Azerbaijan Gone Kookoo

Azeri News agency, and I am saying this with a bit of tongue in cheek, is reporting that Nino Katamadze, one of Georgia’s best jazz musicians is traveling to Baku for a concert. Nothing extraordinary right? — a jazz musician doing a gig, but no Azeris have to politicize this one as well. It turns out Nino had given concerts in Armenia, (a mortal sin for Azerbaijan), and moreover during one of her shows she had dedicated one of her songs to Yerevan, the capital of Armenia and now the Azeri Ministry of Culture is investigating whether these facts are indeed true and if they prove to be so he will cancel Nino’s concert. What idiocy!!! What’s next I wonder.

Here is the offending song, enjoy!

Georgian jazz singer Nino Katamadze known for her song dedicated to Armenia to give concert in Azerbaijan

Baku. Ulkar Gasimova – APA. Posters of the
Georgian jazz singer and artist Nino Katamadze’s two-day concert in
Baku were installed in the capital, which announce that Katamadze will
perform concerts in Baku on May 30 and 31. The city residents have been
already informed that the Georgian jazz singer will perform at the
Azerbaijan State Philharmonic Hall and the Face Club.

APA correspondent learned that Katamadze was known in the world for her
song “Olei” dedicated to Armenia. The song was composed in the genre of
vocalise and its b-roll contains the views of Armenia. The song is
presented on Internet as “Olei Yerevan” and its b-roll is available at
http://eho.blogrus.ru/post/246/3948. Katamadze attended the jazz
festival in Armenia and said she dedicated this song to Armenia.
www.armeniajazz.am said that the Georgian performed a large concert
program in Armenia and it was great happiness for the Armenian people
to listen her. Deputy Director of the Azerbaijan State Philharmonic
Hall Afat Mikayilov told APA that they would investigate the issue and
if the facts were confirmed the concerts would be delayed. LINK

Armenian-American Legendary Jazz Producer Profiled in WSJ

George Avakian probably has done more to influence the way jazz has
been heard over the past 70 years than anyone else alive. Mr. Avakian,
who celebrated his 90th birthday in March, may not have single-handedly
invented the jazz album, but in 1939 and 1940 he got the concept off
the ground. He is responsible for essential albums by Louis Armstrong,
Duke Ellington, Miles Davis, Dave Brubeck and other jazz greats — a
list much too long for this column. And he ran the first jazz reissue
program.

Born in the aftermath of the Armenian Genocide, Mr. Avakian arrived
in New York in 1923. The first jazz record he distinctly remembers
hearing was of the Casa Loma Orchestra in 1933, when he was 14, and the
first jazz star he remembers seeing in person is Lucky Millinder, at a
theater in New York’s Washington Heights, the part of upper Manhattan
where Mr. Avakian grew up. He got hooked on jazz via the radio, hearing
Fats Waller, Louis Armstrong, Duke Ellington and others. By 1936, when
attending the Horace Mann School in the Bronx’s Riverdale neighborhood,
he contrived to interview Benny Goodman for the school paper; in 1962,
Mr. Avakian accompanied Goodman on his ground-breaking tour of Russia. LINK

Great Music

One of the most anticipated allbums of the year and one of the best albums to come out this year by far. An incredibly visionary collaboration between Danger Mouse, Sparklehorse and … David Lynch is now freely available for your listening pleasure on NPR at this link.