Friday night is jazz night
Series of free concerts at Torrevieja's Palacio de la Música
JAZZ is the order of the day in Torrevieja this winter and spring.
Los Viernes del Palacio jazz cycle, which is taking place over the coming four months, features a total of eight concerts at the town’s Palacio de la Música.
All of the performances are free, until the venue is full, and take place on a Friday.
The concerts feature performers from across the wide spectrum of jazz, ranging from the classic crooners to contemporary instrumental jazz, by way of hard bop, and vocalists performing their own arrangements of jazz standards.
The series gets underway tonight (Friday, February 8) with classic jazz vocals from the That Old Feeling Quintet.
This is followed on February 15 with the Filip Verneert & Enrique Simón Quartet. Verneert is one of the best guitarists on the Belgian jazz scene, whilst Simon is a piano virtuoso, producer, arranger, composer, teacher and musical director. They will be backed with the rhythm section of Gil Lachanel on bass and Pedro Vazquez on drums.
Next up on March 1 it is the turn of the classic instrumental jazz quartet Just Friends, led by Pablo Mercader on guitar, who will be performing a set of classic swing and hard bop standards from the 40s, 50s and 60s, set to their own arrangements.
On March 15 it will be the turn of the International Classic Jazz All Stars to take to the Palacio stage. The All Stars is an open formation described as an ‘interesting selection of musicians of different nationalities who, together, offer a high voltage music show through the timeless language of classic jazz’.
This will be followed on March 29 with a concert of contemporary jazz at the hands of the Jésus Santandreu Quartet.
Saxophonist Santandreu will be showing his ‘contemporary aesthetic which incorporates different modern jazz tendencies and styles, creating a sound characterised by an interpretative freedom that has improvisation as its reason for being’.
Classic jazz vocals and Bossa Nova are both on the agenda for the April 5 concert featuring the Joan Soler Quartet with Viktorija Pilatovic.
‘Swing, passion, freedom, improvisation and emotion’ can all be expected to play a role in the performance by this international quintet of musicians.
Classic jazz vocals and Latin jazz are on the menu for the May 3 concert at the hands of the Marta Llenas Quintet.
Also featuring Enrique Simón on piano, the concert promises ‘dizzying rhythms, devastating swing, warm tenor saxophone and the mysterious intimacy of the double bass’ during a show that passes through the jazz years, incorporating tunes influenced by Brazilian music and elegant funk.
The final concert of the season is by the Enric Peidro Quartet on May 17.
From the very beginning, band leader, Peidro has been influenced by the big saxophonists of the swing era. His style is always close to that of classic jazz which has gained him recognition from lovers of the genre.
All performances start at 20.00.