“Paradise Jazz Festival 2007” – Polis
Chrysochous
8-9th of
September -Agios Andronikos Park
The highly
appreciated annual Paradise Jazz Festival is celebrating its 8th anniversary.
The previous festivals have been recognized as culturally important by the Municipality of
Polis Chrysochous. This year, with the
help of the Municipality and the Major, Mr. Angelos Georgiou, the Festival will
take place in the Center of Polis Chrysochous, on the 8th and 9th of
September 2007, in the
Agios Andronikos Park (next to the Town Hall). The aim of the organizers is for
this to become the biggest Jazz event in Cyprus, attracting both foreign and
local visitors to Polis Chrysochous
On Saturday the 8th,
the doors will open at 7 p.m., with the first concert
beginning
at 8 p.m. with Oriole Brazil playing “a musical mosaic that feels as spiritually
uplifting as a Paulo Coelho novel”
(Jazzwise). They will be followed by a performance by Julia Biel. Her exceptional 'Billie
Holiday meets Bjork' voice
weaves a magical spell out of folk, jazz and soul. “The demanding nature of the music - the wide range of styles,
sonorities, the sometimes irregular harmonies and rhythms - might seem like
hard work. But Biel
is obviously committed to the experimental aesthetic, and her mesmerising voice
and magnetic stage presence should encourage many to follow where she leads” (THE
GUARDIAN, Culture Vulture, April 2006).
On Sunday the 9th,
the Paradise Jazz Festival has the chance to add one more big name on the
Festival’s agenda. You can listen to the magic sound of the Danish pianist Thomas
Clausen, set under the beautiful sunset, and the palm trees of Polis
Chrysochous, beginning at 7pm. Doors
are open from 6pm. Thomas Clausen is regarded by many as
one of Europe’s top Pianists. He has performed and recorded with Miles Davis, Dexter Gordon, Dizzy
Gillespie, Stan Getz, Ben Webster
and many others. He will be followed by the beautiful singer & composer Julia Biel and the night will finish
with Oriole of Jonny Philips 
the
guitarist, composer& arranger of the group. Their music is a sensory banquet of
soaring melodies, colourful South American folklore, lively dances and
emotional ballads of longing. Music that creates a rich, emotionally
disquieting world that is at once familiar and dreamlike. A world of freedom,
of movement, of dusty roads and travelling musicians in shaded market squares
whose journey will never end. With him on stage are going to be: Fernando De Marco (bass), Ingrid Laubrock
(tenor sax) who is leader
of her
own quintet, she is co-founder of Monica
Vasconcelos' Nois, she was nominated for the rising star category 
of the BBC
Jazz Awards in 2005 & she received the Fellowship in Jazz Composition from The Arts Foundation in 2006, Sebastian Rochford (drums) a deeply
creative drummer and composer & winner of the Mercury Prize for 2007 with his own band Polar Bear, Adriano Pinto
(percussion), Nick Ramm (piano), Ben Davis (cello)
Julia Biel (composer, voice, guitar, keys) , who was also nominated in the BBC Jazz Awards 'Rising Star' category,
got a place in The Independent's Top 5
best
live performances of 2006 in
their review of the year and even a brief modelling contract for Nokia's 'I am my music' campaign when
she was one of 6 artists chosen globally to feature in the print advertising
for their new phone/mp3 player, she will be performing on Saturday night with Idris
Rahman on saxophone, keys, backing vocals, Michael Pickering on drums,
Marco Piccioni on electric guitar, backing vocals & Ben Hazleton on double bass, while on Sunday, Sebastian Rochford will take
the drummers place. 
With Thomas Clausen will appear Fernando De Marco on bass, Idris Rahman on clarinet, sax and Afonso Correa on drums. These four musicians together with Jonny Phillips on acoustic guitar and Ingrid Laubrock on tenor sax will play
on Saturday night as Oriole Brazil
The ticket price is 15 CY pounds a day
& for both days 25 CY pounds.
Youngsters
between 12 & 16 years old, students & soldiers pay half price and kids
under 12 years old the entrance is free. (ID required as accordingly)
Note: On the festival grounds, you will find the “Paradise Bar”. No food will be available on the festival grounds, but in Polis and around Agios Andronikos Park you can find plenty of restaurants. (see Festival guide book).
For all of
those who think, two evenings of music are not enough, there will be an opening
night at Paradise Place in Pomos,
the home place of Paradise Jazz Festival
in Cyprus on Friday the 7th
at 7pm. The program will start at
sunset time, with “Steps”, a power
trio combining the polyrhythmic sounds of Ioannis
Vafeas on drums, the virtuosic capabilities of Michael Messios on bass and the ferocious sound of Charis Ioannou on saxophone. They will
be 
followed by a Brazilian & Latin Fusion Trio called Morfitis Trio with Giorgos
Morfitis on piano, Tuur Moens from Belgium on drums & Beno Kiss from Hungaria on electric bass. This tasty and uplifting starter will
surely create an appetite for the sumptuous main course served on
Saturday and Sunday in Polis Chrysochous.
Since these performances will take place on the small stage of Paradise
Place, bookings are recommended.
Entrance for the opening night will be 8 CY Pounds.
For this year’s event, the organizers from Paradise Place Productions have invited the following internationally renowned artists:
Friday, 7th of September 2007
7 p.m.
Steps
Ioannis Vafeas (drums), Michael Messios (bass), Charis Ioannou (saxophone)
Morfitis Trio
Giorgos Morfitis (piano), Tuur Moens (drums), Beno Kiss (electric bass)
Saturday, 8th of September 2007
8 p.m.
Oriole
Brazil
Jonny
Phillips (guitar), Thomas Clausen (piano), Fernando de Marco (bass), Idris
Rahman (clarinet, sax), Afonso Correa (drums), Ingrid Laubrock (tenor sax)
Julia Biel:
Julia Biel
(voice, guitar, keys), Idris Rahman (saxophone, keys, backing vocals), Michael
Pickering (drums), Marco Piccioni (electric guitar, backing vocals), Ben
Hazleton (double bass)
Sunday, 9th of September 2007
7 p.m.
Thomas
Clausen Quartet:
Thomas
Clausen (piano), Fernando De Marco (bass), Idris Rahman (clarinet),
Afonso Correa (drums)
Julia
Biel:
Julia Biel
(voice, guitar, keys), Idris Rahman (saxophone, keys, backing vocals),
Sebastian Rochford (drums), Marco Piccioni (guitar), Ben Hazleton (bass)
Oriole:
Jonny
Phillips (guitar), Fernando De Marco (bass), Ingrid Laubrock (tenor sax),
Sebastian Rochford (drums), Adriano Pinto (percussion),
Nick Ramm
(piano), Ben Davis (cello)
More info: Tel 26 342537 or 99 516932
Email: paradiseplace@cytanet.com.cy