Szczecin Music Fest is a music event that has managed to attract its own enthusiastic audience over the past ten years. Every year the inhabitants of Szczecin impatiently wait to find out what distinguished artists are invited to the festival. This year’s complete list of performers was announced on Thursday, but Dariusz Startek, the organizer of the festival, had one more surprise up his sleeve. Starting from 2013 the name of the festival has changed from Szczecin Music Fest to Szczecin Music Feast. “Our festival is always a real feast for the ears and souls” – he assures.

This year will be no different - the artists invited to play and sing in Szczecin during the spring and summer will take care of that.  Sinead O'Connor – an Irish singer universally recognized for her shaved head or closely cropped hair and controversial opinions is probably the most famous of the performers. She was very popular in the 1990-ies – we all remember the megahit: Nothing compares 2U – and she has made her comeback recently and is in the top form. Many consider Sinead O'Connor an icon of Irish music – she has managed to keep that status for almost 30 years now. Her concert will be held in Szczecin at the courtyard of the Pomeranian Dukes’ Castle on 20 June at 08:00 p.m.  

Next month our town will welcome Imany - a young artist who has stolen the tops of the charts. Her unique voice combining Tracy Chapman’s melancholy and Billie Holiday’s class has already made her well known.  Shape of a Broken Heart – Imany’s debut album contains 12 songs sung in English, where acoustic folk is intertwined with soul and blues. It has already won multi platinum award in Poland and it leads the sales rankings. Imany’s concert will be held in the Opera hall on the 20th of April 2013. The first batch of tickets is sold out, the second one will be available in March.

Tomasz Stańko, the icon of the Polish jazz, a seminal trumpeter and one of the most important ambassadors of the Polish culture –  will give a concert at the courtyard of the Pomeranian Dukes’ Castle a month later, on 21 May 2013. His career was launched in the 1960-ies. He will promote his new album entitled Wislawa which is dedicated to Wisława Szymborska and inspired by her poetry. Tomasz Stańko New York Quartet has gained new members that will play at the concert: David Virelles – a young piano player, Thomas Morgan – playing on the contra bass and Gerald Cleaver – a jazz drummer.

One more star and one more sensation - Nigel Kennedy – the British phenomenal violinist, a protégé of Yehudi Menuhin acknowledged as one of the world’s leading and most recognizable violin virtuosos will give his concert on 27 May. According to many critics he is a classical performer who has sold the highest number of albums in history! He plays both classical and contemporary music, among others by Bach, Bartók, Beethoven, Czajkowski , Vivaldi, Debussy and Ravel, as well as songs by Jimmy Hendrix, Duke Ellington and The Doors. His concert will be held at the courtyard of the Pomeranian Dukes’ Castle.

In June the jazz lovers from Szczecin are in for a great treat. Stacey Kent one of the best known and most sought-after jazz singers, a winner of many awards and the leading Blue Note artist will give her concert on 04 June 2013. Her songs bear the hallmarks of her exceptional literary sensitivity; in her music she draws on jazz classics, country and folk. She is also inspired by the so-called evergreens. Her latest album entitled Raconte-moi… focuses on French classics and rediscovers Paul Misraki or Georges Moustaki.

And finally, one of the greatest stars of the world music scene – Balkan Beat Box. The have visited the most important festivals of the world such as Glastonbury or Roskilde, and they always receive standing ovations from the audiences. Their music is an incredible mixture of Balkan, Middle Eastern and African ingredients, with a slight condiment of funk, hip-hop, electronics and rock. Most of their songs have socially conscious lyrics but they are also characterised by fast beat and they can be danced to. Their concert will take place on 27 June.

ŁP