The summer edition of Bergamo Jazz at the Lazzaretto, organized to commemorate the 25th anniversary of Filippo Siebaneck’s passing by the Teatro Donizetti Foundation and the International Piano Festival of Brescia and Bergamo, in collaboration with the Municipality of Bergamo and with the support of BCC Milano, continues with another appointment of absolute importance. After the performance by Paolo Fresu, Richard Galliano and Jan Lundgren’s Mare Nostrum trio, which was crowned with great public success, Thursday, July 10 (9:30 PM; tickets from 25 to 40 Euros) features the concert by Kurt Elling, the most acclaimed of today’s jazz singers, who, together with the Yellowjackets, one of the most iconic bands in the jazz-fusion area, will retrace the legendary musical exploits of Weather Report on this special occasion.

It will be a concert-event with the explicit title “Celebrate Weather Report”, featuring Kurt Elling’s brilliant baritone timbre and his prodigious ability to improvise on any melody, and the formidable technical expertise of saxophonist Bob Mintzer, keyboardist Russell Ferrante, bassist Dane Alderson and drummer William Kennedy. Together they will approach Weather Report’s music – especially from the period when Jaco Pastorius was in the group – with due respect, but taking those liberties worthy of every true jazz musician, infusing new nuances into pieces now considered classics.

Kurt Elling is today’s embodiment of the most authentic male jazz singing. Winner of two Grammy Awards, for which he has been nominated 16 times, the Chicago vocalist possesses such a variety of colors that he fears no rivals in his field, leading him to be defined as a “Sinatra with superpowers.” Perfectly at ease with fast tempos and particular stylistic techniques such as vocalese, Kurt Elling also knows how to be a refined interpreter, displaying elegance and a palpable poetic sense.

The Yellowjackets are one of the most renowned brands of what is commonly called fusion-music. Formed in the late seventies by guitarist Robben Ford, who would soon go solo, the Yellowjackets still base their foundation on one of the founding members, keyboardist Russell Ferrante, who has been joined along the way by saxophonist Bob Mintzer, drummer William Kennedy and, more recently, Australian bassist Dane Alderson. With over 25 albums behind them, the “yellow jackets” are a perfectly oiled musical machine in all its gears, still capable of challenging themselves and charting new sonic trajectories. Founded in 1971 by saxophonist Wayne Shorter, keyboardist Joe Zawinul and Czech-born double bassist Miroslav Vitous, riding the wave of Miles Davis’s revolutionary electric turn in the preceding years, Weather Report remains a cornerstone in jazz’s expressive evolution at the crossroads with other musical genres, including the most sophisticated pop. The entry of phenomenal bassist Jaco Pastorius into the group’s ranks would bring Weather Report to levels of popularity typical of a rock band.

 

For the last of the three concerts at the Lazzaretto, Bergamo Jazz will welcome back to the city on Friday, July 18, after over 50 years, Herbie Hancock, one of the brightest stars in the global musical firmament. The celebrated American pianist and keyboardist will perform leading a band including trumpeter Terence Blanchard, guitarist Lionel Loueke, bassist James Genus and drummer Jaylen Petinaud, all musicians of proven worth.