Stingray Festival 4K

In the late 1940s, jazz saxophonist Charlie 'Bird' Parker expressed his wish to record with a classical string section rather than his usual jazz quintet. This desire was fulfilled in 1949 and 1950 when he recorded two albums with oboe, harp, string section and a jazz rhythm section, released as 'Charlie Parker with Strings'. Fast forward 70 years, when saxophonists Olivier Bogé, Géraldine Laurent, Pierrick Pédron, Thomas de Pourquery, and Jaleel Shaw follow in the jazz legend's footsteps, revisiting the repertoire of those original albums in this 2019 concert at The Philharmonie de Paris. Bastien Stil conducts Christophe Dal Sasso's new orchestral arrangements in this genre-blending concert, which opens with Dal Sasso’s very own Overture pour cinq saxophones et orchestra.

With Afrojack, Galantis, Sam Feldt, Lost Frequencies, and many more, the sold-out, two-day event had over 60,000 fans. Mysteryland dates back to 1993 and is now the world’s longest-running electronic music, culture, and art festival in the world. The first international edition of Mysteryland was held in Chile in 2011. In May 2014, Mysteryland made its stateside debut at the site of the legendary 1969 Woodstock Festival.

Transition is a portrait of the avant-garde piano stretching almost one hundred years. Each piece on the programme breaks new ground as the music navigates through uncharted waters to depict a new profile for the instrument. Transition by Tricia Dawn Williams is a unique experience that transforms the piano recital into an interdisciplinary performance featuring gesture-control technology, video-art, electronic music and extended piano technique. Born in Malta, of Irish and Welsh descent, Tricia Dawn Williams is committed to contemporary music, multimedia and new technologies. Williams is one of the first concert pianists to collaborate with developers and composers internationally on the application of gesture-control technology. As a dedicated promoter of new music, Williams has commissioned, premiered and recorded numerous works. In this concert from the 2019 edition of Classical:NEXT! musicians Tricia Dawn Williams (piano), Ruben Zahra (tech operator) and Atau Tanaka (tech operator) present a diverse programme of self-composed works and pieces by George Crumb and Henry Cowell.

Celebrated as one of the most influential albums of all times, The Beatles' 1967 Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band marked its time and inspired generations of artists. While the album was purely a recording studio product, Beatles’ fans continue to be frustrated by not hearing it live. British musician and composer Ed Harcourt, author of six highly acclaimed albums and collaborator of vocalists Marianne Faithfull, Patti Smith, and trumpeter Erik Truffaz, gathered a supergroup for this occasion with top artists from the British independent rock scene. Join Ed Harcourt and members of The Libertines, Supergrass, The Coral, the Beta Band, and Primal Scream for this special tribute.

In Close Call your smartphone is a musical instrument. And you are not just an audience member, but a musician in a crazy band with three drummers! Arthur Wagenaar is a Dutch composer and musician. He has a deep love for rock bands, theatre, opera and classical music, and his music is usually a mixture of all of this. He also loves to invent his own instruments, mechanical or electronic, such as the “rampaphone,” a string instrument nine meters in length, the “kleurwerper,” played by juggling, and of course the Close Call Live app. In this performance from Classical:NEXT! in Rotterdam, he is supported by Joep Hendrickx, Tjalling Schrik, Marijn Korff de Gidts, Boy van Ooijen, Dodó Kis, Sarah Jeffery, Lotte Pen, Matthias Konrad, and Axel Schappert.

Pianist Kenny Barron’s June 27, 2019 appearance at the Alfa Jazz Festival in Ukraine’s Lviv was a celebration of sublime jazz virtuosity. The revered elder statesmen of jazz piano brought his regular working trio of Kiyoshi Kitagawa (bass) and Jonathan Blake (drums), augmented by stellar jazzman Marcus Strickland (tenor saxophone) and young lion Riley Mulherkar (trumpet). Their seamless blend of classic bebop and modern explorations spoke of a deep, emotive connection to each note, captivating the Ukrainian audience with lyrical improvisations during this unforgettable concert.

