The best way to experience jazz is live - start 2010 by sharing the Portland Jazz Festival experience with a friend or loved one. Give the gift of Festival tickets this holiday. Call or step in to the PDX Jazz Box Office for minimal handling charges. Think very hip stocking stuffer.

Norway has quietly been building its cache of fine jazz musicians ever since America's indigenous music landed on its shores in the 1920's. Bolstered in recent years by Norwegian government support, Nordic jazz has made a big push, spreading internationally. With seven universities dedicated to jazz, there's no doubt Norway will continue to be a force in keeping jazz alive. This year the 2010 Portland Jazz Festival is thrilled to present a trio of ensemble premieres to North America. Perhaps one of the most well known, Trygve Seim & Frode Haltli (you may recall Trygve's well-received visit to the festival three years ago) recently released an atmospheric jazz improvisation called Yraz on ECM Records. Also an ECM artist, the Christian Wallumrod Ensemble represents the intersection of jazz, chamber and experimental music. While relatively new on the scene as a group, In The Country has garnered critical acclaim with their electrifying blend of jazz, rock and country. Don't miss these shows at the Grieg Lodge (Norse Hall) - Norway has never been so close! Buy general admission tickets to all three shows for only $50 with the Nordic Tones package.

Known as a true innovator, Dave Douglas perennially invents new ensembles with new sounds. For the 2010 festival, the comparisons to the legendary Lester Bowie and his Brass Fantasy group come to fruition in a 21st Century way. Douglas brings his ensemble of trumpet, French horn, trombone, tuba, and drums, aptly named Brass Ecstasy. While the group plays mostly original tunes, their recent release, Spirit Moves, features arrangements of tunes by Otis Redding, Hank Williams and Steve Cropper.

"Dave Douglas arguably became the most original trumpeter/composer of his generation. Douglas' stylistic range is broad yet unaffected; his music is not a pastiche, but rather a personal aesthetic that reflects a wide variety of interests. He explicitly cites such diverse influences as Igor Stravinsky, Stevie Wonder, and John Coltrane. As a composer, Douglas adapts and synthesizes unusual forms and creates his own out of disparate elements. As a trumpeter, Douglas possesses a comprehensive jazz technique; certainly, one hears the ghost of Lester Bowie in Douglas' expressive manipulations of timbre and pitch, but more pronounced is the integration of distinctive compositional and improvisational conceptions that ultimately defines his work." - All Music Guide

Douglas performs Sunday February 28, 7:30 PM at the Crystal Ballroom; a great way to wrap up the festival. Tickets

Luciana Souza, set to appear on Thursday, February 25, has been nominated for a Grammy for Best Jazz Vocal for her 2009 album, Tide, produced by Larry Klein. With one Grammy under her belt, she's one of the jazz world's leading singers and interpreters of Brazilian and contemporary music. Hailing originally from São Paulo, her performance transcends traditional musical boundaries. The intimate setting of the Hilton Pavilion Ballroom is a perfect place to experience her charm and powerful Brazilian influenced vocals. Tickets
"Her voice traces a landscape of emotion that knows no boundaries."