The ones playing with us
Festival Organizer
Co-organizers and partners
Adam Pierończyk
Saksofonista, kompozytor i lider. Według międzynarodowej prasy, jeden z najbardziej interesujących i kreatywnych muzyków europejskich, a także – jeden z największych innowatorów w polskim jazzie. Pod własnym nazwiskiem wydał ponad 20 płyt, za które zdobył wiele nagród i wyróżnień, w tym m.in. 18 nominacji oraz 2 główne nagrody Fryderyk jako Jazzowy Muzyk Roku oraz za Jazzowy Album Roku.
14 razy wybrany Najlepszym Saksofonistą Sopranowym według magazynu Jazz Forum. W latach 2005-2006 dyrektor artystyczny festiwali Jazz aux Oudayas i Jazz Au Chellah w Rabacie, stolicy Maroka oraz Sopot Jazz Festival w latach 2011 – 2015.
Adam Pierończyk współpracował m.in. z takimi muzykami jak: współpracował m.in. z takimi muzykami jak: Sam Rivers, Archie Shepp, Miroslav Vitous, Gary Thomas, Greg Osby, Bobby McFerrin, Jeff „Tain” Watts, Trilok Gurtu, Tomasz Stańko, Ted Curson, Avishai Cohen, Lage Lund, Orlando Le Fleming, Joe Martin, Jean-Paul Bourelly, Anthony Cox, Joey Calderazzo, Leszek Możdżer.
Koncertuje na całym świecie. Do tej pory występował w następujących krajach Europy: Polska, Niemcy, Francja, Włochy, Belgia, Szwajcaria, Austria, Anglia, Szwecja, Słowacja, Dania, Czechy, Węgry, Bułgaria, Rumunia oraz w Rosji, na Ukrainie, w Kazachstanie, Kirgizji, Izraelu, Maroku, Brazylii, USA, Meksyku oraz Chinach.
Maciej Kitajewski Trio
Zespół Maciej Kitajewski Trio powstał w 2020 roku z inicjatywy kontrabasisty Macieja Kitajewskiego. Jest to fortepianowe trio jazzowe, w skład którego poza liderem wchodzą Franciszek Raczkowski (fortepian) oraz Szymon Madej (perkusja). Początkowo pandemia koronawirusa pokrzyżowała plany grupy, jednak w styczniu 2021 zostali laureatem konkursu Instytutu Muzyki i Tańca “Jazzowy Debiut Fonograficzny”, czego owocem stał się album”Longing Miniatures”.
Piotr Narajowski
Młody kontrabasista pochodzący z Wrocławia. Absolwent Akademii Muzycznej w Katowicach oraz Akademii Muzycznej w Krakowie. Uczestnik i laureat wielu konkursów oraz festiwali jazzowych: Jazz nad Odrą(2017, 2020), Jazz Juniors (2020), Blue Note Jazz Competition (2019,2020), Krokus Jazz Festiwal (2017), Rck pro jazz, Jazz w Ruinach, Jazz Jantar. Na swoim koncie posiada kilka albumów, m.in. z takimi projektami jak: Piotr Budniak Essential Group, Semiotic Quintet, Sabina Meck Sextet czy Przemysław Chmiel Quartet, którego debiutancki album został nominowany w 2020 roku do nagrody Fryderyk w kategorii jazzowy debiut fonograficzny. Ponadto, współtworzy on wiele autorskich projektów, zarówno na Krakowskiej jak i Katowickiej scenie jazzowej.
Wojciech Lichtański
Jeden z najbardziej utalentowanych polskich saksofonistów altowych młodego pokolenia. Zdobywca głównej nagrody konkursu 15. Bielskiej Zadymki Jazzowej, Grand Prix Jazzu nad Odrą oraz wielu innych nagród i wyróżnień. Zachwyca dojrzałą grą, dopracowanym brzmieniem i profesjonalnym warsztatem. Jako kompozytor otrzymał kilka prestiżowych nagród: nagroda specjalna za kompozycje “Journey with K.” na big band przyznaną przez Marię Schneider w konkursie 14. Bielskiej Zadymki Jazzowej. Jako nastolatek wygrał wiele konkursów muzyki klasycznej.
