Sacred heroes and emerging names

Throughout its existence, dozens of concerts, artistic residencies and four albums’ releases, XJAZZ has already established itself as one of the most important musical moments of the year. Throughout these events, several “big names" in world jazz have visited and played in the Aldeias do Xisto, such as Bill Frisel, Evan Parker, Hamid Drake, William Parker, Joëlle Léandre and Paolo Angeli. A pantheon, where emerging names also shine, that will continue to grow, affirming the Aldeias do Xisto as a place of culture, creation and inspiration open to the world.

• Paolo Angeli article
• Pedro Melo Alves article
• Vânia Couto e Maria Villanueva article

Album publishing

Four records were released as part of the XJazz artistic residencies. In 2014, the quintet consisting of Marcelo dos Reis, Angélica Salvi, Nuno Torres, Miguel Carvalhais and João Pais Filipe recorded "Xisto". At the end of the same year, "Guitolão", by Carlos Barretto and António Eustáquio, was released. Both works are the result of artistic residencies developed in the Aldeia do Xisto of Cerdeira, in Lousã. In 2015, Slow is Possible release their self titled album, recorded in Aldeia do Xisto of Fajão, in Pampilhosa da Serra. In 2021 the album "Fonte Grande” was launched by María Villanueva, Vânia Couto, Yoshida Carvalho, Lucas de Centi and Sandra Pérez, recorded in Fundão, in the context of the residency held in the Aldeia do Xisto of Barroca, in the summer of 2019. Different sounds, but with common points: creativity, authenticity and sharing.

Rich and diverse artistic programme

Year after year, XJazz has a rich and diverse programme which, although focused on jazz, includes other zones and is an advocate for “sound ecology”. With an arts programme that is rooted in the culture of the places, the Encounters are deeply anchored in the context of the places, benefiting from their social and environmental context for unique moments of creation, enjoyment and sharing.

Artistic residences – Giving and receiving

The implementation of a project with the nature and scope of XJAZZ, in a territory with the characteristics of the Aldeias do Xisto, implies the proximity and involvement of the local inhabitants, economic and cultural agents. The immersion in artistic residencies and the public presentation of the resulting work assumes a dual role. If, on the one hand, it nurtures feelings of belonging and local identity in the musicians, which contribute to the creative process, on the other hand, it brings together and involves the community that welcomes them and sees part of their identity reflected in the creations and performances. In the end, the objective is always the same: to value people and places, and to open up the villages to new audiences.