8:30 p.m.

El Pluma Band “William Cardoso Project” -- Oct. 11 at 8:30 p.m.


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