Jazz at The Opera House

Vencedora de 10 prêmios Grammy, a cantora, compositora, pintora e poetisa canadense Joni Mitchell é uma das artistas mais influentes do século XX. Ela começou a carreira cantando em pequenos bares no Canadá, e em 1965 se mudou para os Estados Unidos, onde passou a compôr para outros artistas. Em 1968, Mitchell foi contratada pela Reprise Records e lançou seu primeiro álbum, Song to a Seagull. Após o lançamento dos discos Clouds (1969) e Ladies of the Canyon (1970), a cantora lançou Blue (1971), considerado um dos melhores álbuns de todos os tempos, graças a canções como “California” e “River”. A sonoridade folk combinada com rock e jazz e as letras profundamente emocionais renderam outros 15 discos, além de inúmeras honrarias, como a indução no Rock n’ Roll Hall of Fame e um Grammy pelo conjunto da obra. O trabalho mais recente de Mitchell, Shine, foi lançado em 2007.

The most successful solo jazz album of all time, "The Köln Concert" is an awe-inspiring work of improvisation and invention. Consisting of four tracks that together comprise over an hour of music, the performance is an apt demonstration of Jarrett’s genius as a piano player and conceptualist. It features one of the greatest series of free improvisations ever caught on tape - endlessly imaginative and absolutely mesmerizing. This performance takes on an entirely new dimension - one that places you immediately before Jarrett’s phenomenal keyboard displays of virtuosity and gives additional resonance to every struck note.

She teaches Jazz Vocals at La Spezia Conservatory and Sassari Conservatory. Ever since her debut on the jazz scene with the cd “Small Day Tomorrow” (Philology, 2004), she was mentioned among the “Best Musicians” in the TOP JAZZ POLLS on Musica Jazz magazine. She recorded nine cds as a leader – two of them feature legendary saxophone player Phil Woods.

The Modern Jazz Quartet or "MJQ", one of the most successful bands of the so called "Third Stream", was a direct outgrowth of the Dizzy Gillespie orchestra: pianist John Lewis, vibraphonist Milt Jackson, bassist Ray Brown, later replaced by Percy Heath, and drummer Kenny Clarke (the first drummer with the group) often played interludes and intermissions for Gillespie in the late 1940s. Fusing Cool Jazz and European musical forms, the quartet functioned almost like a classical string quartet, and thus brought Jazz to the concert halls around Europe and across the globe. The twenty original albums in this 10 CD-box document the group at the height of their career and include classics like "Concorde" and "Pyramid", as well as many of their acclaimed soundtracks.

Among the truly great saxophonists of the jazz age, Stan Getz met with few rivals in terms of passion, expression and ability. Dubbed The Sound by both fans and contemporaries, Getz s warm, lyrical tone invoked the playing of his idol Lester Young, and in turn has influenced countless other musicians. With a career spanning six decades, Getz is perhaps best known for ushering in the bossa nova craze of the early 1960s, although his talents were a lot more far-reaching, encompassing such idioms as bebop and cool jazz.

Having played with Gary Burton, Jaco Pastorius and other leading fusion musicians, the prodigious Pat Metheny made his solo recording debut in 1976. The following year he released Watercolors, marking the start of his long collaboration with pianist Lyle Mays. That summer they played various dates (together with bassist Mark Egan and drummer Danny Gottlieb).

Recognized worldwide as "The First Lady of Song," Ella Fitzgerald is arguably the finest female jazz vocalist of all time. Blessed with a highly resonant voice, wide range, and near-perfect elocution, Fitzgerald also possessed a deft sense of swing, and with her brilliant scat technique, could hold her own against any of her instrumental contemporaries. She came to initial popularity as a member of drummer Chick Webb's band in the 1930s, scoring a hit with a "A-Tisket, A-Tasket," before ascending to wide acclaim in the 1940s with Jazz at the Philharmonic and Dizzy Gillespie's Big Band, and issuing landmark performances like "Flying Home" and "How High the Moon." Working with producer/manager Norman Granz, she gained even more acclaim with her series of albums on Verve, recording definitive versions of the music of the Great American Songbook composers, including 1956's Sings the Cole Porter Songbook. Over her 50-year career, she earned 13 Grammy Awards, sold over 40 million albums, and picked up numerous accolades including a National Medal of Arts and the Presidential Medal of Freedom. A hugely important cultural figure, Fitzgerald made an immeasurable impact on the development of jazz and popular music, and remains a touchstone for fans and artists decades after her passing.