The Polish Jazz Festival 2022 will take place on September 13 – 15 at the Gray Club in Tel Aviv.

The special annual event, a tradition we started 3 years ago, in collaboration with the Adam Mickiewicz Institute Poland and the social jazz community

and under the direction of Barak Weiss.

The event will include three evenings of jazz performances with the participation of the best Polish and Israeli jazz artists, special collaborations and unique

original productions for the festival.

The program:  

Tuesday, 13 Sept. 20:00

Marcin Wasilewski Trio Celebrating Tomasz Stanko 80th Birthday

Opening concert

“In The Entire History of Polish Jazz There Was No Group Like This One” (Tomasz Stanko)

It’s been 28 years since the Marcin Wasilewski Trio has been playing together. During these years, the trio became one of the best and most important jazz ensembles in Europe, and created a unique musical language, combining lyrics with groove, melodic, impressionistic, and very creative music.

The trio’s albums, recorded on the prestigious ECM label, are highly regarded by critics and jazz enthusiasts alike, and are decorated with numerous awards. So far 7 albums under their name have been released on the ECM label.

In addition to their recordings, the trio played and recorded for many years together with the legendary Polish trumpeter Tomasz Stanko as The Tomasz Stanko Quartet.

On the 80th anniversary of the birth of Tomasz Stanko, the Wasilewski Trio will open the third edition of The Polish Jazz Festival in TLV with a tribute concert to Stanko, in which they will play some Stanko’s well-known tunes.

This will be the Wasilewski Trio’s first visit to Israel after 14 years, when the trio played at the Israel Festival. A year earlier, in 2007, the trio appeared as part of the Tomas Stanko Quartet at the Eilat Jazz Festival.

Marcin Wasilewski – piano; Slawomir Kurkiewicz – Contrabass; Michal Miskiewicz – drums

Tuesday, 13 Sept. 21:45

Marcin Wasilewski Trio – En Attendant

“In The Entire History of Polish Jazz There Was No Group Like This One” (Tomasz Stanko)

It’s been 28 years since the Marcin Wasilewski Trio has been playing together. During these years, the trio became one of the best and most important jazz ensembles in Europe, and created a unique musical language, combining lyrics with groove, melodic, impressionistic, and very creative music.

The trio’s albums, recorded on the prestigious ECM label, are highly regarded by critics and jazz enthusiasts alike, and are decorated with numerous awards. So far 7 albums under their name have been released on the ECM label.

Wasilewski Trio latest album was released less than a year ago on the legendary jazz label ECM and was highly praised by the audience and critics alike. This is the trio’s 7th album on ECM.

The Wasilewski Trio will play the music from “En Attendant”, as well as some of the trio’s well-known and beloved tunes over the years.

Marcin Wasilewski – piano; Slawomir Kurkiewicz – Contrabass; Michal Miskiewicz – drums

Wednesday, 14 Sept. 20:00

Chopin Travels the Orient (“Improvising Chopin”)

2 short concerts in 1 ticket

short set # 1: Darya Mosenzon Trio – Chopin in Maghreb

Darya Mosenzon is a pianist specializing in Moroccan and Algerian music. Daria began her musical career at the age of 5 studying classical piano. During her childhood, she primarily played the works of Bach and Chopin, who were her favorite composers for many years.

Later on, Daria studied jazz music.

The show will take Chopin and the audience on a tour of the Maghreb, and connect the familiar and beloved compositions to the mysterious melodies and rhythms of Morocco and Algeria.

Darya Mosenzon – piano & arrangements; Sharlie Sabbah – Oud; Mattan Caspi – Darbouka & Percussion

short set # 2: Ofer Mizrahi Trio – Chopin and The Whale

Ofer Mizrahi Trio plays original music, combining Persian, Turkish, Indian and Jazz music, all interwoven into a fascinating dialogue. Add to the pot the music of Frédéric Chopin and the result will be certain to be surprisingly delightful.

The unique ‘whale guitar’ built by Mizrahi himself, combines the sounds of Guitar and Indian Sitar. Virtuosity alongside spirit lead the audience on a magical and mesmerizing journey to unknown lands.

Ofer Mizrahi – Whale Guitar & Arrangements; Mayu Shviru – Cello; Yonathan Levy – Contrabass

Wednesday, 14 Sept. 21:45

Marta Wajdzik Quartet – My Planet

National Premiere

The young saxophonist and flutist Marta Wajdzik is considered one of the rising forces in Polish jazz. Her album “My Planet”, released in 2020, won the applause of the audience and critics alike.

Wajdzik perform with her band, which includes some of the best Polish jazz musicians, including the world-renowned pianist Pawel Tomaszewski

Greg Osby, World-famous American Saxophonist wrote:

“Marta Wajdzik ranks among the best of the new wave of creative saxophonists. I have followed her career for several years and continue to be impressed by her expressive vision, development, and artistic integrity. With her, I know that the music is in very capable hands.”

Marta Wajdzik – Alto Saxophone & Flute, Paweł Tomaszewski – piano & keyboard; Robert Kubiszyn – electric bass; Paweł Dobrowolski – drums

Thursday, 15 Sept. 20:00

“White Night” – Uriel Herman & Maayan Doari meet Piotr Steczek String Quartet

A fascinating collaboration between Piotr Steczek String Quartet and two of the best Israeli musicians.

The Sextet will perform works written especially for this evening by Herman and Steczek, as well as specially prepared arrangements of a Polish folk song and a well-known and beloved Israeli song.

The first meeting Between Polish Violinist Piotr Steczek and his string Quartet and Israeli Pianist Uriel Herman took place a few years ago in Katowice. This concert will continue and expand their collaboration.

The virtuoso violinist, oriental woodwind player and composer Piotr Steczek is a well-known name on Polish and European stages, where he appears both as a soloist with symphony orchestras, and in ensembles he leads. During his countless tours around the world, Steczek collected various ethnic wind instruments, which he plays, in addition to playing the violin.

Pianist and composer Uriel Herman is one of the most active and respected Israeli pianists around the world. In recent years he has played with his quartet and in solo recitals at festivals and well-known concert halls in the USA, South America, South East Asia and many European countries. His third album “Face to Face” was released in 2019 on the prestigious French label Laborie Jazz.

Percussionist Maayan Doari is one of the most sought-after musicians in Israel. He is a regular participant in leading ensembles in Israel such as Idan Reichel’s project, Rita, Shlomo Gronich, Yuval Dayan, Ravid Plotnik, Yemen Blues and more.

Thursday, 15 Sept. 21:45

“On Green Dolphin Street”
Amit Friedman Quartet play the music of Bronislaw Kaper

Closing Concert

 The Polish-Jewish composer Bronisław Kaper, who worked from Berlin after his graduation, immigrated to the USA when the Nazis came to power in the mid-1930s. In the USA, he became the house composer for MGM studios and composed the music for almost 150 Hollywood films during “Hollywood golden era” from the mid-1930s to the end of the 1960s, including the films of the Marx Brothers: :A Night at the Opera” and “A Day At the Races”, and other important films, such as: “Mutiny on the Bounty”, “The Brothers Karamazov”, “The Golden Slipper”, “The Red Badge of Courage” and more.

Some of the songs composed by Kaper became jazz standards, including On Green Dolphin Street, Invitation and All God’s Chillun’ Got Rhythm.

Saxophonist and composer Amit Friedman, one of the top jazz musicians in Israel, and his quartet, will play their versions and arrangements of the beautiful compositions of Bronisław Kaper, both well-known and less known,