Latvian Radio Big Band
Latvian Radio Choir Ensemble
Soloist: Jānis Strazdiņš (vocals, bass)

In this concert, we pay tribute to the great Duke Ellington – composer, pianist, and big band leader – who, alongside Louis Armstrong and Charlie Parker, is considered one of the greatest jazz musicians of all time. Ellington himself preferred to call his music “American music” rather than jazz.

Listeners will have the opportunity to enjoy instrumental pieces such as “Such Sweet Thunder”, “Caravan”, and “Sophisticated Lady”, as well as vocal works like “In a Mellow Tone”, “In a Sentimental Mood”, and “I Like the Sunrise”, performed by Jānis Strazdiņš and the Latvian Radio Choir Ensemble.

The Latvian Radio Big Band and Latvian Radio Choir rarely collaborate, making this concert a unique opportunity to hear both ensembles in a program created especially for this line-up. A key unifying element is Juris Kļava – the outstanding Latvian jazz pianist, composer, and arranger, and father of Sigvards Kļava, the long-time conductor of the Latvian Radio Choir. The program features several Duke Ellington compositions arranged by Juris Kļava for trio and quartet, with big band orchestrations created by Kārlis Vanags, the Latvian Radio Big Band’s musical director. For this concert, Kārlis Vanags has also composed an entirely new work entitled “Duke’s Point of View.”

ABOUT THE WORKS

“In a Sentimental Mood” is one of Duke Ellington’s best-known compositions, made especially famous not by its 1936 original version, but by the 1963 recording in collaboration with the legendary saxophonist John Coltrane, featured on the album “Duke Ellington & John Coltrane.” Coltrane later remarked that it was a great honor to work with Ellington, who had accomplished so much and inspired generations of jazz musicians. Many jazz critics and publications regard this collaboration as one of the finest jazz albums ever made.

“It Don’t Mean a Thing” was written by Duke Ellington together with his long-time collaborator and manager Irving Mills. Now recognized as a jazz standard and inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame, it is also one of the first vocal pieces to widely use the term “swing.” Ellington himself described it as capturing the spirit of the musicians of that era: “It don’t mean a thing if it ain’t got that swing.”

Preschool-age children will not be admitted to the concert.

During the concert, photography, video and/or audio recording may take place for illustrative and artistic purposes, as well as to inform the public about the event. These activities are carried out in accordance with data processing regulations. The recorded material will be processed without isolating individual persons, so that no direct or indirect identification of individuals is performed. The resulting materials may be published and/or broadcast in the media, on social networks, and used in marketing materials.

You have the right to request that your personal data — photo, video, or audio recording in which you appear — not be used or be deleted by contacting us at info@cesukoncertzale.lv.

Concert supported by: