Daniel Humair Quartet // WDR Big Band & Kurt Elling

The ‘last man standing’ from the first festival in 1964, of all people, is now sitting - behind the drums. Daniel Humair, the Swiss-born drummer, moved to Paris back in 1958 where his performances with US jazz greats became an indispensable bench for American jazz in Europe. Even more important is the key role that Daniel Humair took on in the emancipation of European jazz – whether in collaboration with George Gruntz or in the groundbreaking trio with Joachim Kühn and J. F. Jenny-Clark. With his “Sweet & Sour” quartet, Daniel Humair demonstrates once again his instinct for highly talented young musicians. The saxophonist Emile Parisien has won almost every French jazz prize over the past few years, including the Prix Django Reinhardt, which was also awarded to Vincent Peirani last year. The Nice-born accordionist is regarded as one of the rising stars on the French jazz scene. Together with the highly flexible Jérôme Regard on bass and the grand old man on drums one thing is guaranteed: pure pleasure of playing.

DanielHumair homepage

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Music can fulfil many functions: since time immemorial, it has served as a vehicle for emotions, as a mouthpiece for joy and grief, or of freedom and repression. The latter pair of opposites is the theme of the WDR Big Band’s concert at the Berlin Jazz Festival 2014. And on the occasion of the 25th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall, the festival shifts notions of freedom to centre stage. Together with the American singer Kurt Elling, the WDR Big Band will stage the project “Freedom Songs” that deals with this persistently up-to-date political theme. Jazz forms the focus of Richard DeRosa’s arrangements, but the programme also contains songs from other genres and different epochs – according to the motto, “thoughts are free”.Celebrating the 25th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall, the WDR Big Band Cologne has compiled a programme of liberty and liberation songs. Guest vocalist Kurt Elling, dubbed “the standout male vocalist of our time” by the ‘New York Times’ completes the line-up with his much praised rich baritone voice and emotional depth.

WDRBig Band homepage
KurtElling homepage