Marcela Vale, known professionally as Mahmundi, is a singer, songwriter, and music producer from Rio de Janeiro. A Latin Grammy nominee, she is recognized for her originality and authenticity in the contemporary Brazilian music scene. Her work, spanning electronic music, indie, and lo-fi with 1980s influences, is defined by poetic and reflective lyrics. In addition to her solo career, Mahmundi is also active as a producer and instrumentalist. How do contemporary artists reinterpret tradition and create new forms of expression within MPB? Da Pá Virada Sessions' MPB Series investigates this question. Hosted by Dani Gurgel, this episode features a live performance and thought-provoking conversation with Mahmundi, exploring her unique fusion of styles and inviting audiences to discover the richness of modern Brazilian music. Continue your journey into the rich world of contemporary Brazilian popular music with Stingray DJAZZ.

Since 1994, World Music Expo (WOMEX) has been attracting musicians, agents, a great number of press agencies, as well as media companies from all over the world. Its main exposition event has been held in various locations throughout Europe, including Berlin, Brussels, Marseille, Stockholm, Seville, Cardiff, and Budapest. In 2018, WOMEX was held in Las Palmas, Gran Canaria. One of its showcase participants, composer/performer/anthropologist Rob Thorne, is a diverse explorer in the newly revived evolution of taonga puoro, traditional Māori instruments, fusing these ancient voices with modern sounds and technology. He creates ethereal and immersive site-specific works as well as contemporary chamber music, born out of in-depth research and respect for tradition.

The Da Pá Virada Sessions series presents the best musicians of contemporary Brazilian jazz, and beyond. Filmed in São Paulo, each session offers a unique experience by giving a fresh look into Brazil's music scene. The artists for each session are selected in consultation with Stingray DJAZZ's music editor. One of the artists taking part in this series is pianist Amilton Godoy. He is not only a well-known soloist in his homeland Brazil, but he is also considered one of the world's greatest pianists today, regularly guesting with international top orchestras and conductors. Godoy frequently teaches workshops throughout Brazil and abroad.

Sonya Lifschitz is a pianist working across many contexts, with repertoire spanning from 15th century Faenza Codex to works written for her today. She is known for her fiercely imaginative, daring collaborations across film, animation, spoken word, visual and performance art. Robert Davidson has been making music from language since childhood. He has created music from the voices of Australia's prime ministers, from 100 years of radio broadcasts and from stories of asylum seekers and indigenous members of Australia's Stolen Generations. This performance is recorded during Classical:NEXT 2019 in Rotterdam, The Netherlands.

Since 1994, World Music Expo (WOMEX) has been attracting musicians, agents, a great number of press agencies, as well as media companies from all over the world. Its main exposition event has been held in various locations throughout Europe, including Berlin, Brussels, Marseille, Stockholm, Seville, Cardiff, and Budapest. In 2018, WOMEX was held in Las Palmas, Gran Canaria. One of its showcase participants, Ladama, is a quintet of women multi-instrumentalists from Venezuela, Brazil, Colombia and the United States who not only perform as a touring band, but also strive to engage youth in their respective communities in the process of musicmaking, composition and audio production through collaboration and performance workshops. Ladama is a positive force in times urgently in need of tolerance and communication.

Jazz in Duketown is the largest free outdoor jazz festival in the Netherlands. It's a real gathering for jazz addicts, inviting internationally renowned bands. In 2019, one of them is the Amsterdam-based Dutch instrumental collective Jungle by Night. The band plays a mix of various styles, inspired by funk, jazz, dub, rock, and others. The ensemble made its debut in 2010 and has played at numerous festivals. Their December 2010 performance with former backing musicians of Afrobeat founder Fela Kuti in Paris saw them hailed as "the future of Afrobeat".

