Pianist and singer Aziza Mustafa Zadeh is a very special artist in this program with her scat-improvisations in her native language. Her recent album Shamans showcases her own compositions with Turkish titles, often inspired by classical composers. Her music is a mixture of jazz, classical and folk music. Aziza Mustafa Zadeh grew up in the former Soviet republic of Azerbaijan and currently resides in Germany. She is the daughter of Vagif Mustafa Zadeh, a jazz composer and pianist, to whom she dedicates much of her work. Her mother is also a singer and her manager as well. Zadeh, who currently resides in Germany, has already released many CDs on which she plays with artists like harmonica player Toots Thielemans, guitarist Philip Catherine, guitarist Al Di Meola, sax player Bill Evans and bass player Stanley Clarke. In the East meets Jazz-program the emphasis is on jazz musicians from the Middle East who have incorporated their roots in their music. Though none of them still live in their native countries, their origin is an important element in their music and their playing. Often this is also these musicians' motive: the possibility of fusing two musical worlds and really also two lives.
