Time to start getting jazzed about this summer's line-up of musical acts at the CKS Memorial Hall as the roster for the Summer of Jazz 2005 has been announced.
And while it might be easy to get excited about four of the jazz world's premier acts coming to Taiwan, local aficionados will point out that nearly half of the this year's lineup has been here before.
Starting off this year's jazz party will be the Kenny Garret Quartet on Aug. 20. Garrett has played with Mel Lewis, Art Blakey, Woody Shaw and Freddie Hubbard and, in 1986, landed a gig with Miles Davis. He stayed with the legendary trumpeter until his death in 1992.
On Aug. 23, the party continues with Stacey Kent, whose career reads like a Hollywood script. She went to Europe to study language for her master's degree, met a musician with whom she shared a passion for jazz, married him and, on the strength of a single demo tape, landed a role in Ian McKellen's Richard III, a recording contract and an endorsement from Britain's most respected jazz broadcaster. She now sells out concert halls around the world and her most recent album, The Boy Next Door, has been 35 weeks on the US Billboard Charts.
Topping off the roster are the returnees The Idea of North is the award-winning Australian a cappella act who first came to Taipei in March of last year. This time they will be playing with James Morrison on Aug. 27. Finally, on Sept. 7, Klazz Brothers and Cuban Percussion come back to Taiwan after rocking Taichung in October of last year.
Tickets for the Summer of Jazz 2005 are available at the National Concert Hall and cost between NT$400 and NT$2,500 per performance. Visit www.ntch.edutw/pro/2005jazz, or call (02) 3393 9888 to reserve your tickets.
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