Between September 19th - 25th, Bucharest becomes the capital of jazz in Romania
This fall, the city will echo the rhythms of American contemporary jazz, modern soul and world music fusion during the 5th edition of Bucharest Jazz Festival, organized by ARCUB - The Cultural Centre of Bucharest, from September 19th to 25th, 2016, at George Enescu Square and Gabroveni Inn.
The new artistic director of the festival is the renowned jazz artist Teodora Enache, following the end of the three years mandate of musician Lucian Ban.
Bucharest Jazz Festival continues the tradition of events that place jazz in the cultural heart of the Bucharest inhabitants. The festival will consist of 5 evenings of live concerts by renowned national and international artists - the soul singer Lisa Simone, the daughter of Nina Simone, the band of one of the most erudite and visceral pianists, The Kenny Werner Trio, and the unconventional Indian percussionist Trilok Gurtu, as Trilok Gurtu Quartet - as well as emerging artists. Related events will also be held during the festival - exhibitions, conferences, screenings will reveal the unique and fresh side of the jazz industry.
Conceived as a yearly event, Bucharest Jazz Festival is the flagship jazz event of ARCUB, and is intended to be the major jazz event of Romania’s Capital, aiming to become fully integrated in the national and European contexts. Placing a strong accent on supporting the local Romanian jazz scene, Bucharest Jazz Festival is, at the same time, a bridge for world class jazz and a platform for the latest trends in contemporary jazz. Its mission is to create a place of excellence for jazz and improvised music, while making professional tools and good practices available to musicians so as to foster an environment for future collaborations between the Romanian jazz scene and the rest of the world.
ARCUB started presenting jazz concerts in the mid ’90s, as soon as it was founded as the Cultural Centre of Bucharest. In the 2000’s, it produced an early festival under the name of Bucharest Jazzy Spring. By presenting local and international jazz musicians, Jazzy Spring became the launching pad for a series of concerts at the newly restored art deco ARCUB Hall in downtown Bucharest. In 2011 a decision was made to create a summer outdoor festival that would take place in the Enescu Square, in front of the Romanian Athenaeum. Called ARCUB Open Air — Jazz, Blues & More for its first two editions, the festival changed its name to Bucharest Jazz Festival in 2014, channeling a renewed focus on jazz performance programming and additional jazz related events as an all-encompassing artistic endeavor of the 21st century.
