While Petrojazz riffs its way through the weekend, music lovers can also get their fix during Usadba Jazz, Russia’s largest open-air jazz festival, which returns this weekend to Yelagin Island on July 19 with both Russian and international artists scheduled to perform.
This will be the third time the festival has been hosted by the cultural capital and this year’s edition is one of four separate events being held throughout Russia in 2014. Moscow, Yekaterineburg and Voronezh are also hosting their own Usadba Jazz festivals this summer.
The previous Usadba Jazz festivals held in St. Petersburg in 2011 and 2012 welcomed more than 20,000 guests and the success of the event has meant that organizers look to the city as one of their most important sites. Maria Semushkina, the president of the festival, said in a press release that, “We know that in St. Petersburg we have a wonderful audience and we know that Usadba Jazz will remain one of the most desirable events in the summer cultural life of the city.”
This year’s acts include American group Hypnotic Brass Ensemble, eight brothers who blend traditional jazz with more modern elements of hip-hop and funk. The octet has collaborated with the likes of the Wu Tang Clan and Prince while performing around the world, although this will be their first visit to St. Petersburg.
Russian group Moralny Kodeks will be making an appearance as they celebrate their 25th anniversary. The band has maintained a loyal following by utilizing various musical styles and combining them with humor and abstract lyrics.
