10-19 July 2009. This international jazz festival is probably one of the best known of its kind in Europe. This edition offers ten days of concerts on nine different stages including an open-air arena, city theatres, squares and restaurants. All in all 220 events, many of them free of charge, include 550 performers. As usual the programme is varied and features popular songwriters such as Paolo Conte, Burt Bacharach and James Taylor along with some extreme avanguards such as Cecil Taylor and George Lewis presenting a new project and the sophisticated pop authors Steely Dan and Simply Red. Of course there is place for lots of orthodox jazz with McCoy Tyner, Bill Frisell, the Roy Haynes Trio and Ahmad Jamal. Other names that stand out include those of John Scofield, Wynton Marsalis and Chick Corea in a new duo with Stefano Bollani. Charles Mingus