The Montreux Jazz Festival has announced the program of its 50th anniversary edition, which will runs from July 1
st to the 16
th.
The festival, founded by the late Claude Nobs, has grown to become one of the world’s most important in the and despite opening up its stage doors to more popular music genres, jazz remains the centerpiece of its annual program. This year will be no exception, as the line-up will see a mixture of jazz masters and new talents take to the stage, beginning with the man who headlined its very first edition, Charles Lloyd. He will be performing on opening night at the Casino Barriére on June 30 with his New Quartet. That same night, pianist Monty Alexander will revisit his landmark 1977 live album
Montreux Alexander.
90-year old Randy Weston will be playing music from his over-60-year career with his African Rhythm Quintet in the more intimate setting of the Montreux Jazz Club on July 2, while guitarist John Scofield, pianist Brad Mehldau and drummer Mark Guiliana will play the Auditorium Stravinski on July 3.
The Cuban Latin jazz scene will be particularly well represented, notably by the Harold López Nussa Trio, the Alfredo Rodriguez Trio, Richard Bona and his band the Mandekan Cubano.
Vocalist Lisa Simone will follow in the footsteps of her mother, Nina, with her performance at the festival, at which she will also be presenting her new album with multi-instrumentalist Jacob Collier. Former Miles Davis bandmates Mike Stern, Bill Evans, Darryl Jones and Dennis Chambers will re-unite to pay tribute to the late trumpeter, who played his final concert in Montreux in 1991, just months before his death.
For more information, go to
http://www.montreuxjazzfestival.com/en.
