Archive for the ‘Juan-les-Pins Jazz Festival’ Category
July 18th, 2011 | 
Author: 
Marcus Miller
Friday the 15th at the famous Jazz a Juan jazz festival at Juan-les-Pins was devoted to commemorating jazz giant Miles Davis. The first band of this two-part evening was Bitches Brew Beyond led by trumpeter Wallace Roney. With sidemen Al Foster, Bernie Maupin, Antoine Roney and others, the group struggled to honor Miles Davis’ groundbreaking fusion album, Bitches Brew. For whatever reason, it didn’t work. The mysterious alchemy that makes jazz “swing” was entirely absent, leaving the audience disengaged and bored. It didn’t help that the group started about 1/2 hour late which meant a long wait for the music everyone came to hear: Herbie Hancock, Wayne Shorter and Marcus Miller in their “Tribute to Miles”.
Now that was jazz at its most transcendent, most spiritual. The intricate harmonies lay within a complex rhythmical structure that was both subtle and pulsing. Hancock, Shorter and Miller have nothing to prove on the technical front so we were spared flashy see-how-fast-I-can-play nonsense. Every note was a well-chosen stitch in the larger tapestry of sound. The effect was hypnotically beautiful. I fell into a kind of trance where nothing existed but the music weaving its magic. I wasn’t surprised when Miller (in excellent French) explained that they were expressing Miles’ dreams!
As always, the acoustics in the Jazz a Juan festival were impeccable, the crowd respectful and the serene, seaside setting fantastic.
Posted in 
The program for the 2011 Jazz festival at Juan-les-Pins, “Jazz a Juan” is now online and it’s truly a banquet for jazz-lovers. I recommend reserving your tickets early to make sure you get a seat at your preferred concert. Check out the line-up:
July 14
REVELATIONS (promising new artists)
July 15
BITCHES BREW BEYOND
Tribute to Miles Davis
HERBIE HANCOCK
WAYNE SHORTER
MARCUS MILLER
July 16
KEITH JARRETT TRIO
July 17
JAMES HUNTER
B.B.KING
July 18
SOIREE OFF (free)
July 19
ROBERT RANDOLPH
CARLOS SANTANA
July 20
ALEX TASSEL / CURTIS STIGE
JAMMIE CULLUM
July 21
RAPHAEL SAADIQ
IMANY / BEN ONCLE SOUL
July 22
RAUL MIDON/RICHARD BO
QUARTET
GILBERTO GIL
July 23
HAROLD LOPEZ NUSSA TRIO
MANU KATCHE PROJECT
July 24
CRAIG ADAMS / SOIREE GOSPEL (free)
For more information and to reserve tickets, click here.
It’s the 50th anniversary of the Jazz a Juan jazz festival in Juan-les-Pins and the planned program is outstanding, much better than last year. Running from July 14 to July 25, the festival includes major international jazz stars. Check this out:
Wednesday July 14
NJO Nice Jazz Orchestra
Thursday July 15
George Benson, David Sanborn
Friday July 16
Spokfrevo Orquestra, Monte Alexander, Chucho Valdes and the Afro Cuban Messengers
Saturday July 17
Dee Dee Bridgewater, Melody Gardot
Sunday July 18
Django Reinhardt hommage
Monday July 19
Paco de Lucia, Avishai Cohen
Tuesday July 20
Joshua Redman, Roy Hargrove
Wednesday July 21
Keith Jarrett, Gary Peacock, Jack Dejohnette
Thursday July 22
Kyle Eastwood, Diana Krall
Friday July 23
Brooklyn Funk Essentials, Maceo Parker
Saturday July 24
Manu Katche, Marcus Miller
Sunday July 25
Liz McComb
See more about the Juan-les-Pins festival, including online booking.