In cooperation with the internationally established Jazz Festival Saalfelden, Austrian Music Export will turn the spotlight on the local jazz scene and bring event organizers from all over Europe to the annual jazz festival in Saalfelden. With artists such as Edi Nulz, Kollegium Kalksburg, Lukas Kranzelbinder or Jim Black, the spearheads of Austrian jazz and world music acts will be presented to an international expert audience.
JAZZ FROM AUSTRIA
The current Austrian jazz scene is distinguished by its vast musical diversity and is well acclaimed and appreciated beyond the country’s borders. Regardless of subgenre, be it based on more traditional routes, larger or smaller instrumentations, experimental or avant-garde niches, unconventional or genre-crossing music: all are characterized by liveliness, innovation, and creativity. In terms of artistry and musical skills, the Austrian jazz scene easily rates among the world’s finest. Once again, this year’s program of the Jazz Festival Saalfelden comes up trumps with a top-notch music line up.
EXPORT PROMOTION OF AUSTRIAN MUSIC
Presenting the most promising Austrian acts to an international expert audience, Austrian Music Export has organized several meet & greets and presentations to give international media representatives and event organizers the opportunity to discover the variety and quality of the Austrian jazz scene and get to know the performing artists. Ten European festival delegates from countries such as France, Switzerland, Poland, Czech Republic, Romania, Lithuania and Ireland, who have already expressed interest in booking Austrian projects, were specifically invited to this event.
CONTEMPORARY JAZZ IN SAALFELDEN
Now in its 37th year, the renowned Jazz Festival Saalfelden has long established itself as a haven for contemporary jazz and is a fixture on the global music calendar. Each year visitors from all over the world flock to the beautiful town of Saalfelden to witness concerts that are almost exclusively European and Austrian premieres. Taking place this year from the 25th – 28th of August, numerous international and Austrian musicians will be performing on the stages of six venues. The four-day program was curated by artistic directors Michaela Mayer and Mario Steidl and will once again offer rare, unexpected and experimental delicacies.
Festival Link: www.jazzsaalfelden.com
For further questions and details on Austrian acts, please contact:
Helge Hinteregger
+43-1-52104-61
hinteregger@musicaustria.at
PERFORMING AUSTRIAN ARTISTS
OSTBEATBEND
Performing: Thursday, August 25 | 18:30
Venue: Town Hall Square Saalfelden
Website: ostbeatbend.com
The name is the game with the Ostbeatbend (Eastbeatband). It’s the pulsating and danceable rhythms of southeastern Europe that set the tone of the multifaceted music this band creates. A mix of diverse musical traditions, Ostbeatbend ignore the borders between styles, mixing and matching a musical firework that burns hot and bright. Gypsy music from Romania meets Bosnian and Macedonian songs while all possible variations of jazz makes itself at home. The musical embodiment of joie de vivre.
NAMBY PAMBY BOY
Performing: Thursday, August 25 | 21:30
Venue: Nexus Saalfelden
Website: nambypambyboy.com
There are some bands that seem to fight tooth and nail against any form of musical categorisation. In 2003 three young instrumentalists came together with a plan to revolutionise the concept of the classic trio format (saxophone, bass and drums) and add a fresh instrumental twist to the sound. As in their previous project [midshi], the trio followed a path blazed by various music forms that ranged from the margins of classical jazz interpretations to more electronically tinged and experimental avant-gardistic sounds. The approach of Namby Pamby Boy is quite similar, with the difference that the three musicians now not only take inspiration from electronic music, but also from the fields of rock, funk and hip-hop.
DOUBA FOLI
Performing: Friday, August 26 | 17:00
Venue: Town Hall Square Saalfelden
Website: sigifinkel.com
Mamadou Diabaté’s rise to prominence has extended beyond the music scene in Europe and reached back to Africa (not least because he was recognized as the “Best Balafonist in West Africa”). He’s now started a new project based in Europe and Africa with his unrelated namesakes Abdoulaye and Modibo Diabaté. The unique style of these two singers from Mali has made them perhaps the best known brother duo in West Africa. Their knowledge of old traditions, offered in melodic arches sung in unison, and their often dance-like movements on the stage enchant audiences from the first note.
