World music reaches beijing

One of Asia's foremost jazz pioneers has turned his focus to world music, and he says audiences can expect an exciting melding of musical styles. Chen Nan reports.

Peter Lee Kai-kwan started the first Jazz Festival in Hong Kong in 1987 and has played an integral role in building the profile of the music across Asia ever since. Now Lee, the founder of the Hong Kong Jazz Association, is devoting his energy to boosting the profile of world music. Working with Tree Music, an indie music label based in Beijing, Lee has taken on the role of artistic director to launch the first Beijing World Music Week, which will see six bands from five countries share the stage. Headliners are The Ray Lema Quintet from France, gypsy violinist Kim Angelis from the United States and Swing Shine, a French and Chinese duo. "In today's world, when people can fill up their stomachs, they can also fill their minds with more culture and art," Lee says.

Lee says jazz music has always been strongly influenced by ethnic sounds from Africa, Asia and beyond. He points out that the definition of world music has been evolving ever since the phrase was coined in the early '90s by the British indie record labels. However, it is an inadequate label for such a wide range of musical styles.