This was the year when the bill-topping act failed to make it: the year in which the great, unique, often inaccessible João Gilberto, the father of bossa nova, a rare talent previously seen at Umbria Jazz in Perugia, and invited as a maestro to be listened to and celebrated, had to cancel his performance due to bronchitis. In order to fill the substantial gap left by Gilberto’s absence, the organizers had to ask Stefano Bollani, the up-and-coming Italian pianist, who was more than willing to take the opportunity to play the part of bill-topper at a Festival which in the end, turned out to be dominated once again by pianists, if we exclude the famous Duke Ellington Sacred Concert starring Gregory Hopkins’ Harlem Jubilee Singers.
As well as Stefano, this year’s UJW also starred that other master pianist, Martial Solai, the heady sounds of the often underestimated Antonello Salis, and a truly inventive artist, Enrico Pieranunzi.
