Long Autumn Evenings (10/2019)

How do you convert those who dislike this season – with warming herbal tea or dazzling colours of autumnal leaves? How about reaching for the arts? After all, this time of year is all about the Krakow Jazz Autumn! The organisers of the 14th edition (7 October – 29 November) are inspired by the motto “Jazz is not a style – it’s a way of thinking” and festival stages at Alchemia, Radio Kraków and the Manggha Museum resound with echoes of contemporary music, rock and noise in distinctive interpretations of the crème de la crème of improvisers.

During the first residence of the season (7-9 October), the trombonist Steve Swell leads a lineup of twelve musicians. On 22 October, talented young jazz musicians are taken under the wing of the acclaimed trumpeter Ralph Alessi from New York. Ken Vandermark, a festival regular and author of this year’s motto, presents his international project Entr’Acte (23-27 October). On 28 October, we explore extremes of free jazz with the Ballister trio. The section Polish Improart explores the achievements of up-and-coming homegrown musicians: on 17 October we will hear the Olbrzym and Kurdupel + Willi Hanne trio. More information on November events in the next edition of “Karnet”. (Bartosz Suchecki, ”Karnet”)

In the Grip of Improvisation (11/2019)

“Jazz is not a style – it’s a way of thinking!” so a month is simply not enough to fully come to grips with the motto of the 14th Krakow Jazz Autumn. November follows hot on October’s heels, and Alchemia continues to host virtuosos of improvised music. We kick off with a blend of free jazz, hip-hop and grindcore performed by The Young Mothers (4 November). There will be two-day residencies, starring Joëlle Léandre and Satoko Fujii. On 6 November, the charismatic French double-bassist performs in a quartet with Mateusz Rybicki, Zbigniew Kozera and Zlatko Kaučič, and the following day she is joined by Rafał Mazur. The avant-garde pianist from Japan performs with the American double-bassist Joe Fonda (17 November); on 18 November, she is joined by the international Wandering The Sound Quintet to perform variations on a poem by the 15th-century Zen master Ikkyū Sōjun. The festival also continues the review of Polish improvised music. The Polish Improart cycle features performances by the Oleszak/Jacobson/Jørgensen (11 November) and Strycharski/Majewski/Wójciński (21 November) trios. We will also hear a conducted improvisation by the Krakow Improvisers Orchestra and watch Bartosz Nalepa paint an artwork at the same time (28 November, Manggha Museum); events close with psychedelic folk from Polonka (29 November). (Bartosz Suchecki, ”Karnet”)