Program for the Garanti Jazz Yeşili (Garanti Jazz Green) concerts is announced.
Erik Leuthaeuser will be on stage on the 20th and 21st of April with Kaan Bıyıkoğlu on piano, Kağan Yıldız on bass and Ferit Odman on drums.
Erik lives in Berlin where he studies Vocal Jazz with Judy Niemack and Peter Fessler. The award-winning young singer released his debut album In the Land of Oo-Bla-Dee on MONS Records in November of 2015. It features Bebop with German Vocalese lyrics and was nominated for a critics prize of the German record industry called “Preis der deutschen Schallplattenkritik”. In April 2016 he won the first prize at the “Riga Jazz Stage” International Vocal Jazz Competition in Latvia. In June 2016 he also won the first prize at the “Big Sky 2016” Jazz Voice Competition in Moscow and in July 2016 he received the 2nd prize and the audience prize at the world renowned and prestigious „Shure Montreux Jazz Voice Competition“. Furthermore Erik was one of the Top 5 vocalists at the International „Made in NY Jazz Competition“ in 2016. The young singer was also a member of the National Youth Jazz Orchestra of Germany (BuJazzO) between 2014-2016. Since 2016 he has been part of an a capella group called “Wortart Ensemble”, which sets modern German poetry to music.
Erik was born in a little town near Dresden in Germany in 1996. Erik came in contact with jazz music at a very young age through his father, who studied jazz guitar and works as a guitar teacher. Early on, he started singing in a Pop/Rock Band and took piano lessons. He won a few local talent competitions and became the singer of the “Dresden Big Band“ and the Youth Jazz Orchestra of Saxony. Erik went to a musical high school and after his a-levels in 2014 he started studying Vocal Jazz in Weimar with the jazz singer Michael Schiefel. Erik now studies at the Jazz Institute Berlin. Erik has toured with various ensembles to Denmark, Ecuador, France, Italy, Poland, Romania, Spain and Switzerland and is appearing regularly with well known German and international Jazz musicians in Jazz Clubs and Festivals in Germany. Currently he is working on his second studio record which will be released by the German Record Label “Edel” in 2017.
This year International Jazz Day (30th of April) is on Sunday. Nardis will host this special day with a performance of everyone’s favorite Flapper Swing band featuring Antti Sarpila.
Antti Sarpila (born 1964) got his first lessons from his father Kari Sarpila, clarinet and tenor saxophone player as well. Kari was one of the founders of the Pori Jazz Festival – still one of the biggest festivals in Europe. This is were Antti met his future teacher, Bob Wilber. Antti has been a student of this world famous American clarinet and saxophone player during the 1980’s. Wilber himself was a student of legendary Sidney Bechet in the 1940’s. This legacy is the reason for Antti’s dedication and respect to the tradition of jazz. He wants to combine the influences captured from the early masters, from Louis Armstrong to Charlie Parker, with his own personal style to create what would be best described as “Classic Jazz”. The continuing association between Antti and Bob has reaped many rewards. One of the highlights was, when Antti was asked to join Bob in doing a “Tribute to Benny Goodman” concert in Carnegie Hall, New York. Antti renewed later his visit to this legendary concert hall with the Swedish vibraphone player Lars Erstrand.
Antti Sarpila has made dozens of recordings under his own label, the latest one being “Antti Sarpila Swing Band 30th Anniversary – Ultimate Collection 1982 – 2012” (ASCD-36). In USA Antti has been recording to the Arbors label for almost 20 years. Antti has done several recordings with Wilber, the lineups including musicians like Byron Stripling, John Allred, Mark Shane, Phil Flanigan, Joe Ascione, Dick Hyman, Dan Barrett, Peter Appleyard, Ed Metz Jr., Rossano Sportiello, Nicki Parrott). In Hamburg, for the Nagel-Heyer record label, he has also recorded six times with top American jazz musicians (including Ralph Sutton, Jack Lesberg, Bill Allred, Oliver Jackson, Butch Miles, Harry Allen, Jon-Erik Kellso, Randy Sandke, Ken Peplowski, Allan Vache). In Sweden he’s been featured on several recordings (for example Swedish Swing Society live in New York, Swedish Jazz Salutes USA live at Carnegie Hall). His contribution as a skilled jazz artist has also been featured on about 100 different recordings.
Flapper Swing is a quintet following footsteps of famous french jazz artists Django Reinhardt, Stephane Grappelli and New Orleans’s expatriot Sidney Bechet. These five musicians were brought together by their passion for taunting acoustic sounds of gypsy swing . Flapper Swing’s music is a sweet blend of manouche guitars, wild soprano saxophone, sensitive silklike vocal, supported by deep woody hum of double bass. For more intimate settings, the band can also perform as a trio of two guitars and a vocal. In their performances Flapper Swing is striving to bring the audience an atmosphere of roaring twenties and ballroom parties, the times when jazz was still fun.
On the 4th and 5th of May vocalist Polly Gibbons will be joined by Can Çankaya on piano, Kağan Yıldız on bass and Ferit Odman on drums.
Polly Gibbons is one of the most respected and talked about young singer/songwriters of her generation. Nominated for a BBC Jazz Award back in 2006 with no album release to her name, was clear indication of just how special a singer and performer Polly is. Much esteemed by her contemporaries, Polly has built a reputation as being an original and gifted voice. With warm, rich, soulful vocals and an innate blues sensibility, Polly has been likened to many of the jazz and soul greats bringing her own storytelling and earnest depth alongside unique humour and fun to performances. Having developed her craft over the past decade, Polly has performed at all the leading UK jazz clubs, international festivals and is a regular at Ronnie Scott’s performing with the All Stars. My Own Company, her debut UK jazz album with James Pearson, pianist and Musical Director of Ronnie Scott’s, was released to critical acclaim in August 2014 – long overdue, yet not before time, with Polly sounding more beautiful and rarer than ever. The album features original material including Midnight Prayer, co-penned with James Pearson, which won the Indie International Song Writing Competition 2014.
Polly signed to acclaimed US jazz label Resonance Records at the beginning of 2014, and soon after recorded the album ‘Many Faces Of Love’ in Los Angeles with founder and producer George Klabin. Having completed a highly successful preliminary autumn tour in Florida, New York, Boston and Minneapolis, the album was released globally on 4th February 2015.
Polly’s influences are brilliant, broad and inspired ~ from the poetry of Joni Mitchell and Leonard Cohen, to the be-bop of Charlie Parker, the deep wails of Mahalia Jackson’s gospel, to the emotional depth of Donny Hathaway, Billie Holiday and Nina Simone; the soul of Marvin Gaye, the blues of Buddy Guy and more contemporary brilliance in the sounds of Prince and D’Angelo.
Garanti Jazz Yeşili concerts will end with the performance of Allan Harris Quartet on the 11th and 12th of May. Allan Harris Quartet is Allan Harris on vocals, Pascal Le Boeuf on piano and hammond organ, Paco Perera on bass, Shirazette Tinnin on drums and cajon.
Allan Harris (born 4 April 1956 in Brooklyn, New York) is an award winning Jazz vocalist, guitarist, and songwriter from Harlem, New York. Described as having a “formidable baritone with… husky edges and deep resonant low notes”, and Harris has been called a protean talent. Harris is known for both his albums and his live performances. His album “Convergence”, a collaboration with pianist Takana Miryamoto was critically praised, and his album “Cross That River” (2006) was widely covered for its perspective on issues of ethnicity in the American western expansion. He released an album in 2016 entitled Nobody’s Gonna Love You Better.
