Jazz is in the Air! – June 27-30, 2020

Montreal Jazz Festival – Jazz is in the Air!

ALL-STAR LINE UP FOR THE SPECIAL ALL DIGITAL EDITION

SOME OF THE GREATEST MUSICAL TALENT THIS CITY HAS TO OFFER WILL TAKE THE STAGE AT L’ASTRAL FOR A VIRTUAL EDITION… LET’S #JAZZTOGETHER!

The Festival  International de Jazz de Montréal has announced an exciting and varied line up of artists who will perform unique sets that fans can watch from the comfort of their homes. From June 27th to 30th, 2020,  the  Festival  International de Jazz de Montréal  presents  a  special edition of the Festival on the Festival’s Facebook Page.

Pierre Kwenders

Musical magic will be made and presented in an innovative initiative that will see a series of unforgettable performances filmed at L’Astral by a top-tier production team. This virtual edition of the festival kicks off on Canadian Multiculturalism Day, June 27th at 6 pm ET with the first of the Apéros  SAQ series, a live performance at L’Astral courtesy of Malika Tirolien who recently picked up a Grammy for her collaboration with members of Snarky Puppy. The evening continues with the  Sessions TD and the Rythmes  Rio Tinto series featuring performances from Afro-Cuban pianist Rafael Zaldivar, Mali-born Juno nominee Djely Tapa, soulful singer-songwriter Clerel, and Brazilian-born songbird Bïa. Following those performances, jazz fans will get a special treat as the programming team selected one of the most legendary performances from the archives of the Festival, Oscar Peterson and Oliver Jones performing together in an iconic 2004 performance as part of the Les trésors du festival présentés par TD & Rio Tinto series. This will surely bring back memories for a lot of fans. As a special treat to celebrate this digital edition of the festival, the first night will wrap up with the Fin de soirée  Loto-Québec, in which everyone is invited to virtually join the always amazing Pierre Kwenders for an unforgettable after party broadcast live from L’Astral.

Jordan Officer

Day 2 of the festival will feature another incredible array of performances, starting at 6 pm with the Apéros  SAQ series live from L’Astral – this time, fans will be wowed by the versatile and virtuosic guitar stylings of Jordan Officer. After that, the Sessions TD and the Rythmes  Rio Tinto series continue with performances from Radio-Canada’s 2020-2021 winner of the Artiste Révélation prize, Mateo, followed by a performance from the Marianne Trudel Trio featuring Juno winner Morgan Moore and former Patrick Watson drummer, Robbie Kuster. That is followed by a set from indigenous performer and musicologist Jeremy Dutcher, and then one of Quebec’s most celebrated musical forces, Charlotte Cardin. Day 2 wraps with another gem from the archives, this time the inimitable bass virtuoso Jaco Pastorius’ electrifying performance at the 1982 Montreal jazz fest for the trésors du festival présentés par TD & Rio Tinto series.

Miles Davis

Day 3 kicks off at 6 pm with the Apéros  SAQ series live from L’Astral featuring a performance by funk and soul saviours, Fredy V. & The Foundation. Next up is the Sessions TD and the  Rythmes  Rio Tinto series which starts with a set by Carl Mayotte (recently named Révélation Radio-Canada in jazz for 2020-2021), followed by a performance from the new master of the slide guitar, Jack Broadbent. The evening continues with pure fire, in the form of sets by Inuk singer and Felix Award winner Elisapie, and then instrumental piano wiz Jean-Michel Blais. The gem from the archives on day 3, as part of the trésors du festival présentés par TD & Rio Tinto series is the stuff of legends, the 1985 festival performance by the one and only Miles Davis.

The Barr Brothers

The final day is another doozie, starting with the Apéros  SAQ series live from L’Astral at 6pm with a performance by Juno-nominated jazz trumpetist, Jacques Kuba Séguin. After that is the Sessions TD and the Rythmes  Rio Tinto series which kicks off with Ethiopian-born, Montreal-raised hip-hop artist Naya Ali. Following that is a set by former Uzeb bassman Alain Caron with his trio, featuring Uzeb stickman Paul Brochu and jazz pianist John Roney. That is followed by a set courtesy of Polaris Music prize-nominated singer-songwriter Dominique Fils-Aimé. Next up is the critically acclaimed and award-winning blues rock outfit The Barr Brothers (who played the big Festival outdoor blowout show to an adoring crowd in 2015). Wrapping up this special digital edition of the Festival is an absolute must for jazz fans, a 1983 performance by the incredible Sarah Vaughan from the Festival archives as part of the trésors du festival présentés par TD & Rio Tinto series.

Fans will be able to relive all the magical moments of the special edition: Each performance will be available to watch over and over again via the Festival’s social media platforms (Facebook, IGTV, YouTube). This edition of the Festival will be hosted by ICI Musique’s Myriam Fehmiu. It is sure to be an amazing and memorable special edition of the Festival  International de Jazz de Montréal, and the entire Jazz Festival team is extremely excited to bring the music to the fans once again this year.

Radio-Canada celebrates Jazz
Radio-Canada is proud to support local artists. During the festival, internet users will be able to quench their thirst for music thanks to two special editions of the program Quand le jazz est là, hosted by Stanley Péan on Friday (June 26) and Monday (June 29) as of 5:30 pm on ICI Musique.