Pat Metheny, Sílvia Pérez Cruz, or Rita Payés: ten essential concerts of the Barcelona Jazz Festival

The time for jazz arrives in Barcelona with the autumn months and the drop in temperatures that encourage seeking refuge in small venues where one can enjoy a closer proximity to the artist and better sound quality. It will be in places like the Conservatori del Liceu, the Jamboree room, the Paral·lel 62, La Paloma or the Palau de la Música, within the framework of the 56th edition of the Barcelona Jazz Festival, where some of the leading figures of jazz will perform alongside promising talents in the genre and artists experimenting on the edges.

Palau de la Música, October 11th

Israel Fernández

The singer from Toledo, who has just released a new album with Antonio “El Relojero”, makes his debut at the Festival with a review of his explosive career alongside the guitar of his partner Diego del Morao, with whom he has expanded the genre to a wider audience without losing the respect of flamenco lovers.

Palau de la Música, November 7th

Pat Metheny

With only his guitar as company, the brilliant musician from Missouri known for his improvisational skills will present the songs from his latest two works: Dream box, released last year, and Moon dial, the follow-up released last July.

Apollo, November 8th

Chief Adjuah

In Bark out thunder roar out lightning, the New Orleans trumpeter sets aside his usual instrument in favor of the Adjuah bow, a mix of harp with the kora and the n’goni, two string instruments originating from Africa as a tribute to the continent of his ancestors.

Parallel 62, November 13th

Yerai Cortés

The young guitarist from Alicante will present his new project, Guitarra coral, with which he aims to take a step up after having played alongside La Negra, La Tana, Richard Bona, Chuchito Valdés, Javier Colina, and of course, C. Tangana, who has also made him the protagonist of the documentary La guitarra flamenca de Yerai Cortés.

Palau de la Música, November 16th

Silvia Perez Cruz & Juan Falu

Intimate duet concert fulfills the dream of sharing the stage with the veteran Argentine singer and guitarist Juan Falú, whose first encounter in Madrid led to an album that will serve as the foundation for the performance.

Conservatory of the Liceu, November 19th

Cucurucho Valdés & Javier Colina

Bebo Valdés’ grandson, Cucurucho, and one of his close friends and fellow musicians, saxophonist Javier Colina, star in Para Bebo, a tribute to the Cuban pianist by two musicians who share a residence in Madrid. Cucurucho (whose real name is Roberto Carlos) also reflects the education he received from his own mother, Miriam Valdés, Bebo’s daughter and a teacher to many Cuban musicians until her passing in 2021.

Palau de la Música, November 22nd

Michel Camilo & Tomatito

One of the most fruitful combinations of jazz and flamenco returns with Spain forever again, the fourth album born from the collaboration between the Dominican pianist based in New York and the guitarist who was part of the great Paco de Lucía’s band, among others. Two music giants who met in 1997 at the same Palau and the same festival that hosts them this time.

Parallel 62, November 27th

Paquito D’Rivera & Pepe Rivero

The Cuban clarinetist returns to the Festival for the third consecutive year, this time accompanied by pianist Pepe Rivero, one of his closest collaborators. Together, they will perform a program consisting of Cuban and Brazilian pieces, as well as jazz standards.

L’Auditori, February 7th

Brad Mehldau

Composer Gabriel Fauré will be the focus of Mehldau’s performance, who will interpret four nocturnes by the French pianist (a contemporary of Debussy and Ravel) in combination with four of his own pieces. Additionally, they will include themes reflecting the contemporary legacy of the French composer, whose centenary of his death is being commemorated this year.

Razzmatazz, March 23rd

Kamasi Washington

The American saxophonist was supposed to perform these days, but a health issue has postponed the event to March. He will be presenting Fearless Movement, his first album in six years, in which he aims to create a dance record without relying on electronic music. This is a creative endeavor by the musician, who leads the most innovative scene in jazz while never forgetting his roots and the enduring influence of John Coltrane.

Rita Payés, portrait in five concerts

The trombonist and composer is the featured artist of the Jazz Festival

At just 24 years old, Rita Payés will headline this edition of the festival’s Artist Portrait, a series of five concerts that represent yet another recognition of a career that recently led her to perform at the Tiny Desk concerts of the American NPR, where she was accompanied by her partner, Pol Batlle, her mother, Elisabet Roma, Horacio Fumero on double bass, and Juan Berbín on drums.

The trombonist and composer has had a breakthrough year with De camino al camino, where she explores a variety of genres, from folk to flamenco, bolero, and bossa nova, not forgetting jazz. This is the artist from Maresme’s third album, following her debut in 2019 with the covers album Imagina, and two years later with Como la piel. Along the way, she has also collaborated with C. Tangana, being part of the band that accompanied him on the El madrileño tour, and has worked with Jon Batiste, a five-time Grammy winner.

The first concert of the Artist Portrait will take place on October 15 at the centenary La Paloma venue, where Payés will be joined by Lucia Fumero, a pianist and daughter of musicians from the Maresme, as well as a peer. A concert where they will share repertoire and a passion for Latin American music.

The second performance will see Rita Payés join the Clasijazz Big Band as a trombonist and singer, under the direction of Maria Schneider, who is returning to the festival nine years after her last visit.

For the third performance, Payés will return to La Paloma, where she will perform with a sextet of friends, “an experiment consisting of bringing together people who individually excite me,” as Payés herself has described it. The lineup will include saxophonist Miguel Villar, pianist Toni Vaquer, Anggie Obin on flute, Enric Fuster on drums, and, of course, Horacio Fumero on double bass.

The fourth concert will feature Manuel de Falla’s El amor brujo, which Payés will reinterpret with the Camerata Penedès. It will take place on December 19 at the Palau de la Música, where Payés made her debut ten years ago, and will include other pieces to complement the work the composer from Cádiz presented in 1915.

Rita Payés’ fifth and final appearance will be at the Teatre Auditori de Sant Cugat for the formal presentation of her latest album, De camino al camino, for which she will be accompanied by a string quartet in addition to her regular lineup.