It is just over 24 hours until the start of Crimea's most anticipated cultural event, Koktebel Jazz Party international festival. For three days, between August 18-20, popular Russian and foreign jazz musicians as well as young jazz talents will take to the stages in the artists' colony of Koktebel. Bands representing the United States, Brazil, Germany, France, Switzerland, South Korea and other countries will play on the Main Stage and the Voloshin Stage which required 20 tons of lighting and sound equipment. Over three hundred lighting units have been brought in for the Main Stage on the Black Sea shore to create an unforgettable atmosphere at this unique open-air jazz festival.
Fifteen years on, Koktebel Jazz Party has stepped outside Koktebel. Artek Arena at the Artek International Children's Center in Gurzuf will serve as an additional festival venue this year. On August 19, both children at Artek and Koktebel audience will see a show by finalists of the popular Russian television talent shows Voice: Kids, Better Than Anyone, and Blue Bird.
The first day of the festival will open with a performance by Big Band led by renowned Moscow saxophone player and Koktebel Jazz Party Art Director Sergei Golovnya and featuring jazz singer and musical actress Anna Buturlina. Also on the first day, the audience will be treated to numbers by international jazz bands as well as multi-instrumentalist and composer David Goloschekin who has improvised with jazz legends over the years, including Duke Ellington and Dizzy Gillespie.