The BMW Welt Jazz Award 2016.

Munich. The 8th season of the BMW Welt Jazz Award will start off on January 24 and 31, 2016. A total of six free Sunday matinees, January to March 2016, will see the presentation of international jazz ensembles following the theme “Inspired by Legends.” The programme includes live performances by musicians from the US, Switzerland, Italy and Germany. In addition, this season will see the inauguration of the BMW Welt Young Artist Jazz Award, a project presented in collaboration with the city of Munich. Following the Sunday matinees, a panel of expert jurors will nominate two finalists to compete for the award on May 7, 2016, at the auditorium of BMW Welt.

On January 24, bassist Dieter Ilg will star as the opening act of this year’s series of matinees. In “My Beethoven”, Ilg, as part of a trio including pianist Rainer Böhm and drummer Patrice Hèral, transformed Ludwig van Beethoven’s music into timeless jazz. Originally from the German city of Freiburg, this musician made his name alongside famous artists such as Randy Brecker, Albert Mangelsdorf and Charlie Mariano and as Till Brönner’s regular bassist. In 2010, he made his own wish come true by transforming Giuseppe Verdi’s “Otello” into jazz. Ever since, Ilg’s trio has upheld this new outlook on classical music, leading to one of its recent projects, an album featuring Wagner’s “Parsifal”. For the recordings of “Otello” and “Parsifal” Dieter Ilg received the ECHO Jazz as “Bassist of the Year” in both 2012 and 2014.

During the second matinee on January 31, a performance of the Oded Tzur Quartet will be presented. The famous tales of “The Arabian Nights” is the theme of the debut album “Like A Great River” by Israeli saxophonist Oded Tzur. With melodies changing from meditative flow to rapid dynamism, he creates a musical link between the Orient, Occident and his chosen home of North America. In Munich, Tzur will present his unique sound accompanied by Shai Maestro, a pianist rumoured to be the next shooting star, and another fellow musician linked to numerous big stars of the New York scene, drummer Ziv Ravitz.

Programme of BMW Welt Jazz Award 2016

Matinees: 11 am to c.1:30 pm at the double-coned structure of BMW Welt:

January 24, 2016         Dieter Ilg: Mein Beethoven

January 31, 2016         Oded Tzur Quartet

February 14, 2016       Stefano Battaglia Trio

February 21, 2016       Stucky-Doran-Studer-Tacuma: Play Hendrix!

February 28, 2016       Latham-Carniaux-Egan: Constellations

March 20, 2016           Indra Rios-Moore

Admission is free of charge but seating is limited. Tickets are subject to availability. Doors open at 10.30 am.

Grand finale at the auditorium of BMW Welt at 7 pm

May 7, 2016   Final concert featuring the two nominated finalists

Tickets for the grand finale on May 7, 2016, will be available as of January 24, 2016, at BMW Welt and München Ticket.

As in previous years, the programme will be hosted by Beate Sampson, jazz expert and editor at the German broadcasting station “BR-KLASSIK”.

Jury

The distinguished panel of expert jurors will be headed by Oliver Hochkeppel (journalist for music and cultural affairs at the German daily “Süddeutsche Zeitung”) and will include the following members:

Roland Spiegel, editor at the music desk and jazz expert at the German broadcasting station Bayerischer Rundfunk “BR‑KLASSIK“

Andreas Kolb, editor-in-chief of the magazines “JazzZeitung” and “neue musikzeitung” and co-publisher of the new music magazine “SILBERHORN“

Heike Lies, musicologist, Music and Music Theatre Division of the Department of Cultural Affairs of the state capital Munich

Christiane Böhnke-Geisse, Artistic Director of the international jazz festival “Bingen swingt”

This edition of the BMW Welt Jazz Award will once again enjoy the generous support of BR-KLASSIK, the new music magazine SILBERHORN, resort Schloss Elmau and the Department of Cultural Affairs of the city of Munich.

Photographic material is available at BMW PressClub (www.press.bmwgroup.com)

and via LoeschHundLiepold Kommunikation GmbH

on behalf of the department for public relations of BMW Welt.

Telephone: +49-89-720187-15

Email: bmw-welt@lhlk.de

For further questions please contact:

Dr Thomas Girst

BMW Group Corporate and Intergovernmental Affairs

Head of Cultural Engagement

Telephone: +49-89-382-24753

Leonie Laskowski

BMW Group Corporate and Intergovernmental Affairs

Cultural Engagement

Telephone: +49-89-382-45382

Bernhard Ederer

BMW Group Corporate and Intergovernmental Affairs

Spokesperson BMW Welt

Telephone: +49-89-382-28556

www.press.bmwgroup.com

Email: presse@bmw.de

About BMW’s Cultural Commitment

For more than 40 years now, the BMW Group has initiated and engaged in over 100 cultural cooperations worldwide. The company places the main focus of its long-term commitment on modern and contemporary art, jazz and classical music as well as architecture and design. In 1972, three large-scale paintings were created by the artist Gerhard Richter specifically for the foyer of the BMW Group's Munich headquarters. Since then, artists such as Andy Warhol, Roy Lichtenstein, Olafur Eliasson, Jeff Koons, Zubin Metha, Daniel Barenboim and Anna Netrebko have co-operated with BMW. The company has also commissioned famous architects such as Karl Schwanzer, Zaha Hadid and Coop Himmelb(l)au to design important corporate buildings and plants. In 2011, the BMW Guggenheim Lab, a global initiative of the Solomon R. Guggenheim Foundation, the Guggenheim Museum and the BMW Group celebrated its world premiere in New York. The BMW Group takes absolute creative freedom in all its cultural activities – as this initiative is as essential for producing groundbreaking artistic work as it is for major innovations in a successful business.

Further information: www.bmwgroup.com/culture and www.bmwgroup.com/culture/overview 

BMW Welt – at the heart of the brand, on the pulse of the city

With more than 3 million visitors in 2014, BMW Welt in Munich is Bavaria's most visited attraction and has become a real magnet for visitors since its opening in 2007. With its pioneering architecture, BMW Welt is the heart of all the brands in the BMW Group – BMW, the sub-brands BMW M and BMW i, MINI, Rolls-Royce Motor Cars and BMW Motorrad, which are impressively presented in their own worlds of experience. But it is not only the exhibitions and the collection of new vehicles that are highlights for car lovers from all over the world. Visitors can enjoy a year-round programme of varied events covering culture, art and entertainment along with culinary delights in several restaurants. Whether it's a jazz concert, clubbing event, a film première, gala event or panel discussion – BMW Welt is the perfect platform for innovative events. In the BMW Welt Junior Campus, children and youngsters can enjoy exciting guided tours and workshops on the themes of mobility and sustainability.

The BMW Group

With its three brands BMW, MINI and Rolls-Royce, the BMW Group is the world’s leading premium manufacturer of automobiles and motorcycles and also provides premium financial and mobility services. As a global company, the BMW Group operates 30 production and assembly facilities in 14 countries and has a global sales network in more than 140 countries.

In 2014, the BMW Group sold approximately 2.118 million cars and 123,000 motorcycles worldwide. The profit before tax for the financial year 2014 was approximately € 8.71 billion on revenues amounting to € 80.40 billion. As of 31 December 2014, the BMW Group had a workforce of 116,324 employees.

The success of the BMW Group has always been based on long-term thinking and responsible action. The company has therefore established ecological and social sustainability throughout the value chain, comprehensive product responsibility and a clear commitment to conserving resources as an integral part of its strategy.

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