Taipei City Government

What’s a great way to enjoy midsummer’s night outdoors? For music lovers, the annual jazz festival held by Taipei City Government may be the thing you are looking for!

Organized by the Department of Cultural Affairs, the 2015 Taipei Jazz Music Festival will take place at the Daan Forest Park from July 17 through 19.

This year’s program is coordinated by Sizhukong Jazz Band and the Department of Applied Music of Tainan National University of the Arts. The organizers invited various performers from both home and abroad, spanning veterans to a new generation of talents. The merging of jazz music and cultural traits from different eras will create a feast of jazz beats resounding across the world!

The first performance of this year’s Jazz Festival will spotlight the members of Hibriduz, a band comprising seven young men from Honduras. On July 17, the Latino-flavored rhythm by musicians hailing from Central America will kick-off the Blues beat rhapsody on midsummer’s night at Daan Park. The artists will be challenged by local strings orchestra, facing off in a battle of “Jazz Versus Classical” to entertain the audience attending the event.

In the evening of July 18, the NTU Jazz Big Band will square-off against Taiwan Youth Elite Jazz Band in a battle of music demonstrating the power and energy of a new generation of jazz musicians. At the same time, American jazz pianist and educator Any Jaffe will join French Horn master John Clark in a jam session highlighting the theme “Senior and Young” on stage.

The performance on July 19 spotlights the theme of cross-culture encounter between East and West. The “Taiwan and Italy” night will see the collaboration between Italian jazz experts Mission Formosa with Paige Su and the Flying Monkeys performing works integrating pop music, jazz music, and world music. The climax of the show will come with the appearance of musician Mark Taylor with Max Ionata All Stars Band, promising to bring the Taipei Jazz Festival to an all-time high.

In addition, to provide Taipei residents with an opportunity to learn more about the development of jazz music and bands in Taipei, a series of talks on jazz will be organized at major bookstores, including Art Reading Café on June 21 and the music store of Dunan Eslite Bookstore on June 24. On July 5, there will also be a seminar about jazz music appreciation inviting three jazz experts to provide the audience with a briefing on the music styles and characteristics of the performers at this year’s Jazz Festival.