Post-90s Chinese musician Li Gaoyang, American musician Jerry Bergonzi and Danish pianist Carl Winther together recorded an album of jazz quintet which was launched Jan. 2 in Hong Kong.
The three produced their album in the best recording studio in Copenhagen, Denmark. Dubbed "East Meets West," the album will be distributed by Hong Kong's Bailey Record Company Limited.
At the launching ceremony, Li Gaoyang and Jerry Bergonzi played jazz onstage, giving the audience a live preview of their craft. "Li Gaoyang is the first Chinese jazz musician I've ever cooperated with. I appreciate his talent a lot," said Jerry Bergonzi.
Li Gaoyang said he will embark on a nationwide tour with Bergonzi and Winther in May to promote their album and popularize jazz culture. Li Gaoyang was born in 1994. He studied jazz music at the age of four and started playing saxophone when he was eight years old. At 14, Li Gaoyang organized a band and attended an international Jazz music festival. He was awarded the "Excellent Asian Musician" when he was 18.
Li Gaoyang is regarded as an excellent jazz saxophonist in China, having mastered the East Coast Jazz style that added range and depth to his own strong personal style of playing the music. Carl Winther, the son of the world-famous composer and trumpeter Jens Winther, is a great Danish jazz composer whose improvised performance helped him win various prizes. Jerry Bergonzi, born in 1947 in Boston, Massachusetts, is a jazz tenor saxophonist, composer, and educator.