We are very happy today to announce the names of the selected showcase bands, the Gala Concert and the programme outline for the upcoming 6th European Jazz Conference, taking place between 12 and 15 September 2019 in Novara, Italy.
At the same time, we are opening today the registrations to the Conference for EJN members, through an internal registration system, and for all other participants through the Eventbrite system, at a very special early bird rate of 120€ until the 31st May 2019 (150€ after that date).
Six music projects were selected to be showcased during the Conference in Novara:
- Rosa Brunello “SoloNude”
- Piero Bittolo Bon “Bread & Fox”
- Hobby Horse
- O-Janà
- Camilla Battaglia “EMIT”
- Filippo Vignato Quartet
The showcases final selection was made by the Programme Committee of the European Jazz Conference 2019 from a pool of 40 proposals gathered by I-Jazz (the association of Italian Jazz Festivals) through its project “Nuova Generazione Jazz” that is helping to promote young Italian musicians in Italy and abroad through concerts, showcases and artistic residences, supported by the Italian Ministry of Culture (MiBAC) and the Italian collecting society SIAE.
The selected projects represent at best a wide variety of styles of contemporary jazz and the dynamism of the younger generation of Italian jazz musicians that in various formations, from solo to quintet, explore different acoustic and electronic soundscapes with very original and noticeable results.
The programme committee of the European Jazz Conference 2019 is composed by Enrico Bettinello (NovaraJazz, Italy), Sunna Gunnlaugsdóttir (Reykjavik Jazz Festival, Iceland), Martyna Markowska (Katowice JazzArt Festival, Poland), Martel Ollerenshaw (Australian Music Centre, Australia) and Jan Ole Otnӕs (Nasjonal Jazzscene-Victoria, Norway).
The Gala Concert on Friday September 13th at Teatro Coccia, open as well to the public of the city of Novara, will see two extraordinary projects developed in the Italian jazz scene in the last years that exemplify at best the experimentations and richness of styles present across generations of Italian jazz musicians:
- Franco D’Andrea Octet “Intervals”
- Gianluca Petrella “Cosmic Renaissance”
The full programme outline for the conference days is available here: http://www.europejazz.net/programme-outline
A Fringe programme of events and concerts during the Conference days, the keynote speakers and details on the discussion groups will be announced in the upcoming months.
To register for the European Jazz Conference 2019 through Eventbrite: https://ejc2019.eventbrite.co.uk
About the European Jazz Conference 2019
The 6th European Jazz Conference will take place between 12 and 15 September 2019 in Novara, Italy. The Conference is the most important annual meeting of professionals from the jazz sector in Europe, in particular of presenters, managers, agents, national/regional organisations and cultural networks. The Conference is composed of inspiring keynote speeches, high-level discussion groups, networking sessions for professionals, cultural visits, a showcase programme of the best new artists from the host country, this year Italy, and a fringe programme of events during the conference days.
The theme chosen for the 2019 Conference is “Feed Your Soul”. The Conference will explore the role of music and culture on today’s communities – whether that is the musicians who perform, the industry who present or the audiences who listen. New generations of audiences deserve new perspectives and the Conference in Novara will reflect the immersive and interactive nature of experiencing, not only with your ears and your mind, but with your body and soul. More information about the 2019 theme are available here: http://www.europejazz.net/theme-2019-feed-your-soul
The European Jazz Conference is co-organised by Europe Jazz Network (EJN), NovaraJazz and Rest-Art association, with the support of the Municipality of Novara, Piedmont region, MiBAC (Italian Ministry of Culture), I-Jazz (Italian association of jazz festivals), Puglia Sounds (within Puglia Sounds Export programme 2019), Fondazione Musica per Roma/Parco della Musica records and of the Creative Europe programme of the European Union, that is supporting EJN through its network strand for the period 2017-2020.
Previous editions of the European Jazz Conference took place in Lisbon, Portugal (2018), Ljubljana, Slovenia (2017), Wrocław, Poland (2016); Budapest, Hungary (2015) and Helsinki, Finland (2014).
For more information about the Conference: http://www.europejazz.net/activity/european-jazz-conference
About the Showcase Bands
O-Janà
Ludovica Manzo (voice), Alessandra Bossa (piano, electronics)
The music of O-Janà (“witch” in Neapolitan) is charged with spontaneity, curiosity and audacity. Switching between icy abstraction and vibrant pulsation, it includes song, melody, chamber music and free improvisation to find a place alongside neoclassical and jazz.
Piero Bittolo Bon “Bread & Fox”
Piero Bittolo Bon (alto saxophone, clarinets, flutes, composition), Filippo Vignato (trombone), Glauco Benedetti (tuba), Alfonso Santimone (piano, electronics), Andrea Grillini (drums)
Each Piero Bittolo Bon project is unconventional, and this quintet “Bread & Fox” is no exception. Expect challenging music that is seriously fun.
Hobby Horse
Dan Kinzelman (winds, percussion, voice, electronics), Joe Rehmer (bass, harmonium, voice, electronics), Stefano Tamborrino (drums, voice, electronics)
Equally comfortable playing in festivals, concert halls, underground rock venues and dance clubs, Hobby Horse’s wildly unpredictable mix of styles is a melting pot of musical languages ranging from slam poetry to techno to psychedelic bossanova, prog rock, hip-hop and chamber music.
