One of Italy's most important and famous jazz saxophonists will be in Nairobi in the next few days for a series of events culminating on Sunday 30 April with her participation in the Afrolect Jazz Festival, organised in the Kenyan capital on the occasion of International Jazz Day.

Carla Marciano, thanks to the initiative of the Italian Cultural Institute, will be in Kenya with her tried and tested quartet, consisting of Alessandro La Corte (piano), Aldo Vigorito (double bass) and Gaetano Fasano (drums). An ensemble with which he has presented his projects at prestigious jazz festivals and theatres around the world, and with which he has toured the United States several times.

Marciano, from Salerno, is considered one of Europe's best saxophonists and is appreciated for her passion and energy, as well as her expressive power, technical skills and exceptional interpretative and compositional vein. She is also one of the world's leading experts on the 'sopranino', one of the most unusual and difficult saxophones to master.

On Thursday 27 April, the Carla Marciano Quartet will perform at the Geco Café in Nairobi, Lavington (free admission), while on Friday 28 April she will hold a masterclass at the Kenya Conservatory of Music. On Sunday 30 April, the Quartet will be present, together with other Kenyan and international artists, at the Afrolect Jazz Festival, directed by Kenyan fiesta player Mackinley Mutsembi (for information and tickets, https://www.facebook.com/afrolectfestival).