W roku 2013 uzyskał tytuł magistra sztuki (specjalność saksofon) w Akademii Muzycznej im. Karola Szymanowskiego w Katowicach. Na tej samej uczelni zdobył tytuł licencjata z zakresu kompozycji i aranżacji. Aktualnie jest studentem studiów doktoranckich, także Akademii Muzycznej w Katowicach.
Wojciech współtworzy kilka wyróżniających się zespołów jazzowych: Aga Derlak Quintet, czy Piotr Budniak Essential Group. Jest liderem swojego autorskiego kwartetu – Wojciech Lichtański Questions. Miał okazję występować na wielu festiwalach w Polsce i za granicą: m.in. Leverkusen Jazz Festival, Delhi Jazz Festival, Stara Zagora Jazz Festival, czy Jazz nad Odrą. Współpracował z takimi muzykami jak: David Doróżka, Jorge Vistel, Leszek Możdżer, Janusz Muniak, Piotr Wojtasik, Ed Partyka, Piotr Wyleżoł, Jerzy Małek i wielu innych.
Piotr Budniak
Piotr Budniak to urodzony w 1991 roku perkusista i kompozytor pochodzący z Zielonej Góry. Absolwent dwóch akademii muzycznych – w Katowicach i Krakowie. Laureat większości najważniejszych polskich konkursów jazzowych, odnoszący sukcesy także na scenie europejskiej. Koncertował m.in. w Chinach, Korei Południowej, Estonii, Szwecji, Hiszpanii, Maroko, Rumunii, Rosji, Francji, Belgii, Słowacji, Czechach, Niemczech, na Węgrzech i Ukrainie. Na swoim koncie ma nagranych kilkanaście płyt oraz podwójną nominację do Fryderyków.
Od najmłodszych lat dostrzegający pluralizm i wynikającą z niego relatywność rzeczywistości. Wewnętrznie skonfliktowany, poszukujący balansu pomiędzy sercem, rozumiem oraz duchem. Uzależniony od wątpliwości i zadawania trudnych pytań, na które nie akceptuje prostych odpowiedzi. Zafascynowany linearną koncepcją gry na perkusji oraz translacją melodii w materię rytmiczną. Nieustannie poszukujący nowych inspiracji i środków wyrazu.
Współtworzy wiele zespołów jazzowych młodej generacji (m.in. Kasia Pietrzko Trio, Daniel Varga Eastern European Quartet, Klara Cloud & The Vultures, Adam Jarzmik Quintet, Alchemik Big-Band, The Forest Tuner). Koncertował z Robem Mazurkiem, Jeffem Parkerem, Troyem Robertsem, Adamem Larsonem, Corcoranem Holtem, Mike’m Russellem, Tomaszem Stańko, Januszem Muniakiem, Zbigniewem Namysłowskim, Piotrem Wojtasikiem, Arturem Majewskim czy Piotrem Wyleżołem.
Od siedmiu lat z powodzeniem prowadzi swój własny zespół Piotr Budniak Essential Group, w którego skład wchodzą znakomici polscy muzycy (Wojciech Lichtański, Kajetan Borowski, Piotr Narajowski) oraz, pochodzący z Czech, jeden z najlepszych gitarzystów w Europie – David Doružka.
Kajetan Borowski
Pianista, kompozytor, absolwent Instytutu Jazzu Akademii Muzycznej w Katowicach, a obecnie jej wykładowca. Laureat licznych konkursów jazzowych, polskich i zagranicznych, wielokrotnie nagradzany za umiejętności zarówno kompozytorskie jak i improwizatorskie. Od początku swojej działalności artystycznej lider własnego trio, którego debiutancka płyta pod tytułem “Totem” ukazała się w maju 2016 roku za którą został nominowany do nagrody polskiego przemysłu muzycznego, „Fryderyk 2017″ w kategorii Debiut Roku.
Peter Evans
Peter Evans is a trumpet player and composer based in New York City since 2003. Evans is part of a broad, hybridized scene of musical experimentation and his work cuts across a wide range of modern musical practices and traditions. Peter is committed to the simultaneously self-determining and collaborative nature of musical improvisation as a compositional tool, and works with an ever-expanding group of musicians and composers in the creation of new music.
