Introducing Borneo Jazz Festival 2014 performers | Miri, Sarawak, Malaysia

This is what you will expect at one of Malaysia's most enduring jazz festivals, the Borneo Jazz Festival now entering its ninth (9th) year. The festival will be held in Miri from the 9-10 May.

Here is the line-up for 2014:

	ANTHONY STRONG (UK) Pianist and singer, Anthony  Strong was hailed as “England’s New Jazz Superstar” as his EP release reached No. 1 on the UK jazz charts in 2012. In 2013, Anthony Strong beat Gregory Porter, Michael Buble and Harry Connick Jr. to become October’s No. 1 on iTunes and No.2 on the www.amazon.com  jazz charts in the USA. Rod Steward described him as amazing.  BB King called it “real great music”. This is a once in a lifetime performance to watch.
	BRASSBALLETT (Germany)An 11 member band from Hamburg that combines  brass playing with funky dance moves. They are both aurally and visually stunning! This was the brain child of band leader Wassilij Goron who founded the band in 2011. They play jazz and funk based on pop, latin and classical themes while they dance hip hop, street style and salsa. Their show is the ultimate festival experience.
	DIANA LIU (Sarawak) Sarawak’s own jazz singer songwriter Diana Liu has established herself in the music circuit of Beijing, China, while still performing often in homeland Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia and other Asian cities. She sings in Mandarin and English, works with jazz giants such as Lewis Pragasam and Idang Rasjidi. She comes to Borneo Jazz with an international ensemble of  jazz musicians – Lewis Pragasam of Malaysia, Christy Smith of USA, Tan Wee Siang of Singapore, Greg Lyons of Britain. Sweet and sultry vocals with an edge.
	IRIAO (Georgia) They fuse the famous Georgian jodling singing style of Krimanchuli with western harmonies. The songs they sing come from authentic folk and polyphonic music and they infuse it with jazz and improvisatory elements. Unusual, unique and extremely classy.
	JUNKOFUNC (Malaysia) Highly energetic rhythms with a touch of soul and lashings of funk.  This band from Kuala Lumpur was first formed for the Genting International Jazz Festival in 2008 and has gone from strength to strength, growing in number as well as repertoire. Punchy brass, powerful vocals and a pounding rhythm section.
	MARIO CANONGE (Martinique) The pianist with the flying fingers and the fiery energy of a tightly coiled spring – Mario is in great demand from big names such as Lavelle, Dee Dee Bridgewater, Nicole Croisille, Ralph Thamar, Carter Jefferson. He mixes into his performance, influences from his roots from Martinique as well as zouk, the beguine, the mazurka. He has created and performs in and with many different ensembles. This is Caribbean jazz at its best.
	VOCAL SAMPLING (Cuba) An all male a capella group that floors their audiences by the sounds and tonal techniques they can produce. Six voices can sound like an instrumental ensemble. They mix latin salsa, Cuban son and with their amazing vocal abilities, with a repertoire of songs taken from various sources. Their 2002 album “Cambio de Tiempo” was nominated for 3 Latin Grammy Award.  A stunning mind blowing show
	YK BAND (Indonesia) A quartet from Samarinda whose music is a unique blend of Indonesian Borneo tunes built into western jazz techniques and improvisation. South East Asian ethno jazz with a twist.

There is a pre-sale ticket offer now till 8th of May 2014. Click here for more ticket purchase details.

Sarawak Malaysia Borneo... where adventure lives

Borneo Jazz 2014 | Early Bird Tickets Offer | Sarawak

The early bird offer will expire 31st March 2014. In addition to the online ticket vendor, there are ticket outlets which may be nearby your location.The offer ranges from RM15 (1-day child) to RM55 (2-day Adult).

If you are living in Brunei Darussalam, the ticket outlets are MegaBorneo Tour Planner, Pan Bright Travel Service and Century Travel Center Sdn. Bhd.

For those living in Bekasi and Bali, Indonesia, the outlets are Destination Sabah Sarawak Indonesia representative office and Pan Bright Travel Service respectively.

Pan Bright Travel Service, Kota Kinabalu, Sabah is the appointed festival ticket outlet.

Sarawakians can check out their nearest outlets here.

About Borneo Jazz Festival

The 2014 will be the ninth (9th) edition and it is held in Miri, Sarawak.  This year, the performers are JunkOFunc (Malaysia), Vocal Sampling (Cuba), Brassballett (Germany), Mario Canonge (Martinique), Iriao (Georgia),  YK Samarinda (Indonesia) and Diana Liu (Malaysia).

