Qwest TV is the world’s first subscription video-on-demand platform dedicated to jazz and its neighboring genres. Founded by legendary producer and impresario Quincy Jones and French television producer Reza Ackbaraly, the website serves as an online library of jazz concert videos and feature documentaries that are, by and large, unavailable anywhere else on the web. In that capacity, it has been called the “Netflix of jazz.”
Like Netflix, Qwest TV offers plenty of binge-worthy material, including live concert recordings from festivals as prestigious as the Montreux Jazz Festival and Jazz à Vienne, masterclasses by today’s leading musicians and rare historical footage. In this “What to Watch” feature, we share our top recommendations for what Qwest TV has to offer each week. Some videos may require a Qwest TV subscription, and fortunately, memberships start for as low as $9.99 per month. Click here to start your subscription today.
Norah Jones Plays at Baloise Sessions
Singer-songwriter Norah Jones became a sensation in the jazz world after the release of her debut album Come Away With Me in 2002. It was the start of a prolific career in which the pianist/vocalist/guitarist collaborated with artists across numerous genres and would go on to win nine Grammy Awards. This concert from 2016 finds Jones at the height of her powers, fresh off the release of her genre-defiant album Day Breaks earlier that year. Jazz, folk, country and indie-rock coexist peacefully within her music, which is as warm and enveloping as it is profoundly moving. Watch it here.
Joe Zawinul & Weather Report: Live at Munich Piano Summer 1986
After ending Weather Report in 1984, Joe Zawinul went back on the road with a new group where he reunited with three members from the former group: bass player Victor Bailey, drummer Peter Erskine, and percussionist Robbie Thomas, Jr. The resulting concert is as soulful and evocative as you’d expect from the composer of “Mercy, Mercy, Mercy” and “In a Silent Way,” but it also finds the keyboardist pursuing a path of individuality that longtime fans will find exhilarating. Watch it here.
Joachim Khün: En Concert Solo 1999
Joachim Kühn opens with his own composition, “Research Has No Limits,” and continues with “Come as It Goes.” It is the journey of an adventurous piano that favors romantic colors, woody sound, round notes, and unbridled phrasing. Those new to Khun’s particular aesthetic will find a player of unparalleled intimacy and depth. Watch it here.
Rodrigo y Gabriela Play at Baloise Session
This 2016 date at the at Baloise Session in Basil, Switzerland, is a captivating performance complete with Rodrigo playing slide with a beer bottle. And while Rodrigo and Gabriela might not be the first names that spring to mind when you think of the jazz canon, these players improvise and communicate on a level that rivals the best beboppers of their day. There’s really nothing quite like this act. Watch it here.