Region to host the 8th International Festival Jazz May Penza 2018

The news conference devoted to organising the 8th International Festival Jazz May Penza took place at the Penza Cultural Centre on 24 April 2018.

Tatyana Kurdova, Minister of Culture and Tourism of the Penza region, Andrey Mamonov, Director of the Penza Cultural Centre, and Oleg Rubtsov, producer of the festival, responded to journalists’ questions.

In 2018 the festival will be held from 18 to 20 May. Jazz May official programme involves a diversity of contemporary improvisational music genres. They include snappy jazz mainstream performed by the mini concert band of Ilya Morozov and Viktoriya Kaunova and the lead singers from the big band of Igor Butman; as well as acoustic symphonic and jazz pieces presented by 4’33 Ensemble under the guidance of brilliant violinist Aleksey Aygi. Moreover, Moscow pianist Dmitry Ilugdin will play romantic music, which goes back to the Russian academic music tradition.

In addition, the festival audience will see the joint performance of well-known St. Petersburg pianist Andrey Kondakov and American singer J.D. Walter. The philharmonic programme will culminate in the set made by legendary French drummer Damien Schmitt and his quintet DAM'NCO. Funk and soul singer Adelina Moiseyeva, participant of The Voice Show, will tear up the outdoor stage.

The concerts will take place in the Great Hall of the Penza Cultural Centre. The tickets at the same price of 600 roubles are now distributed through the box office and the cultural centre website.

This year, within the non-musical part of the festival, the guests will enjoy a series of night screenings arranged under Insomnia Animation Film Festival, club jam sessions, morning jazz tea parties with original genre artist and film expert Zhorzh Sergeyev and master classes for professional musicians. Live lawn will be certainly laid out for open air festival.