26th Summer Jazz Festival Kraków

Sunday, July 4, 2021 - Sunday, August 1, 2021

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  • Sunday, July 4, 2021 - Sunday, August 1, 2021
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Jazz Is in the Air

A warm summer night, people strolling through the streets of the Old Town, buzzing café gardens, and jazz is in the air.


Bartosz Suchecki, “Kraków Culture” magazine

Its sounds have invariably filled Kraków's summers for a quarter of a century. The tradition started in 1996 by Witold Wnuk – with the first Summer Jazz Festival at Piwnica pod Baranami – has become so deeply rooted that the music does not fall silent even in the face of the uncertainty surrounding the pandemic. The programme of the 26th annual event definitely proves that jazz is still just as diverse, vital and resistant: from 4 July to 1 August, nearly one hundred concerts will be held under the banner of the Summer Jazz Festival Kraków. Intimate clubs and unfettered open-air venues, old masters and young virtuosi, a nod to tradition and a place for experimentation… Ladies and gentlemen, this is jazz!

The Louisiana Express

Before we settle down in the royal city, on the first day of the festival we will transport our thoughts to the world's jazz capital. The programme for the grand celebration of traditional jazz – New Orleans Sunday (4 July) – includes concerts at the cafés of the Main Market Square, a parade echoing the Mardi Gras, and a main concert featuring Polish and American musicians on Szczepański Square.

The most anticipated show of this year's festival is the performance by the Branford Marsalis Quartet. The American saxophonist, who originates from a musical family, was supposed to be one of the stars of last year's festival – but the schedule of his European tour was shattered by pandemic travel restrictions. The tour has been postponed for a year and so far everything indicates that on 11 July the American guests will play before a Polish audience on the stage of the Kijów Cinema. The organisers also have a surprise in store: at the last minute, the event confirmed a performance by a perennial favourite of the Kraków audience, Nigel Kennedy, appearing at the Kijów Cinema on 10 July with his project When I'm 64.

Palaces and museum

Special concerts will feature the leading figures of the Polish jazz scene. The courtyard of the Pod Baranami Palace (or the Ballroom – the decision will be taken closer to the date of the event) will host Dorota Miśkiewicz and Marek Napiórkowski (9 July), Stanisław Soyka (16 July), Aga Zaryan (24 July), and Hanna Banaszak with her band (31 July).

Four intimate meetings with jazz will be held in the Potocki Palace. The free concerts will feature duets by pianist Dino Massa and saxophonist Tomasz Grzegorski (7 July) and pianist Vladislav “Adzik” Sendecki and percussionist Jürgen Spiegel (16 July), as well as singer Anna Grochowicz (22 July) and the German Trio (30 July).

The Manggha Museum of Japanese Art and Technology will host two of this year’s concerts. The Konopnicka Street stage features solo piano recitals, with Dominik Wania and Vladislav “Adzik” Sendecki performing on 14 July and Adam Makowicz on 1 August.

Good vibrations

Traditionally, the majority of concerts will be hosted by Piwnica pod Baranami and Harris Piano Jazz Bar. Both places have been struggling during the pandemic, but look to the future with hope. “We are fighting for survival,” stresses Maciej Węglarz, Harris' manager. “At the moment our activities are limited, we have just three concerts a week, but during the festival events will take place every day. Hopefully this will create a positive buzz and we can get back to our normal routine from August.” Bogdan Micek, director of Piwnica pod Baranami, which is belatedly celebrating its 65th anniversary, also hopes for a return to normality. “Humans are animals that crave companionship, and artists must have an audience from which they expect a specific reaction,” he says. Is it the jazz that will attract the audience? “The festival has its reputation and supporters who are already calling, asking about concerts. I think there will be a good turnout,” says Micek. Throughout July we will be listening to top-notch performers in neighbouring tenement houses. As well as Polish artists, we will hear guests from abroad, including the Austrian trio Purple Is the Color, American pianist Stanley Breckenridge's trio, Italian pianist Dino Massa's quartet, Argentinian guitarist Vanesa Harbek's trio and American guitarist Charles Burton's swinging blues trio.

And that’s not all the club performances. On Wednesdays (7, 14, 21 and 28 July) Pracownia pod Baranami will host performances as part of the Young Stage series. From 7 to 13 July we will hear seven piano virtuosos as part of the Solo Piano Week at the Piec Art club. The Summer Jazz Festival Kraków will also visit the guest rooms of Jazz Club u Muniaka (4, 8 and 23 July) and Alchemia (8, 25, 28 and 29 July), where we will hear two concerts from the Kilar in Alchemia miniseries.

Jazz also sounds great al fresco – we can hear for ourselves at the Arena Garden zone, next to Tauron Arena Kraków (9, 16, 25 July and 1 August), and at Tenczyn Castle in Rudno (30 July).

And don’t forget that the Summer Jazz Festival Kraków coincides with the traditional Jazz Night (17 July).