Rosa Brunello “SoloNude”
Rosa Brunello (upright bass, electronics, fx, loops, voice)
Evoking blue skies, rolling clouds and morning dew, the music of Rosa Brunello is enriched by unexpected sounds and images that allow audiences to enjoy nature as well as art.
Camilla Battaglia “EMIT”
Camilla Battaglia (voice, piano, fx), Michele Tino (alto saxophone), Andrea Lombardini (electric bass), Bernardo Guerra (drums)
Inspired by travels between Copenhagen and Berlin, the music for EMIT is the result of experimentation around the serial use of letters and numbers, combined with an interest and passion for the scientific, philosophical and musical concept of time.
Filippo Vignato Quartet
Filippo Vignato (trombone), Enzo Carniel (piano), Luca Fattorini (double bass), Emanuele Maniscalco (drums)
Bringing together a band of sensitive musicians and a desire to reach a place where consciousness and unconsciousness meet, this acoustic quartet creates luminous music that comes to life from the apparent contrast between profoundly lyrical writing and a natural tension towards abstract improvisation.
About the Gala Concert
21:30, Friday 13 September 2019, Teatro Coccia, Novara
Franco D’Andrea Octet “Intervals”
Franco D’Andrea (piano), Andrea Ayassot (saxophone), Daniele D’Agaro (clarinet), Mauro Ottolini (trombone), Aldo Mella (double bass), Zeno De Rossi (drums), Enrico Terragnoli (electric guitar), Luca Roccatagliati “DJ Rocca” (electronics)
Intervals is a project for octet by Franco D’Andrea based on particular combinations of intervals or single intervals that guide collective improvisations. It is documented in two albums, Intervals I and Intervals II, released by Parco della Musica Records, the record label of Fondazione Musica per Roma. Intervals is the culmination of decades of experimentation, of the type, however, that is constantly producing new questions and areas to explore, not answers. It succeeds in encompassing in a single, coherent and unified sound the many worlds visited by Franco D’Andrea during his long career, including some seldom heard over the years, such as the electronics, but still vivid in D’Andrea’s memory.
Gianluca Petrella “Cosmic Renaissance”
Gianluca Petrella (direction, trombone, electronics), Mirco Rubegni (trumpet), Francesco Ponticelli (bass), Federico Scettri (drums, electronics), Simone Padovani (percussions)
Cosmic Renaissance has been hailed as one of Italy’s best revelations of 2015. In 2016 the band released their first recording (“Cosmic Renaissance”, June 2016, Spacebone Records) and promoted its music throughout Europe. The original dectet (Cosmic Band) was founded in 2007 to celebrate Sun Ra’s music, but the project soon developed to take on the distinct characteristics of leader Gianluca Petrella’s endless creativity and overwhelming personality, which naturally filter and merge a variety of musical worlds. With ever-evolving Cosmic Renaissance, Petrella can engage in an even freer and more personal research of sound and music making, ad libbing and developing specific soundscapes for each concert situation.
About the Organisers
NovaraJazz
NovaraJazz brings to Italy some of the most interesting improvised and electronic productions of today’s musical scene, stimulating a dialogue between different cultures and generations. Its festival and season are recognised on a European level for the quality and originality of their musical programme but also for triggering new relationships between music, places and people.
Since sixteen years, NovaraJazz has grown with a wide proposal of different music series, often combining music with food and wine tasting of local products, performances in historical and naturalistic places in the city center or in the Natural Park of Ticino, around rice fields or in vineyards. NovaraJazz also focuses on students, with dance nights at the University, a whole season of concerts for children and people in need (music for elder people, an orchestra of migrants, piano concerts for prisoners in the local jail).
Beyond music, NovaraJazz also works on photo exhibitions, installations, CD productions and grants for artists who are invited to create new and at times multidisciplinary works in Novara. Residencies are a usual tool to bring artists to the city and develop new productions.
NovaraJazz is organised by Rest-Art, a non-profit organization focused on the interaction between music and various forms of visual arts.
http://www.novarajazz.org/
Europe Jazz Network
Europe Jazz Network (EJN) is a Europe-wide association of promoters, presenters and supporting organisations who specialise in creative music, contemporary jazz and improvised music created from a distinctly European perspective. Its membership currently comprises 144 organisations (festivals, clubs and venues, independent promoters and national/regional support organisations) from 35 countries in Europe and beyond.
EJN exists to support the identity and diversity of jazz in Europe and to broaden awareness of this vital area of music as a cultural and educational force. It aims to increase the exchange of knowledge and experience between professionals of the jazz sector and to initiate and encourage the development of international exchanges, special projects and collaborations between producers and artists both within and outside of Europe.
EJN believes that creative music contributes to social and emotional growth and economic prosperity, and is a positive force for harmony and understanding between people from the diversity of cultures inherent in the European family. It is an invaluable channel for the process of intercultural dialogue, communication and collaboration.
www.europejazz.net