Sarawak Malaysia Borneo... where adventure lives

Exciting international bands to perform at Borneo Jazz Festival 2013

One of Malaysia most prestigious Jazz festival is back.  Borneo Jazz Festival 2013 promises the exciting line up of top international bands and some of the Asia best musicians.  Go on an adventure in Sarawak as you groove to the music of Borneo Jazz 2013.  

Book your tickets now. 

More info at www.jazzborneo.com

What to expect at Borneo Jazz Festival 2013

Borneo Jazz this year is a bit of a geographical fruit trifle. 

The 2013 edition will be a blend of eastern spice, western punch, smooth northern cream and southern sunshine.The jazz festival is now in its 8th year.

The dates are 10th and 11th May. As usual, a Friday and Saturday of starlit music,  and then the Sunday to recover.

It’s going to be, as Borneo Jazz usually is, Jazz Plus Plus . Always jazz, but with tangents into the periphery relatives of perhaps funk, perhaps ethno, perhaps latin, perhaps blues. And hopefully, something quirky and unexpected.

This year, we are top heavy on Northern America. We have two bands from USA – one from the East Coast and one from the West; and one from Canada.

The Nylons – a legendary band with 7 gold and platinum recordings  was formed in Toronto in the 1970s, changed members along the way, and still going strong with their newest CD “Skin Tight” nominated as Best Jazz Vocal Album for a JUNO Award. Claude Morrison is the only original member left and he might very possibly be still the perkiest singer in the band. Think beautiful vocal harmonies, think wonderful humour, and think feel-good songs that are going to put a smile on your face.

Based in California, Scott Martin is bringing his 6 piece Latin Soul Band.  Scott spent many years playing with Poncho Sanchez where they won a Grammy in the year 2000. The list of names that he has played with is like the Who’s Who of Jazz. They have played all the major jazz festivals in the world, been featured on TV talk shows. Scott’s band is still touring furiously and they have launched 7 albums.  And who really can resist the hip swinging pull of exuberant latin jazz?

Then right across the continent, New Yorkers Hazmat Modine presents a completely different dimension with their dirty New Orleans blues, edgy vocals, pungent brass, colours of the Carribean, Africa and Klezmer cooked together, and leader Wade Schuman will knock your socks off with his jaw-dropping virtuosity on the harmonica. Their CD “Cicada” was top of the world music charts in Europe in 2011 and also won the Charles Cros Grand Prize in France.

Wade himself is an enigma – not just an incredible musician, he is also a Fine Arts lecturer, a philosopher, a painter, an ardent nature lover and an amateur zoologist.

From Asia, we have the crème de la crème of musicians from Singapore, Hong Kong, Thailand and the Philippines.

Jeremy Monteiro is a household name in Asia music industry and since his debut into the west at the Montreux Jazz Festival, he has been performing all over the world. He is Singapore’s King of Swing, Artistic Director for several jazz festivals, has a long list of accolades and achievements, and he comes to Borneo Jazz with the Asian Jazz All-Stars Power Quartet with amazing guitarist Eugene Pao, Tots Tolentino on saxophone and Chanutr Techatana-nan on drums.

Between the four of them, they have played alongside big names like James Moody, Chick Corea, Herbie Hancock, Ernie Watts, Cassandra Wilson, Terumasa Hino, Herbie Hancock, McCoy Tyner and many many more.

Representing Borneo is West Jazz Band founded by keyboardist Eugene Clifford and saxophonist Safri bin Mustapha. They will be playing a mix of fusion funk with vocalist Lisa Chong.

All 7 members of the band are from Sarawak where they perform often and are recognizable faces around town.

From northern Europe come two bands, both quartets, of different temperament but of similar irrepressible energy.

Mo’Blow from Germany is calling their show at Borneo Jazz the “Gimme The Boots” Release Concert. Their music is sheer hard funk. They were the winners at the 2008 Berliner Jazz & Blues Award, have an album produced by Nils Landgren, and described as the hottest club band around.

Their founder Felix Falk leads them into unconventional explorations in their music. Listen for spicy harmonies and quirky turns of phrases.

