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Jazz music
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The Basel School of Jazz, the Jazz Club "Bird's Eye" and the organizers of the Jazz Festival "Jazz by Off Beat/JSB" are three institutions in Basel that are totally committed to Jazz music.
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There is a wide interest in Basel in jazz concerts, workshops, as well as education and formation within the area of jazz.
Basel School of Jazz and Department of Jazz of the Basel Music Academy
The Basel School of Jazz - as a general music school - focuses on a comprehensive basic musical formation and on a continuing education. Alongside, the department of Jazz of the "Hochschule für Musik", a section of the Basel Music Academy, offers a professional education in the practical and theoretical branches of improvising music, particularly in Jazz. Next to fostering and teaching of traditions, the students have access to versatile, practice-oriented experiences regarding the current music scene. The dealing with the individual notion of music as well as the profiling and advancement to an independent personality, that is able to actively participate in the formation of the cultural life - be it on a concert stage, while teaching or when composing - are the main priorities.
The department of Jazz was integrated into the "Hochschule für Musik" of the Basel Music Academy in 1999 and is a self-contained faculty. Prior to that date, it served as the department of professional education of the Basel School of Jazz, which was founded in 1986. It is a member of the "Schweizer Direktorenkonferenz Schweizer Jazzschulen" (Swiss Directors' Conference of Swiss Schools of Jazz) and of the International Association of Schools of Jazz (IASJ).
Bird's Eye Jazz Club
Since Stephan Kurmann (bassist, manager and artistic leader) founded the Bird's Eye in 1994, it became a club with an international reputation. Sponsoring of young musicians as well as the wish to make jazz accessible to a broader public are the main concepts of the club, mainly achieved by moderate entrance fees and by classes and workshops easily understandable to every one (such as school classes). Furthermore, the Bird's Eye has become an important meeting place for musicians for the exchange of their views. The monthly jam sessions are open to all people who would like to participate in the musical interaction.
The Bird's EyeJazz Club offers live Jazz from Tuesdays to Saturdays. The musical styles are mainly modern such as mainstream and straight ahead, music for listening and moving along. Young talents as well as internationally well-known artists are regularly performing there. Musicians as well as visitors appreciate the intimacy of the small club with vaulted ceilings and excellent acoustics, where the performing artists can be watched up close. The club can be hired for private functions.
Jazz by Off Beat/JSB
The Off Beat/JSB Jazz festival is one of the most well-known events of this kind in Switzerland and can easily be compared to other big European festivals. The concept of mixing top acts of the mainstream as well as of the Latin scene together with avant-garde has proved successful and is appreciated by the public. Each spring famous Jazz greats, promising newcomers and interesting world music projects meet in Basel for the occasion of the festival.
Also alongside the festival the organizers of Jazz by Off Beat produce a multifaceted programme with concert-events, club concerts and workshops in co-operation with the Basel School of Jazz. The presentations are being carefully chosen in style, and in spite of the demanding level of quality they always are appreciated by a wide public.
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