Umbria Jazz kicks off with stars and more

The festival season is in full swing. In Perugia, we’ve reached the 53rd edition of Umbria Jazz, where the stars are certainly present; but half of the concerts are free, confirming the festival’s aim of being a great collective musical celebration. There are more than eighty bands across fifteen stages, with music at all hours of the day. In Turin, meanwhile, we can enjoy all the facets of electronic music at the Kappa FuturFestival, one of Europe’s major events. The sound is completely different in Milan, where Milano Arte Musica is getting underway, dedicated to early music, taking place in churches throughout August.

From the 3rd to the 12th, the 53rd edition of Umbria Jazz takes place, featuring 275 events – more than half of which are free – over eighty bands comprising more than 500 musicians, and music at all hours across fifteen stages. What the figures don’t reveal is the quality of the music, with its mix of rock and pop stars, tradition and the avant-garde, famous artists and up-and-coming talents, cult artists to be listened to in reverent silence and wild entertainers to dance and have fun with. And, of course, there’s jazz, because, regardless of the forays into other genres, jazz remains, above all else, the heart and soul of the festival. Its cultural identity is that of an inclusive event where everyone can find ‘their’ music, or perhaps discover it amongst the programme’s offerings. This is also why more than half of the over 270 events are free. On the 3rd, Sting opens at the Arena di S. Giuliana; on the 9th, we have Stefano Bollani All Stars; and on the 12th, the festival concludes with Elvis Costello. At the Teatro Morlacchi, Paolo Fresu opens on the 4th with ‘Kind of Miles’; on the 5th, the voice of Cécile McLorin Salvant; and on the 10th, the Brazilian sounds of the Hamilton De Holanda Trio – to name but a few of the great jazz musicians who will be in Perugia.

The 13th Kappa FuturFestival takes place at Parco Dora from 3 to 5. The line-up showcases electronic music in all its forms, featuring over 120 artists. Among the most eagerly awaited names are Chris Lake, the renowned British DJ and record producer; Maceo Plex, whose music blends Detroit techno, funk, dark and house sounds; Solomun, a headliner at the biggest international festivals; Seth Troxler, a key figure on the international house and techno scene; and the powerful back-to-back set by Alignment and Fatima Hajji, a sonic collision promising pure techno power. Also arriving from the UK are Sammy Virji, a key figure in the revival of the garage genre; Max Cooper, who fuses experimental electronica with techno; one of the founding fathers of house music, Lil Louis; and Agoria, a multidisciplinary artist who continues to redefine the boundaries between techno and the French avant-garde.

The curtain rises once more on Milano Arte Musica, the early music festival now in its 20th edition. Until 27 August, it will enrich the Milanese summer with a programme of twenty-seven concerts spread across seven venues. The next concert takes place on the 9th at S. Maria della Passione, featuring the music of Heinrich Isaac, performed by Ensemble Cantissimo, a vocal ensemble led by Markus Utz.