LES TROIS JOURS DOPPELMOPPEL (D) AKI TAKASE PLAYS FATS WALLER (Japan/D/US)

Again this year, Les Trois Jours presents an interesting selection of contemporary jazz and improvised music from Europe. Percussionist Lê Quan Ninh (born in Paris) is inspired by his Asian background. This perspective leads this musician, who is active in improvised music, to a completely different rhythmic than usually can be heard in jazz. Fragments of old Chinese operas can pass by in the open concept op this Vietnamese percussionist. Mrs. Bubbles & Bones combines a true miraculous voice with trombone and tuba. Swiss vocalist Erika Stucky is considered to be one of the most unique voices in the international jazz scene. Her, more than exceptional covers and original songs find their form to the accompaniment of brass players. On the second evening the stage is reserved for two groups from Berlin. Doppelmoppel has been playing in the original line up since 1981. This quartet consists of four pioneers from the ex DDR jazz scene. The trombone brothers Konrad and Johannes Bauer improvise on the cutting edge. They are accompanied by guitarists Helmut ‘Joe’ Sachse and Uwe Kropinski. In this exceptional combination of electric- and Spanish guitar, Joe Sachse attracts attention with his dry sense of humor in his style of playing in which he refers to the history of pop and rock. A hundred years of Fats Waller’s day of birth, the quintet of Japanese/Berlin pianist Aki Takase gives his music significance of present interest again. In an all-star setting, guitarist Eugene Chadbourne fits naturally in the role of the singing Fats Waller with the support of Rudi Mahal (Der Rote Bereich), Thomas Heberer (ICP Orchestra) and drummer-beyond-category Paul Lovens. Les Trois Jours, organized in collaboration with Grand Theatre Groningen is a part of European Jazz Odyssey and also has been made possible by the financial support of the European Community. The festival consists or a three-day program in Groningen (Grand Theatre) and two days in Utrecht (SJU Jazzpodium). For more information: www.grand-theatre.nl/troisjours