Jazz in the Park 3 celebrates Miles Davis birthday with Michael Varekamp, Peter Somuah Band et al.

After two sizzling editions, the Jazz in the Park series concludes with an evening entirely dedicated to Miles Davis, who would have been celebrating his birthday on 26 September. The 'Picasso of Jazz' jazz musician revived at this outdoor mini-jazz festival. With Michael Varekamp, Wiboud Burkens, Dimitri Chapeau & The Legends, Sm!ta James, Peter Somuah Band, Jeffrey Spalburg and DJ Collective Ta-bassco, it promises to be another magical evening of Jazz, Dance and Spoken Word. The evening will be kicked off by Erasmus Jazz Award winner Peter Somuah, after which spoken word artist Smita James will spread like a rhythmic orator with passion. On the third part of the evening, Michael Varekamp, Wiboud Burkens & The Legends make their appearance. The DJs of DJ collective Tabass-Co complete the evening, playing several times with a live musician. The evening will be chatted up by actor and stand-up comedean Jeffrey Spalburg. Ticket sales have started, €10,- p.p. (50% discount Stork Pass).

TIMETABLE
18.00 Gate open and start 1st set Tabass-Co
19.00 Start Peter Somuah
20.00 Start Sm!ta James
20.30 Start Dmitri Chapeau, Michael Varekamp & The Legends
22.00 3rd set Tabass-Co
23.00 End
 
About the Artists
 
Michael Varekamp, Wiboud Burkens & The Legends
Trumpeter Michael Varekamp toured extensivelyn Europe with Miles' saxophonist Sonny Fortune and, together with keyboardist Wiboud Burkens, forms The Legends. Since 2013, they have been creating and producing musical theatre performances in the Soul & Jazz genre. Their starting point is to highlight the popular names and tastemakers of these genres and use the life & times as a guide for swinging and inspiring performances.
 
Dimitri Chapeau
Saxophonist Dimitri Chapeau was born in Russia and broke through 1992 at the North Sea Jazz Festival as that year's discovery. He played with many great jazz artists, at well-known clubs and numerous international jazz festivals. In 2006, Dimitri Chapeau was nominated for the BBC JAZZ AWARD as a member of the Ronnie Rae Quintet. Currently, Dimitri Chapeau performs as a saxophonist and bandleader.
 
Smita James
Smita James is a self-taught, studious writer with a vision. Always on the move and zealous to keep learning and discovering. To expand her passion with more knowledge, she happily completed a course at the Writers' Academy. She walks paths that bring her closer to herself. An autonomous poet who prefers her writing to be multidisciplinary and usually meets with spoken word. James is a rhythmic orator who likes to spread her words from a stage. Both solo and in duo Poetronic with music producer Ci Seryne, she shares her stories at events, festivals and theatres. In 2016, she made the short poetry film 'The thing is' and completed the tour in 2017 with a nice nomination for a Shortcutz Award. Theatre is no foreign territory for the Amsterdam native. For instance, she was commissioned by Stadsschouwburg Utrecht to develop the performances Bara Bisaal and Sketch. An experience that forever developed a desire for the theatre. Currently, Smita plays in Ira Kip's theatre performance 'Shrew Her' and is working towards developing and writing her own spoken word performance.

Peter Somuah
Peter Somuah is a highly talented jazz trumpeter hailing from Accra, Ghana and currently based in Rotterdam, the Netherlands. Somuah, who learned to play by listening endlessly to his trumpet heroes Roy Hargrove and Miles Davis, stands out for his warm and melancholic sound, as well as the rhythmic prowess that reflects his upbringing, surrounded by the musical styles indigenous to West Africa. He touches his audience and gets them grooving. In 2021, Somuah won the Erasmus Jazz Award for young jazz talent, with the jury praising his playing, his composition skills and his visible joy on stage. At the age of 26, Peter has already shared the stage with many local and international acts and toured Africa, Asia and Europe. He has performed and recorded with Akwasi, Bridget Kearney and Yung Nnelg, among others. With his own Peter Somuah Group, he explores the boundaries between jazz, funk and traditional Ghanaian music, sprinkled with a touch of electronic music.

Tabas-co
Tabass-co is an eclectic DJ collective that plays old and new vinyl at any occasion or venue you can think of. Over the years, they have played at a wide variety of parties and festivals, both nationally and internationally. Tabass-co consists of 3 DJs who each add a unique sound, ranging from Afro, Funk, Latin, Brazil to Nu Disco and Club sounds. With a live musician, the collective provides a
great atmosphere and a unique sound!
 
Jazz in the Park is made possible by VSB Fund and The Hague City Council.