Mike Stern will be performing at this year’s Malta Jazz Festival, the concert’s organisers announced today.
The virtuoso guitarist will headline the opening night of the festival on July 15, and will be accompanied by drumming luminary Dave Weckl, Chris Minh Doky and special guest Randy Brecker. It will be the third time Stern performs in Malta.
This will be the 20th edition of the festival, which has seen performers such as Chick Corea, John Scofield and Michel Petrucciani grace the Ta’ Liesse stage.
July 16 will see and hear Esperanza Spalding, a young vocalist and bassist who was chosen by US president Barack Obama to perform after he was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize.
Artistic director Sandro Zerafa said this year’s lineup was a very strong one, and represented a wide spectrum of what was happening in the international jazz scene.
“The event features not only purist Jazz, but also a variety of styles which incorporate the jazz ethos of cultures mixing together,” Mr Zerafa said.
The event will also include jazz interpretations of bands such as Pink Floyd and Black Sabbath as well as straightfoward jazz from New York City.
“It was the Jazz festival which made me want to become a musician,” Mr Zerafa said, adding that the event would also enrich local musicians.
The event will also see Charles ‘City’ Gatt perform, who 20 years ago dreamt of having a Jazz festival of an international calibre in Malta.
The line-up is as follows:
July 15: Francesca Galea accompanied by Leonardo Montana, “Nu-Jazz” trio The Bad Plus and Mike Stern.
July 16: Esperanza Spalding and the Joshua Redman Double Trio, featuring sax player Joshua Redman accompanied by a double portion of bassists and drummers.
July 17: Charles Gatt Quartet, Ari Hoenig Punk Bop Trio and bass virtuoso Richard Bona.
Single day tickets cost 15 euros, reserved seating tickets 20 euros. A three-day pass can be bought for 30 euros. Students and the elderly pay 10 euros per night or 20 euros for a three-day pass. Tickets will be on sale from www.maltaticket.com as from tomorrow.
http://maltajazzfestival.org/