His primary groups as a leader are the Peter Evans Ensemble (with Mazz Swift, Ron Stabinsky and Levy Lorenzo) and Being & Becoming (with Joel Ross, Nick Jozwiak and Savannah Harris). Evans has been exploring solo trumpet music since 2002 and is widely recognized as a leading voice in the field, having released 6 albums of solo music since 2006. He is also a member of several collaborative groups; duos with Levy Lorenzo and Sam Pluta, Rocket Science and Pulverize the Sound.
As a composer, he has been commissioned by the International Contemporary Ensemble (ICE), Wet Ink, Yarn/Wire, the Donaueschingen Musiktage Festival, the Jerome Foundation’s Emerging Artist Program, and the Doris Duke Foundation. Evans has presented and/or performed his works at major festivals worldwide and tours his own groups extensively.
As an educator, Evans has given masterclasses and conducted workshops on improvisation, composition, instrumental practice and creativity at the Juilliard School, Manhattan School of Music, the New School of Social Research, Royal Academy of Music, Trinity College of Music, Guildhall School of Music and Drama, Hochschule für Musik Köln, Royal Birmingham Conservatoire, Institute of Sonology, Melbourne University, UC San Diego, UC Irvine, University of Toronto, University of Oregon, Cornish College, Oberlin Conservatory, and Cleveland Institute of Music.
He has worked with some of the leading figures in contemporary music: John Zorn, Pauline Oliveros, Brian Ferneyhough, Kanye West, George Lewis, Anthony Braxton, Evan Parker, Mary Halvorson, Craig Taborn, Ambrose Akinmusere, Weasel Walter, Ingrid Laubrock, Jeff “Tain” Watts, Tyshawn Sorey, Jim Black, Ikue Mori, Steve Schick, and works with both the International Contemporary and Wet Ink Ensembles as a performer and composer. As an interpreter of notated concert music, Evans has performed works by Varese, Xenakis, Bach, Stravinsky, Elliott Carter, Sciarrino, Ferneyhough, Wagner, Stockhausen, and many more.
Peter Evans has been releasing recordings on his own label, More is More, since 2011, beginning with the highly acclaimed “Ghosts”. 2021 will bring the second recording by Being & Becoming, as well as an album of Christmas music with 3 pianos.
ROOT 70
A strong tree has many roots. The jazz band Root 70 celebrated its 20th anniversary in 2020 and it puts down this longevity to a whole series of facts. Trombonist Nils Wogram, saxophonist Hayden Chisholm, bassist Matt Penman and drummer Jochen Rückert form one of the most stable formations in jazz history.
In May 2000 Root 70 gave its first concert under this name at the Moers Festival. It is unusual that four personalities who are such strong individualists, not only on their instruments but also as musical charac ters, should nevertheless achieve a highly symbiotic band sound. These four protagonists feel connected
by a similar system of musical values and are committed to a similar basic aesthetic. So they had common intersections; looking for them was unnecessary. But Root 70 managed to do something that few bands have been able to do over so many years: The group has built their work using contrasting ideas – the ten sion between the musicians – from which new overlaps, breaks, changes of perspective and approaches constantly emerge. Each of the four has found their own place in the band, a place that is flexible and ta kes personal differences into account. If things were different, the salt would be missing in the soup. You can have differences with your fellow musicians and still make music together, because you basically un derstand your companions.
Purely musically, the band achieved a kind of sophistication. They translate their skills as musicians into music with character, not something that is simply well played. They wanted to surprise the audience and also themselves with ever new ideas, they didn´t just want to scratch the surface, but to go into depth.
While Cologne was initially a kind of epicenter for Root 70, there is now a great spatial distance between the musicians. Wogram lives in Switzerland, Chisholm in Ireland, Rückert and Penman in New York. Lo gistically, this creates challenges that are not always easy to overcome, but instead of the former spontaneity of meeting, today there is an unconditional will to harmonize with each other even over long distan ces.
