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The Heavyweights Brass Band

That tune seems familiar – 80’s pop – yes, Rick Astley’s “Never Gonna Give You Up” and the next tune – a horn section arrangement….being played by a New Orleans style 2nd line jazz band with tuba…could it really be “Bad Romance”? As in Lady Gaga….uh huh, yes, it is, if it’s this group of talented young performers who play not only the “standards” of today, but plenty of their own original compositions.

Jeff "Tain" Watts (Photo: Denise Porter)

This is the fourth and final day of the 24th edition of the Red Sea Jazz Festival. Besides the highly visible, nine evening concerts, there is more that happened quietly behind the scenes. These events concentrated on sharing and educating. Each afternoon of the festival there were workshops for Israeli musicians conducted by Dave Douglas, Stefon Harris, Danilo Perez, Jeff “Tain” Watts and David Weckl.

Eilat's dolphin reef

It is another beautiful, hot day in Eilat with a high of 41 C. Today, I went for my first swim in the Red Sea. The water is the warmest I have ever been in (with temperatures hovering between 21 and 24 C)... and its salinity is among the highest in the world reaching 4.1 (Translated…. means I can float).

Avishai Cohen (Red Sea Jazz Festival Artistic Director and bassist)

Did you know..... Avishai Cohen, who is a musician and artistic director of the Red Sea Jazz Festival, is often confused with another Avishai Cohen (or is it the other way?) They are both from Israel, however they do play different instruments; RSJF Cohen plays the bass, the other Avishai Cohen is a trumpeter and brother of saxophonist Anat Cohen.

Eilat, Israel

Eilat is a little piece of paradise removed from the hustle and bustle of the large cities normally associated with jazz festivals. It is tucked away in the southern most tip of Israel, on the Red Sea. The city is adjacent to the Egyptian village of Taba to the south, the Jordanian port city of Aqaba to the east, and within sight of Saudi Arabia to the south-east, across the gulf.