The 23rd Red Sea Jazz Festival (RSJF) kicks off on Sunday night at the port city of Eilat in Israel. With the internationally acclaimed bassist and composer Avishai Cohen as the new artistic director, this year's festival continues the tradition of featuring the world's top jazz performers (John Scofield, Dee Dee Bridgewater, Dafnis Prieto etc.) but also goes in new directions with the choice of the younger generation in international jazz scene as well as the Israeli musicians (The Israeli Big Band, The Apples, Funk'n'Stein, etc.). 22 international and Israeli groups will play 36 performances during the 4-day festival.

RSJF was launched in 1987 as a four day international jazz festival with 9 concerts per evening, 6 clinics with guest artists and nightly Jam sessions. The festival is held yearly in the last week of August, between Sunday to Wednesday.

It strives to introduce to the public the broadest possible musical spectrum, from New Orleans jazz to the contemporary, including Latin and World music. RSJF is also active in the jazz education field in Israel, promoting original jazz compositions and youth jazz bands. Around 80,000 visitors are expected to come for the festival, bringing about a 10% increase in box office compared to that of last year.

(CRI August 25, 2009)