More local performers in 13th KK Jazz Festival
KK Jazz Festival returns for its 13th instalment, this time with a new addition to the programme and more local performers.
Co-organising chairman Jack Ong said the festival had seen many musicians develop, especially homegrown talents, while the festival itself had grown since it started.
Most important was the way it had changed the music scene here, he said, as one of the objectives of the festival was to nurture budding musicians by providing a platform.
“Over the years, we have seen the quality of performers improve. There is a distinct difference in the standard, from the fringe events to workshops, and the main event itself, compared to when we started,” he said during a press conference with invited performers of the KK Jazz Festival 2019 yesterday, co-organising chairperson Roger Wang who said the festival does not only showcase jazz in the technical aspect, but puts more emphasis on the spirit of jazz.
You could play what is technically called jazz and it may not sound like jazz, because jazz is more of the attitude in which you play, he said.
“If you go further back in history to the guys who first started playing jazz, it’s more about the attitude.
“And so we don’t want to emphasise on what is ‘technically’ or conventionally known as jazz, but the spirit of it – it’s the attitude you put in that defines whether you play jazz or not. We kind of use that as a ‘loose’ way of determining who plays at the festival,” Roger elaborated.
This year, the KK Jazz Festival features a new segment called Blues Summit, a jamming session where performers freestyle with Sabahan “blues man” Sonny Bahari.
Roger said the idea for Blues Summit came about from observing award shows where artists perform with other artists, in a way that does not usually happen at other times.
He explained that he thought it would be a good idea for KK Jazz Festival performers to perform spontaneously with one another, which would also give the audience something refreshing to watch.
“Blues is the heart and soul of jazz and I thought it would be the best platform to enable different acts to perform with each other. They could each bring different elements to Blues Summit, whether it be blues, funk or jazz,” said Roger.
The performer line-up for the 13th edition of the KK Jazz Festival features more local talents than previously, which are Prince tribute band Rainbow Children, SWAG, A.S Duo Project, Take 2, Jamstation, Rikki and Friends and Project Trio.
Other local talents were also selected form the KK Jazz Festival Talent Search, namely Sunrise Jazz Ensemble, Lawalah and Calypsoul. More acts include Q Sound and Xianghai Divas.
Tickets are available at the door at RM50 per night including RM20 food and drink coupons or RM1,000 per premier table. More F&B coupons are sold at the venue.
KK Jazz Festival is also proud to present quality F&B operators, including The Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf, Wine Shop, Slush, Alexy’s Kitchen, Chopping Block, Party Play and Borneo’s.
Celebrating its 13th edition this year, KK Jazz Festival is one of the longest continuously running jazz festivals in Malaysia and possibly the only jazz festival in the region aimed at raising funds for charity and developing the performing arts scene.
Proceeds from the festival will continue to be channelled towards community service projects by the Rotary Club of Kota Kinabalu, such as medical camps for rural villages and water gravity projects.
The event is sponsored by Sime Darby Foundation and the Ministry of Tourism, Culture and Environment Sabah and supported by Kota Kinabalu City Hall, with partners Sutera Harbour Resort and Spa, Mega Boogie, Delta Form, Impact Zone, Carlsberg, The Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf, Wine Shop, Slush, Alexy’s Kitchen, Chopping Block, Party Play, Borneo’s, Slush by Benly and AirAsia RedTix.