Pat Metheny at Centennial Hall: a return 31 years after his first concert in Poland

Pat Metheny was born in Lee's Summit in 1954. Before he turned 15, he was already playing regularly with the finest jazz musicians in Kansas City. Under the guidance of vibraphone master Gary Burton, with whom he still works today, he developed his unique, distinctive style. It combines the flexible articulation usually associated with wind instruments with advanced rhythmic ideas and a sensitivity to harmony. Yet his innovative playing and improvisation remained firmly rooted in jazz, swing and blues. His 1975 debut, “Bright Size Life”, marked a turning point: from then on, guitarists could be divided into those before Metheny and those after him. For four decades, he has continually experimented with the latest technologies. No other musician in jazz history has explored the potential of their instrument with such creativity and uncompromising commitment.

Metheny’s music knows no boundaries, and he moves freely across every kind of jazz. Traditional Southern sounds, bebop, jazz-rock, fusion, free jazz, film music, Latin jazz, captivating pop and avant-garde experiments bordering on classical music: thanks to impeccable musical training and extraordinary intuition, Metheny can play literally anything. He has collaborated with artists as diverse as Steve Reich, Ornette Coleman, Herbie Hancock, Jim Hall, Milton Nascimento and David Bowie.

For decades, he worked with pianist Lyle Mays, forming a composing partnership compared to Lennon and McCartney. He was among the first jazz musicians to use synthesisers extensively, and it was largely thanks to him that electronic sounds began to be taken seriously and synthesisers used in composition. Only one artist worked on a similarly broad scale: the equally brilliant Frank Zappa. To illustrate the musician’s versatility, consider 1985: within a few months, Metheny recorded his most commercially successful material with David Bowie, the soundtrack to “Sokół i koka”, and the free-jazz masterpiece “Song X” with Ornette Coleman.

Pat Metheny has won not only hundreds of thousands of fans but sustained acclaim from critics and the musical community. He has received twenty Grammys, including an extraordinary run of seven consecutive awards for seven consecutive albums. His wins include Best Rock Instrumental, Best Contemporary Jazz Recording, Best Jazz Instrumental Solo and Best Instrumental Composition. He enjoys an almost cult following in Poland. His best-known album, “Secret Story”, was played endlessly on commercial radio, while his concerts appeared on Polish television in prime time. He first performed in Poland in 1985. His appearance at Wrocław’s Hala Ludowa became legendary.

On 22 June, history will come full circle: after 31 years, Pat Metheny will return to the Hall with his latest band. Its members are legendary drummer Antonio Sánchez, composer of the soundtrack for Oscar-winning “Birdman”; one of Europe’s finest pianists, Gwilym Simcock; and the outstanding bassist Linda Oh, who grew up on Red Hot Chili Peppers. This will be the line-up’s first European concert. The reserved artist has revealed few details about his new musical direction, but one thing is certain: this latest incarnation will surprise devoted followers and listeners encountering his music for the first time alike.