What brought the four musicians together in the beginning still connects them today. Root 70 is more than a musical institution, more than a success story documented on eight albums. Root 70 is a utopia of reconciling opposites without corrupting the individual claim of each part of the whole.
Majid Bekkas
Nicknamed “the bluesman of Morocco”, Majid Bekkas is originally from Zagora, (south of Morocco), and born in Salé near Rabat in 1957,he has his roots in the North African music and a long experience in blues and jazz ,which makes him a unique musician who masters both traditional and modern music.
In the 80’s , he discovered blues and African music by playing and listening to John lee hoocker ,Aly Farka Toure , Fela Kuti ,salif keita etc.
In 2001, his record« African Gnaoua Blues » became a real reference in Gnaoua music and its relationship with the blues.
In 2003, he met the well-known German pianist Joachim Kuhn and the Spanish drummer Ramon Lopez. Together, they formed a great trio, recorded 5 albums for « Act music » in Germany and performed in a lot of jazz and world music festivals for 16 years.
When 2006 has come, Majid had gone on a tour and recorded with the famous German saxophonist Klaus Doldinguer (Passeport to Morocco), Majid played also with Archie Shepp and Pharoah Sanders and many others.
His record « Makenba »in 2010 with Louis Sclavis, Minino Garay and Aly Keita was selected by « Songlines »magazine, as the best Album Gnaoua fusion.
In 2015,Majid received the price of the « Academy Charles Cros » in Marseille (France) for his album « Al qantara » .
In 2018, he also received the price « Visa for Music » in Rabat, Morocco, for his global work.
As a co-artistic director of « Jazz au Chellah » festival in Rabat since 1996, Majid had the chance to meet many European Jazz musicians and play with them. In fact, in this same festival, Majid got to know the musicians of this new project « Magic spirit quartet »
Jean-Paul Bourelly
Jean-Paul Bourelly is an innovative and experimental guitarist, composer and producer who excels at blending and bending various musical styles into cohesive expression. His thick assertive guitar sound is informed by his Haitian and blues roots growing up on Chicago’s south side.
He has led over 20 recordings as a guitarist, including Truth to Power, Stone Raiders with longtime associate bassist Darryl Jones, Boom Bop featuring the late Abdourahmane Diop and soon to be released debut Citizen X w poet Sadiq Bey. His work continues to lead him in a variety of areas including reworking the harmonics of the blues and a quest to formulate work inspired by west african, blues, dream states and groovy otherness.
Bourelly appeared on the album “Amandla” by Miles Davis as well as in bands with Reunited with Elvin Jones, McCoy Tyner, and Pharaoh Sanders. He worked with rappers like D-Nice, created projects with noise guitarist Elliott Sharp, Vernon Reid, Dennis Chambers, TM Stevens, Melvin Gibbs and Cindy Blackman, and produced albums for Cassandra Wilson. His label and production studio JPGotMangos serves as a creative outlet for his most progressive projects and collaborations including his latest release Kiss the Sky and the upcoming Hips Project – Sound and Motion in the Other-Sphere.
Seamus Blake
New York based saxophonist/composer SEAMUS BLAKE is recognized as one of the finest exponents of contemporary jazz. His music is known for its sophistication, bold improvisations and “sheer swagger”. John Scofield, who hired Seamus for his “Quiet Band,” called him “extraordinary, a total saxophonist.” Throughout his 24 year career, Seamus has garnered critical praise for his masterful playing, his fine compositional skills and for his facility as a leader.
Since moving to Paris in February 2018 Seamus has been invited to perform the music of his recent CD, “Superconductor” with a number of European Jazz Bands. Beginning with the Latvian Radio Jazz Band early in 2018, Seamus has performed with the Trondheim Big Band and The Sibis Alumni Big Band (Sibelius Institute , Helsinki),in September. He is scheduled to perform his music with The Tuesday Big Band (Amsterdam) on November 6/7, and The Subway Jazz Orchestra on November 14.
