WYNTON MARSALIS
he will perform the function of Artist-in-residence of Bielska Zadymka Jazzowa 2021. He is one of the most important figures in contemporary jazz. This world-famous trumpeter and composer is also a highly respected teacher and activist for music education. Called the ambassador of American culture, he was awarded honorary doctorates by several dozen universities. He is known for his interpretations of both jazz and classical music and is the only instrumentalist to receive Grammy Awards in one year for recordings in these two categories. He is also the managing and artistic director of Jazz at Lincoln Center - a cultural center which carries out its mission of promoting jazz, among other things, by leading its own orchestra, with which he performs all over the world.
Bielsko-Biała Rondo Jazzu - the wheel of history has turned
The wheel of history has spun. On November 17, 1994, Wynton Marsalis Septet performed in Bielsko-Biała. It was the first great concert of a world jazz star in Bielsko-Biała. The Polish audience met this outstanding musician during Jazz Jamboree in 1983, and when his next three concerts in our country were announced after eleven years, it was obvious that he performed in such prestigious venues as the National Philharmonic in Warsaw and the University Hall in Poznań, but a complete surprise was the inauguration site of this tour: the Church of St. Maximilian Kolbe in Bielsko-Biała. This is a historic moment that marked the beginning of the golden era of jazz in the city, which until then was known from the film heroes of Bolek and Lolek and Mały Fiat, and is now considered one of the most thriving jazz centers in Poland and Central Europe.
The wheel of history has spun. After 27 years, Wynton Marsalis will come to Bielsko-Biała again. As Artist-in-Residence, LOTOS Jazz Festival of the 23rd Bielska Zadymka Jazzowa will perform on June 25, as in the memorable 1994, with his septet, and a day later he will present his famous Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra. During his stay, additional meetings with musicians, journalists and the audience are planned.
 

JAZZ AT LINCOLN CENTER ORCHESTRA WITH WYNTON MARSALIS
The group consists of fifteen of the best contemporary soloists and members of jazz groups. JLCO is an extremely versatile orchestra - under the leadership of Wynton Marsalis, managing and artistic director at Jazz at Lincoln Center, it performs a wide repertoire: from original compositions and jazz pieces commissioned by the Lincoln Center, to unusual, historical compositions and masterpieces by artists such as Duke Ellington, Count Basie, Fletcher Henderson, Thelonious Monk, Mary Lou Williams, Dizzy Gillespie, Benny Goodman, Charles Mingus. JLCO, residing at Jazz at Lincoln Center since 1988, performs and conducts educational events in New York, the United States and around the world. As part of numerous concert tours, the musicians visited over three hundred cities on six continents. For four years in a row (2013-2016) JLCO was chosen as the best Big Band in the annual "Down Beat" readers' poll.
 

PIOTR DAMASIEWICZ
He is a composer, trumpeter, multi-instrumentalist, educator, traveler and curator of international music platforms. In addition to studying the trumpet, he studied double bass, piano, classical singing - including Gregorian chant, he also studied choral and chamber conducting, arrangement and composition. In his work, he uses the language of jazz, 20th century classical music, ethnic music, modern music - including European improvised music and experiment. He is an artist characterized by being in "constant movement." He visits various places, spaces and cultures and creates there generating various sound connections. He is fascinated by informal and direct, but not only musical meetings. which he interacts with sound, often experimenting with acoustics, objects and instruments. confront the local creative environments deeply, co-creating or participating in various projects and musical meetings.
The premiere of the double album Piotr Damasiewicz Into the Roots "Watra" will take place at Zadymka. The author writes about the publishing house: "I wanted to refer to the tradition of music-making in a highlander cottage, as it is traditionally done, and combine it with a jazz club, where jamming is also a natural part of it. Music from the vicinity of Babia Góra was combined with jazz and the sounds of the world that accompanied me during my many years of travel ”.