English
With the arrival of autumn, it´s traditional that the most important European cities get geared up for jazz. A large number of festivals proliferate around the continent and make up a more or less permanent circuit for the great jazz stars, a music genre that has been a unique artistic field that has characterized the 20th century.
One of the most prestigious and attractive festivals is the one that takes place in Barcelona (http://www.barcelonajazzfestival.com/), which is celebrating its 44th edition this year with a month-full of concerts that make up an impressive lineup filled with top-class artists and eclectic musical proposals. This is a characteristic that is common in most international jazz festivals and has not fallen short of the critics amongst the most purist jazz crowd, since they are tired that jazz is considered a dumping ground for music that doesn´t fit in other traditional genres by commercial music-playing radios.
Despite their well known liking for fusion, even the most purist fans should be delighted this year with the star performance of the one and only Sonny Rollins. At the age of 82, he who is perhaps the biggest living legend in jazz will be playing in the magnificent, dreamy and mesmerizing venue of the Palau de la Música on the 20th of November. Rollins is one of the giants that this genre has produced in the last 50 years, mostly thanks to his unique way of playing the saxo and for his songs, which have been jazz classics for many years.
Rollins´ presence could boost any festival but this extraordinary New Yorker won´t be the only jazz colossus that will honour the Palau during the second half of the festival. The festival will finish with the gran finale that comes inevitably at the hands of the trio of the mercurial pianist and songwriter Chick Corea (completed on this occasion by Brian Blade on the drums and Christian McBride on the bass). Corea is a genius and an unclassifiable musicans that has embarked on continuous new and fascinating creative projects that won him a whole month of tributes from New York´s Blue Note, as a celebration of his 70th birthday.
It will be a performance that will be difficultly topped for a festival where you can also enjoy, among others, the moving and seductive talent of the powerful singer Omara Portuanda, the latest talent from the Buenavista Social Club orchestra. Also, the penetrating sensitivity of Albert Pla will be present as will the unquestionable quality of the Francesco Bearzatti quartet, considered the best European jazz musician of 2011 by the Académie du Jazz. You can listen to all of these artists on a Spotify playlist made by the festival itself.
If you rent accommodation in Barcelona, immerse yourself in this wonderful celebration of music, life and art, which will make autumn´s arrival and the summer´s goodbye a lot easier.
