Limassol may have its Rialto World Music Festival running at the moment, but Nicosia and – specifically – Aglantzia has always got its jazz festival as a summer staple.
This year marks ten years since the start of the two-day festival and each year increasing numbers of music lovers are attracted to the outdoor jazz event.
Things get in the mood this year from Monday at 9pm with a performance by Cypriot composer, professor of musicology and pianist Savvas Savva.
As a performer Savva has excelled in free piano improvisation on stages in Mexico, Romania, America, Italy, Spain, Australia and elsewhere. He has also collaborated with a number of orchestras, including the Moscow State Academy Orchestra and the Orchestra of the City of Athens. As a composer he has written music for a large number of films, documentaries and plays.
Next up on Monday will be the David Helblock Trio from Austria, who will take to the stage at 10pm. The trio – David Helblock on the piano, Raphael Preuschl on the bass ukulele, and Reinhold Schmolzer on the drums – is quickly building a reputation for itself as an act to follow on the global music scene.
Together the three musicians have won the audience prize at the world’s biggest jazz-piano-solo competition at the Montreux Jazz Festival and also the Outstanding Artist Award in Austria in 2011.
The band, and Helbock as a solo artist, travel all over the world giving performances.
Stick around because at 11pm the local band Funkastic 11 will have its chance to entertain. The band was formed in May last year by pianist Giorgos Morfitis – who also composes and arranges music.
The eight-member band, is comprised of professional performers who focus on funk music with jazzy twists, up lifting funky beats and harmonies – an interesting stab at fusing the old with the new.
Greek band Momo Trio starts the line up on Tuesday. George Dousis on piano, Paraskevas Kitsos on the double bass nad Nikos Kassavetis on the drums, will share their elaborate musical techniques
Founded in 2011, the trio have already released two LPS. The first being No Vacancy in 2012, and the second – Inati – in April, 2015.
The festival will then obtain a Balkan swing kind of feel with the German band Quadro Nuevo. The band, which has been touring globally since 1996, brings the melodies of old Europe to the stage with their unique improvisations and love of music.
Having performed in over 3000 concerts all over the world, Andreas Frazl on the saxophone, Dietmar Lowka on the acoustic bass and percussion, Andreas Hinterseher on the accordion and vibrandoneon and Evelyn Huber on the harp, and hammered dulcimer, will share their jazzy vibe.
The last act of the festival will be the local band TriCoolOre, featuring renowned trumpeter Pantelis Stoikos.
The World Jazz Trio TriCoolOre – who are Angelos Doukas on piano and keyboards, Vasilis Vasileiou on drums and percussion, and Nikos Doukas on bass and loops – came together in November 2013 in their home town of Nicosia.
With their focus on fusing different musical styles, expect explosive rhythms mixed with more nostalgic, traditional melodies.
Joining the trio will be another musician who also likes to do things a little differently. Stoikos is considered one of the most creative trumpeters in the Balkans. He enriches the sounds of his area with elements of jazz and classical music, thus creating his own take on traditional music. He has taken this style all over Europe, to America, Asia and Australia.
AglanJazz 2016
Jazz festival. July 4-5. Square of Old Aglantzia, Nicosia. 9pm. Free. Tel: 22-462233
