BORNEO JAZZ 2014 Line-Up Announced

Iriao from Georgia

MIRI, Sarawak – Borneo Jazz has announced its lineup for 2014. The annual jazz festival, now in its 9^th year, will be held in Miri, Sarawak from the 9^th to 10^thMay. The impressive lineup this year includes ands who have really made it big in the jazz world of music. This is in line with year of ‘double celebration’, the Visit Malaysia Year 2014 (VMY 2014) and Visit Sarawak Year 2014.

Among the bands that will be performing will be Iriao, the eight-piece ethno-jazz band from Georgia. Iriao’s repertoire is based on Georgian authentic folk instrumental and polyphonic music, which has been recognized by UNESCO as being a masterpiece of oral immaterial heritage. However the band is not aiming to modernize the unique polyphonic Georgian music but to saturate and adorn it with Jazz elements. This is the first time that a Georgian band will be performing at the Borneo Jazz.

Vocal Sampling from Cuba

Another interesting line-up is Vocal Sampling, an all-male a cappella musical group from Cuba who are expected to be among the hit of this years Borneo Jazz in Sarawak. They are a very well known band and a crowd pleaser. In the last 2 years, a capella acts have been a show topper at Borneo Jazz. Their album “Cambio de Tiempo” was nominated for 3 Latin Grammy Awards.

Other favourite Jazz bands listed for this years’ event will be Brassballett from Germany – the first and only show worldwide where musicians are dancers at the same time.They will perform a choreographed show on stage whilst playing their instruments, Mario Canonge – a great virtuoso and showman playing creole jazz with West indies rhythms from Martinique/France, also first Martinique band at the festival, YK Band from Indonesia who will feature Jazz with hints of Borneo flavour, Anthony Strong – hailed as “England’s new jazz superstar" from UK. He beat Gregory Porter, Michael Bublé and Harry Connick Jr. to become No 1 on the iTunes and No 2 on the www.amazon.com jazz charts in the USA. From the local scene we have Diana Liu, the Sarawakian born artist who plays pop, jazz, bossa nova, gospel andfunk/soul and who will represent Malaysia/USA/Taiwan. Among members of her band will be our very own Lewis Pragasam who will be on drums.

Entry tickets will be on sale starting on the last week of January 2014. For promotional offers and discounts as well as further information on the festival please log on to www.jazzborneo.com. Updates also available via STB’s Twitter account @SarawakTravel and Facebook at Sarawak Travel.

This annual event is organized by Sarawak Tourism Board, supported by the Ministry of Tourism and Culture Malaysia and Ministry of Tourism Sarawak and endorsed by Tourism Malaysia.

-Sarawak Tourism Board.