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New Orleans Sunday
4.07
From noon until 4 pm – concerts at cafés of Main Market Square: Old Metropolitan Band, Boba Jazz Band, Hot Swing, JBBO
5 pm – New Orleans Parade
6 pm – Main Concert at Szczepański Square: Jan Ptaszyn Wróblewski, Stanley Breckenridge, Przemek Dyakowski, Jazz Band Ball Orchestra, Boba Jazz Band

Branford Marsalis Quartet | PLN 200/150
Kijów Cinema
11.07, 8 pm

Pod Baranami Palace – Courtyard (9 pm) | PLN 80
9.07 Dorota Miśkiewicz/Marek Napiórkowski
16.07 Stanisław Sojka
24.07 Aga Zaryan
31.07 Koncert Finałowy – Hanna Banaszak z zespołem

Dominik Wania, Vladislav Sendecki – solo piano | PLN 80
The Manggha Museum of Japanese Art and Technology
14.07, 8 pm

Adam Makowicz – solo piano | PLN 100
The Manggha Museum of Japanese Art and Technology
1.08, 8 pm

Piwnica pod Baranami / The Cellars under the Rams (9:30 pm) | PLN 60
4.07 Old Metropolitan Band
5.07 Jan Ptaszyn Wróblewski Quartet
6.07 New Bone
7.07 Smoczyński/Sikała/Czerwiński Trio
8.07 Friends – M.Sikała/W.Karolak/M.Napiórkowski/A.Dębski/A. Czerwiński
10.07 Jazz Band Ball Orchestra
11.07 Boba Jazz Band
12.07 Marek Bałata & Dominik Wania – Impromptu
13.07 Krystyna Stańko Trio
14.07 Adam Bałdych Project
15.07 Vladislav Sendecki/Adam Bałdych
18.07 Daniel Garcia Solo Piano (read more on Facebook)
19.07 Purple Is the Color Trio (Austria)
20.07 Lora Szafran
21.07 Krzysztof Ścierański Quartet
22.07 Tomasz Kukurba & Stanisław Słowiński Project
23.07 Bernard Maseli solo
25.07 Mateusz Smoczyński/ Stephen Brown
26.07 Tomasz Chyła Quintet
27.07 Brooklyn Eye – Joachim Mencel Project
28.07 Włodzimierz Nahorny Trio
29.07 Paweł Kaczmarczyk Trio
30.07 M. Stryszowski/K. Ścierański/S. Berny

Harris Piano Jazz Bar (9:30 pm) | PLN 40
4.07 Stanley Breckenridge Trio (USA)
5.07 Marian Pawlik Quartet
6.07 Dino Massa Quartet (Italy)
7.07 Jam Session
8.07 Szymon Mika Trio
9.07 The Flash – Pezda/Dworak/Olszewski
10.07 Electric Shepherd
11.07 Dedicated Orchestra – Groborz & Cronies
12.07 Dominik Bukowski/Dominik Kisiel
13.07 Folk in Polish Jazz – Dębski/Nowotarski/Niedzielin/Niewiński
14.07 Jam Session
15.07 Funk de Nite
16.07 Vanesa Harbek Trio (Argentina)
18.07 Purple Is the Color Trio (Austria)
19.07 Charles Burton Trio (USA)
20.07 Krzysztof Ścierański solo
21.07 Jam Session
22.07 Hot Swing
23.07 Mr Krime Live Band
24.07 Rodziewicz – Sikała Rojazzvitch
25.07 Jakub Mizeracki Trio
26.07 Adam Kawończyk Quartet
27.07 Escaubei & Tomasz Nowak Quartet feat. Mr. Krime
28.07 Jam Session
29.07 Miron Nalepa Band
30.07 Kajetan Galas Band
31.07 German Trio (Germany)

Potocki (Zbaraski) Palace (8 pm) | Free entry
07.07 Dino Massa/Tomasz Grzegorski
16.07 Vladislav Sendecki – Jurgen Spiegel Two in the Mirror
22.07 Agnieszka Grochowicz Song Time
30.07 German Trio

Pracownia pod Baranami (8 pm) | Free entry
07.07 Julia Amirova Trio
14.07 Weronika Kukla Quartet
21.07 Miłosz Bazarnik Band
28.07 Bartek Leśniak Trio

Solo Piano Week at Piec Art (9 pm) | PLN 30
7.07 Pola Atmańska
8.07 Dino Massa
9.07 Mateusz Pałka
10.07 Paweł Tomaszewski
11.07 Joachim Mencel
12.07 Michał Wierba
13.07 Kuba Płużek

Arena Garden (8 pm) | Free entry
09.07 Hot Swing
16.07 Funk de Nite
25.07 Soul Finger
01.08 Wojciech Klich Trio

Alchemia (godz. 21.00) | PLN 30
08.07 Adam Pierończyk Project
25.07 Jorgos Skolias & Bracia Oleś Sefardix

Kilar at Alchemia
28.07 Sławek Pezda/Dominik Gawęda Duo Kilar recomposed
29.07 Kuba Więcek/Piotr Orzechowski Duo Themes of Dracula

Jazz Club U Muniaka (9:30 pm)
04.07 Przemek Dyakowski
08.07 Tomasz Grzegorski
23.07 Maciej Sikała

Tenczyn Castle in Rudno (8 pm) | Free entry
30.07 Wojciech Klich Trio

Maciej Szczęsny's photography exhibition at Piwnica pod Baranami / The Cellars under the Rams

Source: press release

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