Akbank Jazz Festival one of the most long-running festivals in Turkey, is celebrating its 27th year this year. The festival, which brought together the prestigious names of the jazz world such as Cecil Taylor, Archie Shepp, McCoy Tyner, Pharoah Sanders, Jimmy Smith, Enrico Rava, John Scofield & Joe Lovano, Manu Katché, David Sanborn, will spread different colors of jazz all over the city, between November 3 and 19.
Akbank Jazz Festival, which has a gradually increasing graphic with millions of followers so far, is getting ready for hosting special performances for its 27th year. Among the stars to take the stages, some of the names are; Abdullah Ibrahim, the chief composer-pianist of modern jazz, Abdullah Ibrahim & Ekaya and Hugh Masekela, consisting of Ekaya, resurrecting the soul of The Jazz Epistles -the first all-black bebop jazz group of South Africa- and Hugh Masekela, another jazz icon of South Africa, Vanessa Rubin, one of the great ambassadors of jazz in the world, Ala.Ni, whose songs have been listened over 2.5 million on digital platforms to date, Wolfgang Muthspiel, one of the jazz guitarists who made marks on his generation, Ecuadorian producer and musician Nicola Cruz, British producer and musician Bonobo, Norwegian tuba player and composer Daniel Herskedal, instrumentalist and composer Marius Neset, one of the 25 young jazz musicians who are expected to steer the future of jazz, Amina Figarova Sextet, who combines classical music discipline with moving rhythms and bright harmonies, Cuban jazz pianist and composer Alfredo Rodríguez, American drummer and producer Mark Guilliana, British saxophonist Shabaka Hutchings with The Ancestors, consisting of South African musicians, and Red Baraat, one of the important names of Mop Mop and Acid Jazz, combining post-modern jazz style with funk, Afro rhythms and an exotic sounds. The festival, which will host Kenan Doğulu and Sattas under the innovative projects section, will bring together many new Turkish talents such as Emin Fındıkoğlu, İlhan Erşahin, Baki Duyarlar, Çağıl Kaya, Çağrı Sertel and Şenay Lambaoğlu as well as talents of the new generation such as Evrencan Gündüz and Hakan Başar with music lovers.
JAZZ MASTERS
The Akbank Jazz Festival, which has been bringing together the master names of the jazz world with music lovers for 27 years, offers a rich program for followers this year as well. The 27th Akbank Jazz Festival will host Abdullah Ibrahim & Ekaya and Hugh Masekela, Chucho Valdés and Gonzalo Rubalcaba (100%) Trance (75%), Emin Fındıkoğlu + 12 in the “Jazz Masters” program.
The 27th Akbank Jazz Festival will host Abdullah Ibrahim & Ekaya and Hugh Masekela at Uniq Hall on Wednesday, November 8. Ekaya, which was founded by Abdullah Ibrahim, one of the chief composers and pianists of modern jazz, and resurrected the soul of The Jazz Epistles -the first all-black bebop jazz group of South Africa, will be accompanied by Hugh Masekela, another jazz icon in South Africa, at the concert.
Marking two generations of great Cuban piano music culture; Chucho Valdés ile Gonzalo Rubalcaba, two leading figures whose friendship, mutual love and respect endure for decades, will take the stage for the 27th Akbank Jazz Festival on Sunday, November 12.The two great names of the jazz world will meet with festival followers at Cemal Reşit Rey Concert Hall with duo piano project Trance, extending from popular songs to Cuban repertoire and Thelonious Monk.
TIME SPIRIT
Vanessa Rubin will open the 27th Akbank Jazz Festival with an unforgettable concert at The Seed on Friday, November. Wolfgang Muthspiel Trio, a jazz guitarist who left his mark on his generation, at Zorlu PSM Drama Stage on Monday, November 6. Shabaka & The Ancestors will be performing their Wisdom of Elders album that they recorded in Johannesburg in 2016, at Babylon on Thursday, November 9. American drummer and producer Mark Guilliana, who beats life to the veins of jazz techno, will perform at Bablyon on Wednesday, November 15, for the 27th Akbank Jazz Festival. At the festival, Guiliana will perform all tracks, all belong to him, from Family First album, recorded in New York Bunker studios.
Ala.Ni, born in London, whose songs have been listened over 2.5 million on digital platforms to date, will meet the followers of the 27th Akbank Jazz Festival at Babylon on Thursday, November 16. English soul group Ephemerals, founded by guitarist Hillman Mondegreen three years ago, will deliver a different performance at the 27th Akbank Jazz Festival. At Mop Mop’s concert in Babylon on Saturday, November 18, you are going to get a very different musical experience while listening to the band’s Gnawa rhythms, heavy dub, jazz, funk with Trinidad-born poet, novelist, academics and musician Anthony Joseph’s vocals.
TONE OF KEYS
Purple is the Color feels free to use pop and folk music, combining them with a modern sound world that is dominated by a European sound fed from classical music, will be at St. Benoit High School for 27th Akbank Jazz Festival on Thursday, November 9, blending European compositions with American improvisation. 10 years ago, will be at Akbank Sanat on Saturday, November 11. Amina Figarova Sextet, founded by Baku-born pianist and composer Amina Figarova with her Belgian flutist husband Brat Platteau, will meet Turkish audience for the first time within the 27th Akbank Jazz Festival. Amina Figarova Sextet will perform their songs from their 13th album Blue Whispers, combining classical music discipline with moving rhythms and bright harmonies at the concert on Sunday, November 12, at Cemal Reşit Rey.