And from Sweden, Jump4Joy brings popular and vigorous energy with their dancey entertaining high octane shows. Two of the musicians, Bo Gunnar Gustafsson and Ulf Gustaf Sandstrom have been nominated for their contributions to Swedish blues by the Scandinavian Blues Association, and Gusfatsson won the Janne Rosenqvist Memorial Prize in 2008.

From Down Under comes the creative and lovely Lisa Young. She fuses and improvises with the South Indian vocal technique called konnakol.  The result is unusual and extremely appealing compositions. Lisa and her Quartet won the Bells Awards for Best Australian Jazz Vocal Album and they are bringing their song cycle The Eternal Pulse to Borneo Jazz, after having premiered It to a standing ovation in 2011 at the Melbourne Jazz Festival.

So there you have it. 

Lots and lots of ingredients piled into the programme – complementing, contrasting and, I’m hoping, will pull you into a vortex of intoxicating dimensions.

Jun Lin

Artistic Director

Borneo Jazz 2013

FRIDAY 10th MAY
7.30 – 8.30 pm                  WEST JAZZ BAND (Sarawak)
8.45 – 9.45 pm                  LISA YOUNG QUARTET (Australia)
10.00 -11. 00 pm               SCOTT MARTIN LATIN SOUL BAND (West Coast USA)
11.15 – 12.15 pm              THE NYLONS  (Canada)

SATURDAY 11th MAY
7.30 – 8.30 pm                  THE ASIAN JAZZ ALLSTARS POWER QUARTET
                                         (Singapore, Philippines, Hong Kong, Japan)                                                      
8.45 – 9.45 pm                  HAZMAT MODINE (East Coast USA)
10.00 -11. 00 pm               MO’BLOW – “GIMME THE BOOTS” RELEASE CONCERT
                                        (Germany)
11.15 – 12.15 pm              JUMP 4 JOY  (Sweden)

Borneo Jazz festival is held in the cosmopolitan seaside town of Miri, north-east of Sarawak; about two hour and fifteen minutes flight time from the capital of Malaysia, Kuala Lumpur.

Tickets can be purchased here 

Volunteering - Music Festival in Sarawak

The Rainforest World Music Festival and the Borneo Jazz Festival seek out fresh application from volunteers each year to ensure the smooth running of the respective events. This is a chance for lovers of music, music or event management students to work behind the scene of an international event.

Volunteers will have an overall understanding of the operational aspects of the festivals of what it takes to run a successful musical events. He or she will be involved in the logistics, technical and operational aspects of the event management plan, event marketing plan and the event operational plan. Some of the roles and functions are; liaison officer, schelpers, media centre personnel, site readiness, vendor management, admission and gate operation, event secretariat, equipment and materials preparation and transportation.

Media Secretariat at the Borneo Jazz Festival

Schleppers - they move performers' equipment to and from where they are needed

Site preparation requires working with contractor and vendors

Manning souvenir stall, a busy place

Volunteers work in shift as operations is from 11am to 12 midnight

The festival secretariat is the nerve center of the festivals

All work and no play makes Jack and Jill dull people :-)

2012 Volunteers from ITE College Central, Bi Shun campus, Singapore

Volunteers will be provided T-shirts to be worn while on duty, duty meal and are expected to work shifts. But it can be fun working in a festival atmosphere where one is in contact with people from all walks of life.

These two internationally renowned music festivals is organised by the Sarawak Tourism Board; a destination marketing organisation of the Sarawak Government. 

The 7th edition of Borneo Jazz will be held on May 10-11, 2013 in the city of Miri, Sarawak, while the 16th edition of Rainforest World Music Festival (RWMF) will be held on June 28-30, 2013 in the capital city of Kuching, Sarawak.

So if you are interested head over to Borneo Jazz Festival volunteer dowload page or the Rainforest World Music Festival's. Closing date for submission is on March 22, 2013 for Borneo Jazz and April 4, 2013 for Rainforest World Music Festival.

.../ml

Music Festivals T-shirt Design Contest Extended

The closing date for the Rainforest World Music Festival and the Borneo Jazz Festival t-shirt design submission has been extended till 31st January 2013. 

This contest is opened to all students of higher institutions of learning. Winners stand to win tickets worth up to RM1,650 and get to have their design/s worn the world over. A certificate of recognition is also awarded to the winning institutions.

Some of the 2012 winners with the Chief Executive Officer of Sarawak Tourism Board and their lecturer

The T-Shirt Design Voting Exhibition will be from 22 - 24 February 2013. It is expected that the top three winners will be announced 28th February 2013.

