A new edition of the Terrassa Jazz Festival is about to start, featuring 275 artists in 42 programmed concerts, 16 of which will be free of charge. The festival spans various styles in the genre with a definitive commitment to musical quality in a programme that is geared towards every audience type. This year, we’ll be hearing many presentations of new releases and projects, some of them for the first time in Spain, exclusive concerts, and as usual plenty of signature recordings. Many of the programmed artists are performing at Terrassa for the first time, while old friends are coming back with new recordings to showcase, and new disciplines that complement live music will also be on the programme. All in all, an extensive musical spectrum that we can savour at a range of different venues from 20 February to 16 March.

European jazz will be amply represented with the performances of musicians including Frenchmen Jean-Luc Ponty, Martial Solal, Richard Galliano and Five in Orbit; Italians such as Paolo Fresu; Jeff Lundgren from Sweden; Germans such as the members of Monk’s Casino, headed up by Alexander Von Schlippenbach, and Belgians represented by Toots Thielemans’ band, to name but a few.

Eastern jazz will also be represented with pianist Eri Yamamoto and her Japanese trio. Some big North American names are also being featured in this year’s programme. Vocalist Ann Hampton Callaway, as guest artist with the Big Band Jazz Terrassa; saxophonists Pee Wee Ellis and Charles McPherson, drummers Bobby Durham and Nasheet Waits, pianist Jason Moran, the Metro band and organist Rhoda Scott.

As always, home-grown talent is an essential element of the series of concerts at the Festival. Drummer Guillermo McGill, guitarist Niño Josele, saxophonists Perico Sambeat, Ramón Cardo and Jesús Santandreu, harmonica player Antonio Serrano, pianists Mariano Díaz, Ramon Escalé and José Reinoso, and keyboard players Arecio Smith and Phil Wilkinson are some of the top names.

We will be introducing seven brand new record releases and musicians such as Martial Solal, Niño Josele, Eri Yamamoto, Rhoda Scott, Ann Hampton Callaway and Charles McPherson, as well as the members of fusion band Metro and Monk’s Casino, who are visiting us for the first time and are an important element of this year’s festival.

Lovers of the blues have a special night in store: the legendary Phillip Walker will be presenting his latest work, the Blues Society Combo with a Jam Session to close the themed Late Night session, and vocalist Angela Brown & The Mighty 45’s at Pícnic·Jazz Vallparadís. We’ll also be featuring a new JazzJove Non Stop session dedicated to fresh talents. The closing ceremony will see the Jazzterrasman 2008 being awarded to trumpeter Ricard Gili.

Disseminating jazz to every audience type is a feature of the matinee sessions which will fill the city with rhythm at the weekends, and this year the Pícnic·Jazz at Parc de Vallparadís is celebrating an anniversary – ten years of bringing us music at the biggest party session of all.

Other activities complement the musical programme and showcase artistic productions inspired by jazz. Exhibitions of photography and paintings, a display of the posters submitted for the contest for the official festival image; a series of conferences dedicated to tap-dancing and swing; the second “lindy-hoppers” meeting; un film series featuring movies such as “Let's Got Lost”, a portrait of trumpeter Chet Baker, and the life of singer Anita O'Day; the Pixel·Jazz photography competition and Visquem el Jazz are just a few of the featured events.