SHAKE STEW
Performing: Friday, August 26 | 19:00
Venue: Congress Center Saalfelden
Website: laubrecords.com
Austrian bassist Lukas Kranzelbinder is opening the festival with a band composed of emerging artists from the European and above all Austrian jazz scene. Despite his young age, Kranzelbinder has already had an incredibly diverse career. In addition to premiering an opera, performing in a Europe-wide music festival, and giving concert tours in locations from Japan to Mexico, of late he has mainly been heard as a member of Mario Rom’s band INTERZONE. SHAKE STEW reflects his exploration of new, genre-independent dimensions in sound.
EDI NULZ
Performing: Saturday, August 27 | 15:30
Venue: Congress Center Saalfelden
Website: edi-nulz.com
It’s nice that they are still around. Those musical concepts that are good for a few surprises. The ones that don’t rely on the familiar and well known but prefer to take unconventional concepts head-on. Edi Nulz consists of three jazz musicians that unmistakably bring along a heavy dose of rock music. The music is far from any classical jazz structures. Aside from the strong instrumental skills and highly complex songs of the musicians, it is above all the driving energy in the playing style, melodies, harmonies and riffs that sets the music of this trio apart from traditional jazz and is rather reminiscent of the progrock era in the 70s. The trio enjoys what they are doing and make that obvious to the audience every time they play.
SALAH AMMO, ORWA SALEH & FRIENDS: SYRIAN LINKS
Performing: Saturday, August 27 | 09:30
Venue: Town Hall Square Saalfelden
Website: salahammo.com
Syrian Links is a continuation of several existing Syrian-Austrian projects. Ammo and Saleh embellish the Arabic-Kurdish music of their homeland with the input of several Austrian and European musicians. Together they keep memories alive while fostering peaceful prospects for the future. They tell their stories, turning their personal sense of unease and bewilderment into musical expression. Their shared experiences become a source of energy. “The sound of our music is stronger than the terrible noise of war,” says Salah Ammo.
It’s a project of hope – not just for Syria. This is no cry help, but a resounding appeal for more dignity and humanity on all levels.
JIM BLACK NEW QUARTET
Performing: Saturday, August 27 | 14:00
Venue: Nexus Saalfelden
Website: jimblack.com
Educated at the famous Berklee College of Music, Jim Black quickly forgot all the theories and from the early nineties frequented New York clubs like the Knitting Factory, acquiring all the skills he needed for his artfully frayed rhythm technique. He soon worked for greats like David Douglas, Tim Berne, and Uri Caine. Even seasoned veterans like Paul Motian and Charlie Haden were inspired by his expressivity. His current formation, Malamute, flirts with one of the big weaknesses of our time: our dramatically shrinking attention span. Every couple of minutes this progressive quartet changes the sound and texture of the music. It’s a catapult for distracted listeners…
KOLLEGIUM KALKSBURG
Performing: Sunday, August 28 | 11:00
Venue: Stöcklalm Leogang
Website: kollegiumkalksburg.at
Any discussion about the leading and most successful examples of the contemporary Wienerlied is sure to include the band Kollegium Kalksburg. Which is understandable, since the fabulously crazy viennese trio played a major role in awaking the sleeping beauty from it’s long slumber and bringing it back to the spotlight of music lovers. With a good portion humour, experimentation and driven by the spirit of rehabilitation, this ingenious trio spans a musical bridge between the past and an ever so slightly jazzy present.
IN COMPAGNIA
Performing: Sunday, August 28 | 11:00
Venue: Vorderkühbühelhof Saalfelden
Website: aniada.at
Combining a trio that has been playing Austrian ethno-music for 33 years with a trio from Friaul is a guarantee for an exciting musical atmosphere. The dialect formation Aniada a Noar and the Italian ensemble Altrioh don’t just combine guitars, mandolins, harmonicas, cellos, bass, bagpipes, violins,jew’s harps and a whole lot of vocals in their cooperative project “In Compagnia”. They also instrumental numbers and songs sung in Austrian and Italian.