Since its founding in 1977, the Pat Metheny Group, that revolves around guitarist Pat Metheny, has hardly needed an introduction. The band not only won seven Grammy Awards for seven successive albums but also has an impressive multitude of fans worldwide. The band was popular from the outset and is able to play whole series of sell-out concerts. This is remarkable for jazz musicians who play music that is not easy to describe. The group has always been at the vanguard of the latest musical developments, mainly because its repertoire is not your everyday fare. Pat Metheny himself is the best example of this. His musical oeuvre and large number of collaborative projects are so diverse that even the North Sea Jazz Festival seemed to be too small in 2003, when Metheny performed as Artist in Residence with an impressive program.
