COLOGNE JAZZWEEK 2023

Cologne Jazzweek (CJW) will take place from August 12 to 18, 2023. Spread over 17 stages, more than 50 concerts with over 200 musicians from all over the world are planned, including numerous world premieres.

The board of trustees, consisting of Lucia Cadotsch, Friederike Darius, Christopher Dell, Janning Trumann and Nils Wogram, presents trend-setting national and international artists and ensembles for jazz and improvised music. New in the upcoming edition is the concept of „Feature Artists“ Ruth Goller (ITA) on bass, Aki Takase (JPN) on piano, Nick Dunston (USA) on bass, Michiyo Yagi (JPN) on koto and the Copenhagen artist collective ILK. The „Feature Artists“ will play multiple times, both with their own ensembles and in new lineups.

Artistic Director Janning Trumann formulates the idea behind this: „As an internationally active festival, we not only want to create new encounters, but also think about sustainability in many ways. That‘s why we enable longer stays in Cologne and present the different sides of the musicians. A special focus will be on our feature artists, who will perform with their own projects, but also in new constellations, among others with regional musicians.“

The festival starts on Saturday, August 12 on a new, large open air stage in the Stadtgarten. Cologne-based trombonist Shannon Barnett will kick things off with her quartet and American soloist Aurora Nealand as guest. The second set will feature the quartet PHILM led by Philipp Gropper, Robert Landfermann, Oli Steidle and Elias Stemeseder. The open air stage at the Stadtgarten will also be the special focus of the following „Grand Sunday“.

In addition, the church Neu St. Alban, the Christuskirche and the Stadtgarten hall, among others, will be individually staged on Sunday afternoon. The free program includes Joy Guidry with her ensemble Radical Acceptance, the Amsterdam collective AM.OK with leader Tijn Wybenga, and the fabulous duo of Han Bennink (dr) and Aki Takase (p).

This year, the Kölner Philharmonie will also be included as a new festival venue. Among others, Nils Petter Molvær and his project KHMER will celebrate the 25th anniversary there in the evening.

This year‘s program at LOFT will feature strong emphasis on improvisation, with almost exclusively world premieres. Nick Dunston and his trio Spider Season begin on Sunday, followed by Michiyo Yagi with her longtime companions Jan Bang, Eivind Aarset and Tony Buck on Monday, before Aki Takase performs solo and duo with Alexander von Schlippenbach on Tuesday. Immediately following is the trio with Darius Heid, Kresten Osgood and Wilbert de Joode. Starting Wednesday, August 16, Copenhagen’s ILK Kollektiv takes over, transforming LOFT into an ILK Zone. In various lineups, collective members led by Kaspar Tranberg, Jacob Anderskov and Lotte Anker will perform over three days.

First-time encounters have characterized the program since the CJW premiere in 2021. In 2023, the concerts of the Pablo Held Trio with Chilean saxophonist Melissa Aldana, the a capella trio Of Cabbages and Kings with spoken word artist Lauren Kinsella, the co-production with NICA artist development „Dudek carnival“ around saxophonist Fabian Dudek or the US singer Samora Pinderhughes with string quartet are particularly noteworthy. Renowned and long-standing working bands are also not missing. On August 16, for example, the Julia Hülsmann Quartet and the trio of Larry Goldings, Peter Bernstein and Bill Stewart will give a great concert evening at the Filmhaus and the Stadtgarten.

The proven club concept of playing the Bumann Sohn, CBE and Artheater in Ehrenfeld on Thursdays will continue in 2023. Here, “CJW perennial favorites” can be experienced: with Savannah Harris and Petter Eldh in Økse and, after the acclaimed European premiere in 2022, Isaiah Collier in the new duo I AM. Then also US drummer and singer Kassa Overall.

On the same evening, the Cologne jazz scene will gather in the Stadtgarten to bid farewell to trumpeter and composer Udo Moll, who passed away recently and completely unexpectedly. All who knew him and played or discussed music with him will sorely miss this humorous and immensely musical and imaginative person and musician.

The last day of the festival will be celebrated in the Stadtgarten with old master Dave Douglas and his international New Quintet featuring Marta Warelis, James Brandon Lewis, Joey Baron and feature artist Nick Dunston, among others. Closing the festival will be Cologne-based improv collective Headless Society with Argentine cellist Violeta García.

In the 2023 edition of the festival, numerous concerts will once again be available for hybrid experience, with live broadcasts on the Internet, a dedicated blog, and numerous interviews with artists. In addition, there will be panel discussions and an educational program, conceived and carried out by the Offene Jazz Haus Schule e.V..

Once again, the night concerts in the Jaki will be free of charge and, as a new feature, the “Grand Sunday” on August 13 around the open-air stage in the Stadtgarten (including Neu St. Alban and Christuskirche).


Line-up

Aki Takase & Han Bennink, AM.OK & Tijn Wybenga, Ben Van Gelder – Manifold, Dave Douglas New Quintet, Goldings/Bernstein/Stewart, Headless Society + Violeta García, ILK Kopenhagen, Isaiah Collier & Michael Ode, Jakob Bänsch Quartett, Japanic, Jamie Peet & Niels Broos, Julia Hülsmann Quartett, Joy Guidry – Radical Acceptance, Kassa Overall, Mehdi Nassouli, Michiyo Yagi, Nils Petter Molvær – KHMER, Nick Dunston Spider Trio, Økse, Of Cabbages and Kings + Lauren Kinsella, Pablo Held Trio & Melissa Aldana, PHILM, RE:Calamari, Reza Askari, Samora Pinderhughes, Shannon Barnett 4 & Aurora Nealand, Skylla, Tom Ford, Training, Wanja Slavin – Libelle u.v.m.


Venues

Stadtgarten (Saal, Jaki, Open Air, Green Room), Loft, Filmhaus, Artheater, Club Bahnhof Ehrenfeld, WDR Sendesaal, Bumann & Sohn, Neu St. Alban, St. Kunibert, Christuskirche, Agneskirche, King Georg, Kölner Philharmonie, Ryzon Showroom

https://jazzweek.de/