Pianist, singer-songwriter Howe Gelb, a gift from Arizona deserts to the rock scene, who had 22 solo albums with the band ‘Giant Sand’ founded in 1985 along with numerous songs written and voiced by him, will be at 27th Akbank Jazz Festival with his trio on Monday, November 13. Howe Gelb will meet jazz lovers at Babylon as part of the world tour of his latest album released last year, Future Standards, taking audiences to a journey to the future by following Leonard Cohen’s tranquility and jazz standards of the past. Valencian guitarist Ximo Tebar, who broke the rules with “Son Mediterranean” style by combining jazz with flamenco, will give a flamenco-jazz feast for two nights at Nardis on Monday, November 13 and Tuesday, November 14 as part of the 27th Akbank Jazz Festival.
OUR VOICES
With Authentic Anatolian Project, a hybrid music project based on Anatolian folk songs, you will feel Anatolian music and jazz in your veins at the performance at Akbank Sanat on Wednesday, November 8, as part of the 27th Akbank Jazz Festival. Şenay Lambaoğlu, one of the most distinctive voices of jazz music, will perform at the Akbank Jazz Festival again after five years. Lambaoğlu will present an acoustic program of her popular songs at Summart on Thursday, November 9. The famous name of Turkish pop music, Kenan Doğulu, who will be hosted by the 27th Akbank Jazz Festival, will add another dimension to jazz music with a selection composed of hit songs from the joint album ‘İhtimaller’ with Ozan Musluoğlu. Remember to take your place at Babylon on Saturday, November 11, to listen to the striking arrangements of Ercüment Orkut, Can Çankaya and Bulut Gülen. Quartera, founded by pianist and composer Emir Ersoy who with the encouragement of Grammy awarded drummer Robby Ameen, will be at the the 27th Akbank Jazz Festival at Caddebostan Cultural Center on Wednesday, November 15. One of the young talents of Turkish cinema, Türkü Turan, will also be at Caddebostan Cultural Center on Wednesday, November 15 as a guest vocals, do not miss Emir Ersoy Quartera feat.
Türkü Turan special concert. Represents our country successfully in national and international cultural and art events for 35 years, TRT İstanbul Light Music and Jazz Orchestra will take the stage at the 27th Akbank Jazz Festival together with the famous vocalist Sibel Köse. Write down the concert to be held at Caddebostan Cultural Center on Tuesday, November 14 to listen to the great names who have influenced the last 30 years of Turkish jazz. Jazz pianist and composer Çağrı Sertel will be the guest of the 27th Akbank Jazz Festival on Wednesday, November 15, with his latest album Instant, accompanied by a team of stars, each of which has unique influence on Turkish jazz. The “Kemenjazz” project, written by famous jazz pianist, composer and instructor Baki Duyarlar for Derya Türkan’s kemancha, took its final form with Cem Aksel on drums and Erdal Akyol on contrabass Recording an album with the same name, the band remolds the soothing melodies of different cultures in jazz dynamics, in each of the original compositions bearing Baki Duyarlar signature.
The “Kemenjazz” team, who feature at the 27th Akbank Jazz Festival with a surprise guest, Harrris Lambrakis, the master of Ney (end-blown flute) from Athens, will perform at Caddebostan Cultural Center on Thursday, November 16, delivering songs from İstanbul to the opposite shores of the Aegean Sea. Our country’s leading Reggae band Sattas will participate in the 27th Akbank Jazz Festival in November to meet with music lovers with their second album. You will witness a “Reggae Show” that never seen before in our country, even in surrounding countries, at Kadıköy Moda Stage on Friday, November 17. Sattas will be accompanied by different kind of musicians as guest artists on the stage. The famous vocalist Çağıl Kaya, who draws audiences’ attention to the story with theatrical figures and amazing sound improvisations on the stage, will be at the 27th Akbank Jazz Festival with her performance at Akbank Sanat on Saturday, November 18.
NEW GENERATION
Evrencan Gündüz, who wows massive audiences with his solo acoustic programs for a year, will be performing at Moda Stage on Thursday, November 16 with his group “Evrencan Gündüz Quintet” as part of the 27th Akbank Jazz Festival. Turkey’s youngest jazz pianist Hakan Başar, the son of jazz guitarist Hakan Başar, born in 2004, will meet with 27th Akbank Jazz Festival followers on the Benoit High School stage on Thursday, November 9. With the slogan “Music For Everyone”, The Social Inclusion Band that brings together students receiving art courses at Düşler Akademisi on the same stage with professional musicians from all over the world for over 10 years and that offers them a new career opportunity, will take the stage for free of charge at Babylon on Sunday, Nov 12 for the 27th Akbank Jazz Festival.
DELICIOUS JAZZ
The ones who want to make a good start to the week with jazz music, Jazz Brunches will enliven your weekend up. NewPel Trio, composed of Mahir Dabakoğlu on guitar, Bora Tanyeli on saxophone and Arda Özkan on contrabass, will perform at the MSA’s Restaurant in Sakıp Sabancı Museum in Emirgan on Sunday, November 5 and will also be in the green and peaceful atmosphere of Bizim Tepe on Sunday, November 12. The modern manouche jazz band Manouche-u Âlâ will be at Jazz Brunch to be held in Tamirane.
