The Malta Jazz Festival is happy to announce the programme of the Jazz on the Fringe, which runs from 17 till 22 July, and for which all shows are free.
Throughout the whole festival week, Valletta will resonate to the sound of jazz; the concerts will be held in front of the Parliament building at the entrance of the city at 12.30pm and will feature both established locals and upcoming musicians.
These events are part of the Jazz on the Fringe activities and are being organised in collaboration with Valletta 2018.
Clash magazine listed the Malta Jazz Festival as one of the world’s five greatest jazz festivals. The others are Monterrey, Montreal, Copenhagen and New Orleans.
This year’s festival is striving to make jazz as accessible as possible. Artistic Director Sandro Zerafa said, “The Malta Jazz Festival is reaching out. It is spreading its wings beyond Ta’ Liesse. Besides boasting a star-studded lineup featuring the best in contemporary jazz, the Malta Jazz Festival is branching out to Valletta’s streets and injecting creative energy in Malta’s growing jazz scene, in preparation for Valletta 2018. The impressive list includes ranging from Nicholas Payton’s blend of dialects of Afro-descent to Munir Hossn’s homage to the Brazilian north-eastern heritage and Al di Meola’s latin-infused fusion.
“The festival strives in its mission to promote this great art form in all its diversity and to stimulate the local scene through various outreach initiatives – street jam sessions, collaborations with international musicians, masterclasses and free concerts.”
Valletta Midday Jazz Concerts
Midday Jazz Concerts – from 17 till 22 July. Concerts will be held in front of the Parliament building at the entrance of the city at 12.30pm.
Monday 17th July
Walter Vella group
Walter Vella (sax/flute), Godwin Lucas (keyboards), Anthony Saliba (bass), Joe ‘Bibi’ Camilleri (drums)
Tuesday 18th July
Charles ‘City’ Gatt Quintet feat. Stjepko Gut
Stjepko Gut (trumpet), Rino Cirinnà (sax), Dominic Galea (piano), Yoni Zelnik (bass), Charles Gatt (drums)
Wednesday 19th July
Latina Melita
Alex Taylor (trumpet), Karl Galea (guitar), Diccon Cooper (bass), Manuel Pulis (drums)
Thursday 20th July
Glenville Group
Glen Montanaro (guitar), Dean Montanaro (bass), Joseph Camilleri (drums)
Friday 21st July
Marvin Gaerty Trio
Marvin Gaerty (guitar), Paul Giordimaina (piano), Charles Gatt (drums)
Saturday 22nd July
The Johann Strauss School of Music Jazz Combo
Christian Debono (vocals), Fabio Imbroll (guitar), Philip Borg Barthet (trombone), Samwel Grima (bass), Rafel Grima (drums)
Jazz on the Fringe
Jazz on the Fringe
Monday 11th July
Talbot&Bons (Skyparks, MIA)
Adrian ir-Russu Brincat – trumpet
Harry Eddleston – keyboards
Reuben Navarro – drums
Tuesday 18th July
Trabuxu (Valletta)
Stjepko Gut – trumpet
Joe Debono – piano
Yoni Zelnik – bass
Fred Pasqua – drums
Wednesday 19th July
Beer Kitchen (Skyparks MIA)
Marc Galea – guitar
Diccon Cooper – bass
Joseph Camilleri – drums
Wednesday 19th July
Jam Session at OffBeat Music Bar (106 Merchant Street, Valletta)
Rino Cirrinna – sax
Joe Debono – piano
Yoni Zelnik – bass
Fred Pasqua – drums
Masterclass
Masterclass 1 (two sessions) – The Modern Rhythm Section
Teachers: Fred Pasqua (France) / Yoni Zelnik (France / Israel)
Dates: 18 July 5pm, 19 July 5pm
Masterclass 2 (two sessions) – Jazz Guitar
Teacher: Romain Pilon (France)
Dates: 19 July 5pm, 21 July 5pm
Masterclass 3 – Rhythmical interpretation of the jazz language through the use of right syllables and the polyrhythmical approach to the rhythms of jazz
Teacher: Stjepko Gut (Serbia)
Date: 21 July 5pm
Masterclass 4 – For brass players only!
Teacher: Stjepko Gut (Serbia)
Date: 22 July 11am
Masterclass 5 – For sax players only!
Teacher: Rino Cirinná (Italy)
Date: 18 July 5pm
Masterclass 6 – Jazz for newcomers
Teacher: Rino Cirinná (Italy)
Date: 22 July 11am
Visit www.maltajazzfestival.org for more information. Tickets can be bought from https://www.showshappening.com/Arts-Council-Malta/Malta-Jazz-Festival-2017.
The Malta Jazz Festival is organised by Festivals Malta within Arts Council Malta in collaboration with the Ministry of Justice, Culture and Local Government and Valletta 2018; and supported by MTA, Cyberpass, MSV Life, Malta International Airport, Phoenicia, Farsons, Marsovin, Hertz and Trabuxu.