Leader & soloist: Jukka Perko, saxophone
Charlie Parker (1920–1955), one of the greatest jazz musicians of all time, was famous as a virtuoso saxophonist and a brilliant improviser. By listening to his recordings and closely emulating him, Jukka Perko had, even as a teenager, already absorbed the features of his style that in 1987 brought him a place in Dizzy Gillespie’s band. We now celebrate Parker’s tremendous impact on the history of jazz with some orchestral arrangements tailored specially for him of tunes from 1940s American musicals. Parker was the first Afro-American jazz musician to record them with a larger line-up, and he regarded these recordings as the best he ever made.
© 2025 Kymi Sinfonietta
