More international jazz this Friday.
Birmingham Jazz will be presenting Andrea Vicari and Jazz Ex-Tempore, touring the UK this autumn for the fifth time, at the Red Lion, Hockley, on Friday 26th September. The group features Andrea Vicari on piano from the UK -she grew up in Birmingham – Elvis Stanic on guitar and accordion from Croatia, Rico de Jeer on bass from Holland/Indonesia and Hristo Yotsov on drums from Bulgaria.
Jazz Ex-Tempore have recorded a new album East and West released by 33 Records. The new album brings together the jazz tradition with Eastern folk elements in a contemporary style. There are originals compositions from all members of the group as well as two arrangements of traditional folk tunes from Croatia and Azerbaijan.
The CD title East meets West is really the core of the band with the East represented by Elvis Stanic and Hristo Yotsov and their compositions (Breakout, East meets West, Wandering Shadows) and the West by Andrea Vicari and Rico de Jeer and their tunes (The Occidental Tourist, Elf, Base my Life and Lanziamentos del Verde). Harvard Street by Elvis Stanic and Sari Gelin co arranged by Andrea Vicari and Medina Mektiva cross over the boundaries and offer elements of each other’s cultures.
Elvis Stanic is one of Croatia’s top jazz guitarists as well as a sought after producer for jazz and pop. His work on East and West is guitar playing at the highest level- intensely melodic with edge. Andrea Vicari complements the quartet with an equally melodic style entwined with rhythmic and outside lines. The strong writing on this CD and the equally strong playing from all members of the quartet makes this CD a real work of art.
The group was initially formed as a cultural exchange between Croatia and other European countries with gigs in Croatia, Bulgaria as well as Holland and England and more recently the group toured the UK plus Eastern Europe including Bosnia, Herzegovina, Croatia and Italy.
The Red Lion, Warstone Lane, Birmingham. B18 6NG
Admission £12, Members £10 or Students £5
