The young British vocalist Nel Begley, established as one of the most prominent emerging figures on the current jazz scene, will open the Jazz Tardor festival in Lleida on the 15th, at the Castell del Remei, which this year celebrates its 30th anniversary with a program in which international stars (Emmet Cohen, Stick Men, Exploding Pig, Jim Rotondi and Grant Stewar) will coexist with a large representation of musicians from the local scene. In total, and until December 16, 19 concerts have been scheduled in Lleida, Castell del Remei, Cervera and Guissona.
“I thought that after 30 years it was very important that everyone from Lleida who plays jazz of certain levels of quality could be present,” argues its director, Josep Ramon Jové.
The official opening itself will take place on November 4, at the Auditori Enric Granados, with the trio Stick Men, led by bassist Tony Levin, who has played with bands such as King Crimson, Pink Floyd, as well as with soloists of the stature by Peter Gabriel and John Lennon. He is accompanied by Markus Reuter on electric guitar and Pat Mastelotto on drums. Another prominent figure in the current edition will be the American jazz pianist and composer Emmet Cohen (Espai Orfeo, November 12).
From the Lleida jazz scene, the organization has invited Alfons Enjuanes, Ignasi González, Xavier Monge and Pixie Dixie, Jordi Mestre, the emerging Pau Lladó, the Ponent Dixie or the Ponent Big Band. On November 4, the festival will also take to the streets with Pixie Dixie, a veteran group that is celebrating its 30th anniversary and whose swing has been played at numerous festivals and venues across the country.
Jazz Tardor pays tribute to Josep Vallverdú, coinciding with the Vallverdú Year in which the centenary of the Lerida writer, teacher and translator is commemorated with a jazz adaptation of eight poems by Balaguer pianist Xavier Monge, which will be performed in quartet formation with the Carme Canel's voice, Rai Ferrer's double bass and Pol Alonso's drums.
Coinciding with the festival, photographer Jordi Pou presents the exhibition Bob Love's Jazz at the Castell del Remei, a tribute to the competition itself and all those people who are behind these musical events. They are photographs taken with artificial intelligence tools based on a fictional story, the life of Bob Love. The idea – says Jordi Pou – is to pay tribute to the backstage of jazz, the protagonists are not only the musicians.”
In the presentation of the festival Josep Ramon Jové recalled that Jazz Tardor was born three decades ago in the now defunct Sala Europa "as a result of a group of crazy people in love with jazz and now it is a benchmark for the cultural proposals of Lleida." The most veteran fans of the genre in Lleida remember performances by historical figures, Cedar Walton, Lee Konitz, Teddy Edwards, Tete Montoliu or Wild Bill Davis.
