11.07.2019

Jazz Brigade in Kenya

The Jazz Brigade featuring Dorota Miskiewicz performed in one of the biggest African jazz festivals, Safaricom Jazz International Festival. The band is a combination of musicians from different cultural backgrounds. Miki Hayama from Japan, Freddie Henrics and Newman Taylor Baker from USA, Essiet Okon Essiet coming from Nigeria, Dorota and Sylwester Ostrowski from Poland. The power of jazz makes this kind of collaboration possible! Nairobi audience enjoyed Polish songs played by this international group very much. The festival gathered together many wonderful African ensembles and ended up with a great show of legendary drummer Paco Sery. Apart from playing the concert in the festival musicians from Sylwester Ostrowski’s group ran workshops in a nearby music school and for Ghetto Classics, a project that helps children from disadvantaged families in Nairobi slums. We want to thank Jazz Sister Cities for helping in organizing this trip.

21.11.2018

Brubeck, Ostrowski, Miskiewicz for Independance

On the occasion of 100th anniversary of regaining independence by Poland, a saxophonist Sylwester Ostrowski went on a concert tour with the band Jazz Brigade consisted of American musicians and Polish vocalist Dorota Miśkiewicz. The tour was exceptional in a way as the already rich band line-up was joined by Darius Brubeck. His presence was supposed to commemorate Dave Brubeck's visit to Poland which took place exactly 60 years before. Darius was with his famous father in Poland at that time and played piano in public for the first time!
Jazz is the music of freedom and the american jazz was a special voice of freedom for Polish people when they struggled with the communist regime while listening to radio programme "The Voice of America", playing the forbidden music and going to jazz concerts.
"The Jazz Brigade for Independence" took place in the radio stations in Szczecin, Krakow, Rzeszow, Warsaw, Lublin. On the stages appeared: Sylvester Ostrowski, Dorota Miśkiewicz, Freddie Hendricks, Miki Hayama, Essiet Ikon Essiet, Eric Allen and Darius Brubeck, Dave O'Higgins, Matt Ridley, Wesley Gibbens.
Paralelly Jazz Forum magazine included CD with pieces played during the tour.