The First KK Jazz Festival

(article below by Lois Gilbert from http://www.jazzcorner.com/; photos are scanned orginal CDs of yours truly's own collection, ORIGINAL man!!!)

KK Jazz Fest promises to be world-class affair Kota Kinabalu:

The first-ever Kota Kinabalu Jazz Festival promises to be a spectacular world-class affair and an opportunity to do your bit for charity at the same time. Audiences would be entertained non-stop from 6pm to midnight by more than 20 international, national and local musicians performing at the Charity Concert on Aug 11 (Saturday) at the historical Jesselton Point overlooking the idyllic South China Sea.

the debut album from Double Take; they mesmerised me the first time with Mengapa Kasih and after that, i was captivated

The five performing groups are Denise Mininfield (USA), Son2nos (Venezuela), Farid Ali (KL), Double Take (Sabah's very own solo fingerstyle guitarist Roger Wang and vocalist, Mia Palencia) and Jazzelton Quintet (comprising June Tan (piano), Professor Hanafie Mohd Imam (bass), Mohd Nizam Attan (violin), Vincent Chin (saxophone and flute) and Mohd Shaun Yazeed (drums)." The concert will feature internationally-acclaimed artistes like Farid Ali a.k.a. Mr Gambus (Malaysia), vocalist Denise (dubbed live-wire on stage), British-born jazz pianist Asif Pishori and youngest brother Imran (keyboards), and Venezuela's James Vielma (percussion/vocals) who has been involved in Latin Music from a very young age. (Son2nos also performed in the 2nd Miri International Jazz Festival May 2007).

the christmas album by Double Take; a nice take of the festive mood songs

The inaugural Kota Kinabalu Jazz Festival is jointly organised by the Rotary Club of Kota Kinabalu, Society for Performing Arts Kota Kinabalu Sabah (SPArKS), Suria Group and Kota Kinabalu City Hall (DBKK). Main sponsors, DiGi Telecommunications Sdn Bhd, will be giving away prizes during the festival. Other sponsors include HSBC (cash), Heineken (cash), Suria Group (provides the venue for free), DBKK (provides the stage and chairs for free), and Hotel Megah D'Aru (subsidised room rates).

Calling for public support, Organising Chairman Frankie K.O. Fu from the Rotary Club of Kota Kinabalu said the club has earmarked a number of community projects such as gravity feed water supply in Kota Marudu and Ranau, donations to poor schools in rural areas, and continuation of the Avoidable Blindness Programme. "While we inject a bit of excitement into the night life of KK City through the Jazz Festival, our thoughts will be on disadvantaged groups in need of help, anywhere in Sabah. "In this instance, music serves as a vehicle for us to raise funds for charity. For a start, we are targeting at 2,000 people to get them to patronise the concert for a noble cause," he said, adding that the festival has the potential to be a tourist attraction.

Co-Organising Chairperson, Datuk Adeline Leong could not agree more, emphasising the need to enliven the music scene in the city by introducing Sabahan musicians and music enthusiasts to the world of International Jazz Music. She said one of the objectives is to help raise the standard of musicians in Sabah by showcasing high quality performance. "With this musical extravaganza featuring local and international performers and offering a wide variety of jazz music, we hope it will create appreciation of this genre of music among the local population. "We (organisers) hope to make this festival of international standard an annual event in efforts to promote Kota Kinabalu as a centre for performing arts, in addition to the plan to make KK an educational hub. "That being the case, Kota Kinabalu would have a musical festival that residents can call their own," said the Protem President of SPArKS.

Meanwhile, Wang said the festival brings together a musical kaleidoscope of talents for the enjoyment of the public and education of our budding young musicians in the State. "Definitely, the event will reinforce Kota Kinabalu as a major international, regional and domestic tourist destination. We hope to incorporate the festival into Sabah's annual calendar of events. That way, we can tap into the burgeoning 'music festival' industry to generate an annual influx of regular visitors," he pointed out.

Tickets for the Aug 11 charity concert are priced at RM30 (students only), RM50 and RM100. Call 088-212121 (Sabah Tourism Sabah) or 088-235787 (Selina Yapp, Jesselton Point). Enquirers may log on to http://www.feeltone.com/. my/en/ for more information on the festival or call Sri Pelancongan (088-232121).