In 2017 Seamus assembled a new quartet, The French Connection. The band ( Seamus, Tony Tixier piano, Florent Nisse, bass, and Gautier Garrigue, drums) recorded their first CD in Paris in November, 2017 and have toured in France and Spain. The CD will be released on the Whirlwind label. Three promo videos will be available on Youtube in January. Seamus has a busy schedule in Europe in 2018. Check the Performance page for details.
Superconductor is Seamus’ most ambitious project to date and was released in December 2015. The talent includes Nate Smith, Matt Garrison, Scott Kinsey, a 7 piece orchestral ensemble as well as special guest appearances by John Scofield and Gonzalo Rubalcaba. The album marks the debut of Seamus on EWI (electronic wind instrument). Seamus plays on the 2015 Grammy nominated Camino by pianist Gonzalo Rubalcaba.
Seamus Blake was born December 1970 in England and raised in Vancouver, Canada. At age 21, while still a student at Boston’s prestigious Berklee College, he was asked to record with legendary drummer Victor Lewis. After graduation, he moved to New York, where he rapidly established himself on the New York jazz scene. In February 2002, Seamus took first place in the Thelonious Monk International Jazz Saxophone Competition in Washington D. C. As the winner, he performed with Wayne Shorter and Herbie Hancock.
As a leader/co-leader , Seamus has released 16 albums. He is featured as a sideman on over 70 CDs.
Seamus has played on six of of the Grammy nominated Mingus bands’ albums He continues to play and record with Bill Stewart, Kevin Hays, David Kikoski and Alex Sipiagin. Seamus is frequently featured as a guest artist. In 2010 he was guest of honor at the International Saxophone Symposium in Washington hosted by the US Navy Band. Seamus was a member of John Scofield’s Quiet Band and toured and recorded with Dave Douglas. Some of the many other artists he has worked with include Eric Reed, Ethan Iverson, Chris Cheek, and Matt Penman.
Jure Pukl
Jure Pukl was awarded highest national award for contribution to Arts in Slovenia (Nagrada Prešernovega sklada 2015) and is one of the most prolific and creative saxophonists of the younger Slovene jazz generation. Pukl obtained university education abroad and studied classical and jazz saxophone at the University in Vienna as well as at the Haag Conservatory of Music. Pukl then won a scholarship to the Berklee College of Music, where he pursued his studies with masters such as Joe Lovano and George Garzone. He completed his masters degree in music at the Graz Academy of Music.
Throughout his studies Pukl performed and recorded extensively, being engaged in his own projects, as well as working with a number of great musicians from different fields in music such as Dave Liebman, Branford Marsalis, Esperanza Spalding, George Lewis, Maceo Parker, Vijay Iyer, Jeff “Tain” Watts, Gregory Hutchinson, Damion Reid, Darius Jones, Doug Hammond, Gerald Cleaver, Adam Rogers, Melissa Aldana, Rodney Green, Charles Altura, Joe Sanders, Aaron Goldberg, Marcus Gilmore, Johnathan Blake and orchestras like Big Band RTV Slovenia, European Jazz Orchestra, European Movement Jazz Orchestra, Vienna Saxophone Quartet and many others. He has been touring extensively throughout USA, Asia and Europe performing in venues such as Blue Note, Smalls Jazz Club, The Jazz Gallery, Ronnie Scotts, The Vortex, Pizza Express, Jazz Spot J Tokyo, Porgy & Bess, Stadtgarten and festivals like Winter Jazz Festival, Moers Jazz Festival, Vienna Jazz Festival, Pori Jazz Festival, Berlin Jazz Festival, Jazz a Vienne, Cairo Jazz Festival, to name a few.
His music has won him many awards and in his auctorial projects, such as the Doubtless, Broken Circles, Abstract Society, MEAT or Sound Pictures, Pukl dedicates himself to modern interpretations of jazz and improvised music.
What he creates is a unique type of modern jazz, avantgarde, free jazz and impressionistic contemporary music performed with a great deal of knowledge and love, giving prominence to the interplay between band members. He published 8 Albums under his own name and received rave reviews all over the globe among others in the influential Downbeat, The New York Times, Jazzwise, Jazz Podium and All About Jazz. He is also featured on more than 50 other projects as a sideman.
“Jure put together a record that flows like the wind.” Joe Lovano