JAZZ & BLUES FEST FROM JAN 29
Music has been a big part of the Bangalee way of life for centuries, and along with the music of our own roots, various genres of world music have also seeped into our musical taste and influences, particularly in recent years. Particularly since 2012's Bengal Classical Music Festival, international-level music festivals have become fairly regular. And the first of the year is around the corner. The second edition of the Jazz & Blues Fest is set to be held January 29-31 at the Infinity rooftop of the Le Meridien Dhaka in Dhaka.
Blues Communications is following up November 2015's first edition of the festival that was a success with fans of the genre. Considered the two earliest forms of world music, jazz and blues have a burgeoning following in Bangladesh.
Lurrie Bell's Chicago Blues Band will be headlining this year's festival, with Gary Husband, Deepak & Friends, Oz Noy Group, Ranjit Barot and 'Slang', Armeen Musa, Soulmate, Malted Milk, and Jacob Dinesen being the featured performers. The artistes will also do a collaborative jam together, celebrating the music of jazz legend Miles Davis.
“We planned to hold the festival last month and at a bigger scale,” Blues Communications CEO Farhadul Islam told The Daily Star. “But we faced a number of obstacles in terms of venue availability,” he added. He also said if such constraints continue, they might think of shifting the festival abroad. “Sri Lanka and France have expressed their interest to hold the festival there. But we wanted to do it here this year, to cater to our audience.”
Armeen Musa, the only Bangladeshi performer on this year's bill, could hardly contain her excitement while talking to The Daily Star. “It's great to have a festival of jazz and blues music here in Bangladesh,” she said. Armeen will mostly be doing her originals, but it will be a little different from her usual set. “I will perform some of my works that I don't often get to perform live here. Rehearsals are going on full swing, and I'm really excited to meet the awesome musicians who will be coming.”
Tickets for the event are available at select restaurants in the capital, as well as multiple online ticketing platforms. Details of the tickets can be found on the Facebook page of Jazz & Blues Festival Dhaka, as well as their web site, jazzxblues.com.
The festival is being held in association with IFIC Bank, with the Ministry of Power, Energy and Mineral Resources as its strategic partner. Channel i is the broadcast partner of the event, with Le Meridien Dhaka as its hospitality partner.
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