2011 Europa Jazz Festival goes from March 22 to May 15. However, you will be this year offered an unexpected extension that brings Europa Jazz to share its programming with the Abbaye de l’Epau classical Festival during a last concert night on May 17.
Once again, our large action covers Pays de la Loire and Basse-Normandie regions, and involves new partners and territories. This year, 6 departments, 30 towns and more than 50 different places are with us to offer you about a hundred concerts. This incredible marathon - even we are surprised that it can be realized every year with such a small team and limited amount of money - still lets us desirous to meet new public and to explore unknown territories. Today’s strength hasn’t changed from the one that drove us on our first Le Mans Jazz Action festival almost 35 years ago !
So what about this program ?
We have worked on it very carefully as usual, in order to bring to you…
Totally new Jazz creations as Archie Shepp & Joachim Kuhn duet, Le Double trio de Clarinette, the new Akosh S. Quintet, “Bossa Super Nova” by Radiation 10, the extraordinary gathering of Sol 12… Some Jazz bands yet unseen in France as Peter Evan’s Quartet, Giovanni Guidi and his Unknown Rebel Band, the Chris Corsano / Cedric Thimon reunion….
Some discoveries of young Jazz bands like Q, Sidony Box, Metal O Phone, or Blues bands like Alex De Vree, New Line up, BO Weavil…
Happy and entertaining nights with la Nuit des Fanfares, la Nuit de l’Euroblues, la Nuit de la Salsa, la Nuit de la Guitare Manouche, Katerine, Francis Et Ses Peintres with amusing interpretation of traditionnal Chanson Française…
And in the end some remarkable figures of Jazz history as Lee Konitz, Enrico Rava, Paolo Fresu, Jack Dejohnette, Archie Shepp, Joachim Kuhn , Barre Phillips, Joëlle Léandre…
Here is what to expect from the 2011 program.
We hope it deserves what Francis Marmande wrote last January in Le Monde, when he defined Europa Jazz Festival as “the most experimental, reckless and faithful to its choices, but also the most popular Jazz festival”

To start with, let’s meet on March 22 with Jacky Molard in Trélazé for the first concert of this edition. And to end with, see you for the final concerts that will take place in the wonderful Abbaye de l’Epau.

Armand MEIGNAN
Directeur

Jean-Marie RIVIER
Président