The public voting at tHe Spring shopping mall in 2012

Remember to get your application/s validated by a teacher or lecturer with a signature and an official university stamp before submitting your work. You can read more in the links found in the respective anchor text above.

Putting an international jazz line-up together

Borneo Jazz is actually just round the corner. It’s a definite East-West flavor there this year. And a fairly balanced mix (I think!) of men and women musicians.

F.V.E. Project

Most emotional setting at the festival is going to be F.V.E. Project who is based in Kuala Lumpur, but guitarist Dean Sim is a Miri-boy so it is a home-coming of sorts. They are young and cool and adoringly enthusiastic like only the young can be. This is said with a considerable amount of envy, of course!

Nita Aartsen

I heard Nita Aartsen live at a festival in Bali last year and, while fairly quiet and low-key off-stage, she erupted into a dynamite performer at the piano on stage. Coming from a classical training background, her technique is impeccable. Watch her fingers fly!

Indonesian and Thai jazz performers are in a league of their own anyway.

Koh Mr Saxman and his Takeshi Band

And talking of Thailand, we’re getting in someone that I’ve admired for years now – Koh Mr Saxman and his Takeshi Band.  I was in Bangkok last week and was so excited to see huge billboards up in the city with his face on it. He’s a real star - running his own festival, running his own club, and on an Asian tour as we speak. How does he do it??!! Check out his videos. He has energy coming out of the screen. Can’t wait to get him live on stage.

Schalk Joubert and the Three Continents Sextet

One of the hardest bands to get together logistically was Schalk Joubert and the Three Continents Sextet. And from 3 continents they are coming from, indeed. Four beautiful ladies at the front - 3 on brass and I on piano, with very distracting good looks but their playing surpasses even that! And their leader, Schalk, is just as distracting - young, lean and blond and a real sweetie but completely tough and mean on the bass. He’s managed to persuade 2 other brilliant musicians to join them even if they have to fly from San Francisco and Cape Town, and I hear they have to fly right back again immediately after the gig as their schedules for the year are booked to the hilt.

New Cool Collective

The band with the most musicians this year is New Cool Collective from Amsterdam. I’ve been dying to get them to come and play for a long time. They have a huge reputation, but I hadn’t seen them live till 3 years ago and  I had a big smile on my face the entire time they were on stage. We can’t get the whole big band in unfortunately, but I don’t think they are going to be any less effective as the smaller band. They are reputed to be hipper than hip. Totally true. Musically, as well as visually. Take note of their snazzy outfits!

Tropic Green

Tropic Green from Singapore is a recent discovery for me. Great arrangements. CD sounded terrific. Then I went to read the fine print on the CD - the composer (all original pieces) and arranger was Susan Harmer who’s also the pianist. I’m obviously top heavy on gutsy female pianists this festival. Don’t think anyone is going to complain much though! Anyway its a very rich palette of players she had in her band. They came from Singapore as well as from Cuba, Japan and the USA.

Tangora

There was a moment of psychic link last October when the lovely Annick Tangora was emailing me at the same time I was emailing her to ask her if she was free for the Borneo Jazz dates. We both said YES! at the same time. Actually, she said yes before she even went to see if her powerhouse of a band was available. Unfortunately her pianist, the legendary Mario Canonge, couldn’t make it. He’s never going to forgive me for asking so late. His bookings usually run 2 years ahead. But Tangora said the equally formidable Jonathan Jurion could make it, so they are coming as a quartet together with Eric Vincenot and Tony Rabeson (she calls them her accomplices!). She’s a bubbly kitten off-stage, but transforms into a sensual siren with the most seductive voice on-stage. And the mix of Parisian chic with Caribbean down-and-dirty exuberance is intoxicating.

SLIXS

Then, something completely different to add that crunchy texture to the whole 2 nights show.  SLIXS from Germany - an a capella act that will have you falling off your chair. I’m a bit of a sucker for wonderful vocals, if you haven’t already noticed. Their manager and I had been in constant annual contact for years and years though we’ve never met and so it was very nice (understatement) to suddenly find that we had dates that could coincide at last.

So there are the 8 bands that are performing at Borneo Jazz.

Park Everly by the beach will be rather pleasant as a place to celebrate life.

Author: Yeoh Jun Lin, Artistic Director for Borneo Jazz Festival 2012