How do you bring a jazz festival to life in a neighborhood that has lost its legendary clubs? The 22nd edition of Jazz in Saint-Germain-des-Prés tries, from May 10 to 17, to revive this glorious past in a new way. “We created something else, by calling on today’s musicians who draw on all this heritage, on the history of jazz, and we do it in new places”, explains Frédéric Charbaut, co-founder and artistic director. of the festival.
The large amphitheater of the Maison de l’Océan and its frescoes painted by Louis Tinayre and Alexandre Jean-Baptiste Brun, recognized sailor, the auditorium of the Jussieu university, the Odéon Theatre, are today at the festival this What was Tabou or Club Saint-Germain to bebop, when famous black American musicians found refuge in Paris after the Second World War.
In these new settings, Frédéric Charbaut tries to set the festival’s slogan to music: “unique places, exceptional concerts”. That of Laurent Cugny, composer-arranger-conductor-keyboardist, on May 17, follows these specifications.
The former conductor of the Orchester national de Jazz and the Big Band Lumière will give the auditorium of the university of Jussieu, for the first time associated with the festival, his first concert as a large ensemble since 2017, the first at the head of the new tent with which he has just published the album Zeitgeist. The double recital by pianist Yaron Herman in the main courtyard of the Hôtel de la Monnaie on May 10 will be another highlight.
On May 13, in the large amphitheater of the Maison de l’Océan, Paolo Fresu will have an appointment with History: thirty-five years after the death of Chet Baker, Sarde will honor the memory of the famous trumpet player by performing the compositions from his album Tempo di Chet. “The offer is so wide in Paris that we have to stand out,” comments Frédéric Charbaut, who also adapts to the acoustic constraints of certain places.
“In Saint-Sulpice (May 11), there will be a formation dedicated to the church: we will use the large organ of the church, associated with the Hammond organ by Rhoda Scott and a trumpet, with very little sound “, specifies the one who must also deal with the economic deal. “We have gauges between 350 and 800 seats. We need to have rooms large enough to balance our budget”.
