Little Pleasures

Louis Armstrong’s trumpet and Earl Hines’s piano? Or perhaps Billy Evans’s piano and Jim Hall’s guitar? There have been far more than two memorable duos in the history of music. The organisers of the Solo Duo Trio Festival, which made a welcome return to Kraków’s cultural calendar after a 17-year break last year, remain loyal to the tradition of small forms. On 21 May, the Skolias Duo performs at Pod Jaszczurami, the event’s spiritual home. The family project of Jorgos and Antonis – Polish vocalist of Greek origin and his percussionist son – seeks inspiration in ethnic music, from Greece via Africa to India, and reaches for blues, jazz and rock influences. On 23 May, Piwnica pod Baranami resounds with the transcontinental collaboration featuring Szymon Mika’s subtle guitar accompanying the velvet-voiced Japanese vocalist Yumi Ito. The programme also showcases piano music. Piotr Wyleżoł, pianist, composer and improviser, started off playing alongside legends of Polish jazz scene Janusz Muniak, Jarek Śmietana and Marek Bałata. The Czech guitarist David Dorůžka took a similar path to fame. The musicians join forces at Harris Piano Jazz Bar on 24 May. (Bartosz Suchecki, “Karnet”)