BuJazzO & Maria Baptist // Andromeda Mega Express Orchestra

BuJazzO & Maria Baptist ‘City Grooves’

The BuJazzO, Germany’s Youth Jazz Orchestra, sponsors qualified and talented young jazz musicians in Germany. The current concert repertoire is rehearsed with changing line-ups in working modules that take the form of an intensive musical training in a professional master course atmosphere. The artistic directorship of rehearsals and stage work alternates and is performed by renowned artists. The working modules are followed by guest performances at home and abroad, where the results are presented to an international audience.

To encourage high qualified young female musicians BuJazzO has put a focus on women as conductors and instructors, starting with pianist Maria Baptist, composer/arranger and professor at the Berlin Music Conservatory ‘Hanns Eisler’. She has been conducting the 47th working phase of BuJazzO in March 2011.

Maria Baptist is fascinated by big cities. Together with BuJazzO she presents the programme City Grooves. It reflects the different moods and the mutability of a big city. Powerful energetic music alternates with concertante moments.

“Her music is a gift, infused with all the creativity, power, emotion, generosity and warmth that she exudes in life” (Maria Schneider)

Andromeda Mega Express Orchestra

The twenty-piece Andromeda Mega Express Orchestra, led by 25-year-old Berlin based composer Daniel Glatzel, are 20 young musicians all from differing musical and cultural backgrounds – from Germany, France, Switzerland, Canada, Norway, Japan, Thailand, the Czech Republic and South Korea.

AMEO sets off a firework of energy, musicality and fresh ideas and juggle genres, styles and musical references in a way that can make you dizzy. ‘Jazz’ doesn't begin to describe it. We're talking about everything from minimalism to film scores, romanticism, modern classical music, and Bartok right through to Frank Zappa. Glatzel also cites computer games, the Second Viennese School, cartoons, Renaissance Polyphony, shabby infomercials and elevators in expensive hotels as influences.

The festival's graphic artist Henning Wagenbreth will design a special stage setting for AMEO which is on par with Daniel's musical concept.
Two birds of a feather!