The two musicians behind HVOB are Anna Müller and Paul Wallner. Anna Müller composes, produces, and provides the captivating, hypnotic vocals. The final production of the tracks is done in collaboration with Paul Wallner in his Vienna studio. HVOB are carving their path not just with their distinctive sound but with their live performances as well. The duo always plays live and performs with a drummer – a concept as innovative as it is successful: HVOB has just been voted number two best live act by the most influential German electronic music magazine "De:bug.” Enjoy their 2019 show at Trabendo Paris!

Matthew Dear is a shapeshifter, oscillating seamlessly between DJ, dance-music producer, and experimental pop auteur. He writes, produces, and mixes all of his work. He maintains four aliases (Audion, False, Jabberjaw, and Matthew Dear), each with its own style and distinct visual identity. He straddles multiple musical worlds and belongs to none, now nearly 20 years into his kaleidoscopic career, with five albums and two dozen EPs plus millions of miles in the rearview of his biography. Bunny, his fifth full-length released October 2018, parades down a rabbit hole of unhinged phrasings, dreams, and interludes. Bunny further confirms that Matthew Dear occupies a rarified corner of the musical universe: no longer tethered to any one genre, respected by his peers, and blessed with a bottomless well of creative energy. Enjoy his 2019 show at Trabendo Paris!

The Kathleen Tagg / Andre Petersen piano duo brings together two of South Africa's most celebrated pianists: one eclectic-experimental classical and one jazz artist, in a unique and highly personal collaboration. Drawing inspiration from the rich sonic tapestries of classical music, nuances of South African jazz and traditional musics from sub-Saharan Africa, this duo explodes the concept of what two pianos can sound like: a bass guitar, goema drum, marimba and uhadi–plus mixing fully composed scores with improvisation in a bold, vital and highly entertaining mix with performances of original compositions and works by iconic South African jazz composers such as Abdullah Ibrahim, Bheki Mseleku and Moses Molelekwa. Tagg and Petersen explore diverse realms of possibilities within the sound world of the piano, their musical offerings paying tribute to the poignant legacy of people who have inspired their world-view and music making. In this performance from the 2019 edition of Classical:NEXT!, the talented pianists perform "Bheki Mseleku", "Angola", "African Dawn / Cape Doctor", "Second Time Around", "Rapela", "Time Watchers" and "Berimbau".

Da Pá Virada sessions bring the best musicians of contemporary Brazilian jazz, and beyond. Filmed in São Paulo, each session offers a unique experience by giving a fresh look into Brazil's music scene. The artists for each session are selected in consultation with Stingray DJAZZ's music editor. One of the bands taking part in this series is Trio Corrente, which was formed in 2001, consisting of Fabio Torres on piano, Paulo Paulelli on bass, and Edu Ribeiro on drums. Since then, the trio has been creating an original sound playing the classics of choro and Música Popular Brasileira.

GayBird Leung has worked in the Hong Kong music industry since 1996 as a music director, composer, and producer for over a hundred music productions, concerts and theatres. He continues to explore the realm of music creation, investigating potential formats of electronic music performance that enhance the music experience. The Zephyr Quartet, consisting of Emma Perkins (violin), Emily Tulloch (violin), Jason Thomas (viola) and Hilary Kleinig (cello) are Australia's leading genre-defying explorers of dynamic cross-art form music focused collaborations. During this showcase at Classical: NEXT 2019 in Rotterdam, they perform GayBird Leung's composition “Music in Anticlockwise” (2017).

In 2019, the vibrant city of Sofia, Bulgaria, hosted the International A to JazZ Festival. Among the featured acts was the trailblazing jazz trumpeter Christian Scott aTunde Adjuah. This genre-defying artist captivated the audience with his eclectic “stretch music”; an approach that incorporates hip-hop and reaches back through the American canon into African percussion and its rich melodic content. Trumpeter Christian Scott aTunde Adjuah’s quintet, which includes drummer Corey Fonville, percussionist Weedie Braimah, pianist Lawrence Fields, and bass guitarist Max Mucha, delivered a performance that defied boundaries and expectations.

