Last night, on the 30th of April, jazz once again took center stage in Sakartvelo. The Kavkasioni Ballroom of the Sheraton Grand Tbilisi Metechi Palace hosted an event dedicated to International Jazz Day. Incidentally, the main venue for this year’s celebrations is Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, the 2025 host city, where several large-scale events are taking place — among them, a grand gala concert featuring numerous remarkable jazz musicians from across generations. The Georgian Public Broadcaster was one of the partners of the Tbilisi jazz event, alongside the Metechi Palace administration. The organizers of the evening were the renowned Tbilisi Big Band, managed by Mr. Gayoz Kandelaki, and the Tbilisi City Municipality, represented by Mr. Kakha Markozashvili. The first set of the concert featured the Big Band alongside Jason Isaacs, while the second set welcomed performances by the Big Band together with Jean-Loup Longnon and Sibel Köse.
Jason Isaacs, 57, is a self-taught British saxophonist who focuses more on vocals than on instruments. He has travelled extensively, performing in clubs and bars around the world. His first album, Fever, released in 2009, achieved considerable commercial success and was followed by numerous other releases. His favorite big band is The Ambassadors of Swing, with whom he has toured widely. It is said that Jason is also a strong cricket player, playing for the Old Record Players Cricket Club in Newcastle.
Jean-Loup Longnon, 72, is a French jazz trumpeter, composer, and arranger. Born into a family of writers and musicians, he studied piano and cello as a child, but later discovered jazz and taught himself by listening to the greats like Dizzy Gillespie. This prominent European maestro’s albums enjoy popularity across the continent and beyond.
Sibel Köse, 56, is a Turkish jazz singer who was originally trained as an architect in Ankara. She fell in love with jazz during her student years. Since 1987, she has actively performed in concerts, radio shows, and television programs, and has taken part in numerous international jazz competitions, even winning a prize in Poland. Her musical interpretations truly deserve attention.
The concert hall was packed with a lively and responsive audience, reacting enthusiastically to every English word spoken on stage—suggesting that the nation is quickly mastering the international language, not to mention its long-standing love for the universal language of music: jazz. Jazz indeed has the power to unite the world. It’s no surprise to hear an Englishman sing jazz or see a Frenchman “eat away” at his trumpet, but a Turkish lady delivering classic jazz pieces with a pure American accent, a distinctly Western performance style, and nuanced vocal shades was an especially pleasant surprise. One detail that stood out: Jason Isaacs didn’t appear in a gaudy T-shirt and pre-ripped jeans, but in a finely tailored tuxedo and black bow tie.
Celebrating International Jazz Day in Georgia feels entirely natural. The love for jazz and its performance is almost as old in Sakartvelo as in its homeland, though its true boom occurred in the first half of the last century. Even during the jazz-hating Soviet regime, there were always those who kept the spirit alive—spending fortunes on records and revering the Western jazz “gods” whose voices and instruments reached Georgia from across the Atlantic. Gayoz Kandelaki and his jazz comrade-in-arms, Misha Giorgadze (former Minister of Culture of Georgia), are among those whose passion, efforts, and professionalism in sharing jazz with their people know no bounds. They have organized countless jazz concerts across the country, including this one. There is a whole generation of Georgian jazz singers whose names deserve mention alongside the greats of the Tbilisi Big Band. One of the brightest among them is Maya Baratashvili, who grew up listening to and reproducing the mesmerizing jazz sounds of Ella, Louis, and other giants of the genre. Not thanking the Tbilisi Mayor’s Office for recognizing and supporting them would be a grave oversight—they are doing an outstanding job in promoting jazz culture throughout the country. That’s why the Tbilisi Big Band sounds the way it does, especially when joined by such wonderful guest performers, whom the Georgian public is always eager to welcome and enjoy.
Jazz & Sakartvelo — a truly Western combination, isn’t it? Says the legendary Gayoz Kandelaki: “The Big Band has long been in the European Union.” A quip that speaks for itself.
By Nugzar B. Ruhadze
