"Laboratory of Improvisation” – this was the slogan used to promote the first Melting Pot, i.e. meetings of artists from different countries, aimed at joint, spontaneous creation. Their formula has been constantly evolving over the years, but the most important goal remains the same: open improvisation. This time we will hear musicians from Poland, Austria, Belgium, Norway and Greece.

At the initiative of the Jazztopad Festival, the Polish violinist Julia Stein will play in a quintet – herself a graduate of the Guildhall School of Music and Drama in London and the Ignacy Jan Paderewski Academy of Music in Poznań. For two years, she has been associated with the Wrocław Improvised Orchestra and is also active in the Pneumatikon and Szkice bands. She co-manages the Who Knows Sound studio, where she creates and records music for film productions.

The festival in Saalfelden invited the Austrian drummer Max Plattner. He leads his own acoustic trio and a fusion music quintet, with whom he released the album Ploy a year ago. He is also involved in the activities of the Elmo Nero band. Plattner moves between various musical genres: he is interested in jazz, free improvisation, electronics and hip-hop. He can also be heard in rock and pop bands.

Trombonist Guro Kvåle once dreamed of being a rock star too – an artist selected for Melting Pot by the Norwegian Nasjonal jazz scene. It seems that his plans have not been realised for now, but Kvåle is consistently working on her reputation in the field of improvisation. And she does it successfully – her playing can be heard on several albums released by the Portuguese label Clean Feed; she collaborates with the excellent Supersonic Orchestra Garda Nilssen, and she also leads the punk-jazz band Private Property.

From Belgium – on the initiative of Handelsbeurs in Ghent – pianist Pak Yan Lau will come to Wrocław. This experienced artist has almost thirty albums to her credit. She has recorded them with such renowned figures in the world of improvisation as drummer Chris Corsano and saxophonist Mette Rasmussen. She is interested in piano preparation, miniature pianos, electronics, and combining the sounds of acoustic instruments with synthesizers.

At the invitation of Jazzfest Berlin, the fifth artist in the band will be Greek double bassist Sofia Eftychidou, who studied in Germany with Marc Muellbauer and Jonas Burgwinkel, among others. She is a member of the free jazz trio Bräumer/Klewer/Eftychidou and has recordings with stars of the European jazz scene: pianist Elias Stemeseder and saxophonist Otis Sandsjö.

Buy a carnet for the 21st Jazztopad Festival and enjoy the concerts you want at a special price!