Popa Chubby, born as Ted Horowitz, is an American blues singer and guitarist, who has become one of the most popular figures of New York's blues scene. Early on in his career he released the album 'Booty and the Beast' (1995), which became one of the 1990s's best-selling blues albums. Chubby describes his own style as "The Stooges meets Buddy Guy, Motörhead meets Muddy Waters, and Jimi Hendrix meets Robert Johnson". As part of the French music festival Blues sur Seine, Chubby and his band played a great blues rock concert, showcasing the artist’s powerful and soulful guitar playing. This performance was recorded at Théâtre Simone Signoret on November 8, 2019.

Ensemble Offspring is Australia's foremost new music ensemble, based in Sydney, made up of flute, clarinet, violin, cello, piano, and percussion. At Classical:NEXT, the ensemble features a line-up of internationally acclaimed core instrumentalists, Claire Edwardes (percussionist/artistic director), Zubin Kanga (piano), Jason Noble (clarinet), and Lamorna Nightingale (flute). With a 23-year history, the group embraces all modes of adventurous music making, which has brought to fruition the creation of over 200 new works. The 2019 Classical:Next showcase programme Solitude features two works written for the ensemble by Kate Moore (“Fern”) and Andrea Keller (“Love in Solitude”). Both pieces use acoustic instrumental tones combined with pre-recorded electronics and especially commissioned video art of the Australian landscape.

Thalma de Freitas is a Brazilian singer, songwriter, and actress from Rio de Janeiro. Daughter of the renowned pianist Laércio de Freitas, her work is a masterful fusion of MPB (Brazilian Popular Music), jazz, and Afro-Brazilian influences. In 2019, her album ‘Sorte!’ was nominated for a Grammy Award. For this intimate performance, she is joined by guitarist Helô Ferreira. How do contemporary artists reinterpret tradition and create new forms of expression within MPB? Da Pá Virada Sessions' MPB Series investigates this question. Hosted by Dani Gurgel, this episode features a live performance and thought-provoking conversation with Thalma de Freitas, exploring her unique fusion of styles and inviting audiences to discover the richness of modern Brazilian music. Continue your journey into the rich world of contemporary Brazilian popular music on Stingray DJAZZ.

In commemoration of the end of World War I, France and Czech Republic offered the Pope a concert at the Basilica of St. John Lateran in Rome on October 25, 2018. Czech musicologist Václav Luks conducts the choir and orchestra of his own Collegium 1704 in sacred vocal works by several 17th-century baroque composers. On the program are Jean-Baptiste Lully's (1632-1687) Te Deum, followed by Heinrich Ignaz Franz von Biber's (1644-1704) Missa Salisburgensis. During his lifetime, Von Biber, one of greatest composers for solo violin, was known and imitated throughout Europe. He did not limit himself to the violin and was a prolific composer of sacred vocal works as well, of which this Missa Salisburgensis is a prime example.

In The Opera Locos (“The Opera of Crazies”), a comic opera show from the Spanish theater company Yllana and theatre producer Rami Eldar, five eccentric opera singers perform some of the greatest opera arias. Classical arias from George Bizet’s Carmen, W. A. Mozart’s The Magic Flute, and Giuseppe Verdi’s Rigoletto are combined with classics from the pop and rock repertoire. During the performance, the five characters reveal their hidden passions, personalities, and desires, leading to unpredictable, hilarious situations that audiences of all ages will appreciate. The soloists are Florian Laconi (tenor), Margaux Toqué (mezzo soprano), Michaël Koné (countertenor), Laurent Arcaro (baritone), and Diane Fourès (soprano). This performance was recorded at Théâtre Libre in Paris, France.