Performers
- Chopin University Big Band
- Piotr Kostrzewa band leader, artistic direction
Programme
Claude Bolling Jazzomania [5’]
Django Reinhardt Nuages (arr. Vince Norman) [4’]
Jacques Prévert/Joseph Kosma Les feuilles mortes (Autumn Leaves, arr. Ted Heath) [5’]
George Gershwin An American in Paris Blues (arr. Eddie Sauter) [4’]
Michel Legrand The Windmills of Your Mind (arr. Eric Richards) [6’]
Sidney Bechet Petite fleur (arr. Neal Hefti) [3’]
Claude Bolling Here Comes the Blues [4’]
Vernon Duke April in Paris (arr. Sammy Nestico) [4’]
George Gershwin Strike Up the Band (arr. Sammy Nestico) [4’]
Concert description
To Europeans who could not go to the United States, jazz was revealed during World War I, when it was spread in France by soldiers from overseas who stationed there. The real boom for the music, of course, did not erupt until after the war, when society sought to unwind after the catastrophe ending the old world, and also saw that some things – like the position of women – had changed for the better. Jazz was the music of optimism, of the future, of freedom. Paris was vibrant and attracted artists, such as the Lost Generation of writers and composers in love with neoclassicism. This embodiment of the City of Light, as seen through the eyes of a fascinated foreigner, was immortalized by George Gershwin in his poem An American in Paris. Another newcomer from the United States who visited the French capital (and even wrote a ballet for Diaghilev!) was Vernon Duke, and his April in Paris may have been written out of sentiment for that city, said to be charming especially in spring. Sidney Bechet also came from America, but he was not immediately able to stay in Paris for good. His first tour ended in prison – and later deportation – for trying to shoot a man who insulted him. However, he hit a random woman with a bullet… Joseph Kosma, on the other hand, emigrated to France from Hungary. In his adopted homeland, he was active as a respected songwriter and film musician. Soon, native jazz artists, such as Michel Legrand and Claude Bolling, also appeared in France.
– Dominika Micał (pisanezesluchu.pl)