Igor Butman Will Perform at the Opening Night of the Spasskaya Tower Festival

Igor Butman, the People’s Artist of Russia, will become guest of the opening night of the Twelfth Spasskaya Tower International Military Music Festival.

The world’s popular jazzman will perform on August 23, the grand opening of the Festival, together with the Central Military Band of the Russian Ministry of Defense.

According to the global arts community, Igor Butman is one of the top ambassadors of Russian Jazz culture in the world. In 1999 he founded the Igor Butman Orchestra (now — the Moscow Jazz Orchestra) and the Igor Butman Quartet, described by DownBeat Magazine as «an outfit of virtuosos». Their busy schedule includes frequent tours and performances at the biggest international jazz festivals all over the world. Igor Butman released 17 albums, both as a leader and co-leader, including Magic Land (Sony Classical) with Chick Corea, Jack DeJohnette, John Patitucci, Stefon Harris and Randy Brecker. Butman is the President of the Igor Butman Music Group featuring the Igor Butman Jazz Club in Moscow, the Butman Music Records and the biggest Russian jazz production company that is engaged in running eleven jazz festivals in Russia and abroad as well as representing the some of the finest Russian artists. In 2016 Igor Butman was elected the President of the Russian Authors’ Society (Russian equivalent of ASCAP). In 2017 he was assigned the head of the State College of Brass Arts. He is also the co-Artistic Director of the International Jazz Day.

On November 1, 2018, in Washington, Igor Butman was awarded the prize of the Institute of Sustainable Dialogue for «a monumental contribution to overcoming contradictions through art» and organizing musical exchanges to bring people of different countries closer together. He became the first person of the Russian arts community to be awarded this prize.