Campus Jazz | From Bach to Ellington (GB/CH)

Bach and Ellington had more in common than the distinction between classical music and jazz would suggest. They were first-class improvisers, used sophisticated counterpoint, and Ellington is known to have been greatly influenced by European art music.

 Swiss pianist Michael Arbenz and British saxophonist Andy Sheppard now meet on these bridges across genre boundaries. While the former enjoyed a classical education—always with a penchant for jazz—Sheppard is a gifted jazz musician who has already collaborated with Arbenz on his recording of Maurice Ravel's "Bolero." Their art lies in not pandering to the originals. They respond to Bach's catchy "Prelude in C major" with improvisations featuring wonderfully unacademic counterpoint. Ellington's "African Flower," on the other hand, is given an impressionistic touch on the piano.

Areas that supposedly clash intertwine, and ultimately there are only two virtuosos left on stage, two grand masters in spirit behind them. Genres become meaningless; only the sound counts. A true delight!