Two thrilling young talents, both from the former U.S.S.R, highlight the global reach of jazz. Milman, 25, was born in the Ural Mountains and discovered jazz while living in Israel. A massive star in Canada, the sultry Toronto-based chanteuse won a Juno, Canada’s Grammy, with her second CD Make Someone Happy. Disovered at the age of 9, Eldar is a flamboyantly accomplished pianist from Kyrgyzstan, who has released a string of technically dazzling albums, including 2007’s Grammy-nominated re-imagination.

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Two thrilling young talents, both from the former U.S.S.R, highlight the global reach of jazz. Sophie Milman has traveled a long, winding road, and arrives burning with energy, a fresh new voice on the international jazz scene. Born into a Jewish family in Russia’s western Urals, Milman spent much of her adolescence in Haifa, Israel where her family fled after the fall of the Soviet Union. Her love of African-American music, particularly gospel and jazz, became a sustaining obsession when her family relocated from Israel to Toronto in 1999. With the release of her impressive 2004 eponymous debut album, Milman quickly became one of Canada’s most visible jazz vocalists. She scored a Juno, Canada’s Grammy, with her second album Make Someone Happy, and Milman has been making fans around the world ever since.

Discovered at the age of 9, Eldar Djangirov is a flamboyantly accomplished pianist from Kyrgyzstan who impressed veteran stars such as Benny Carter, Billy Taylor and Marian McPartland before reaching his teens. Since the release of his 2004 debut on Sony Classical, the pianist has been traveling at hyperspeed, carried along by a combination of awe-inspiring technique and improvisational flair. Growing at leaps and bounds, he has released a string of technically dazzling albums, most recently 2007’s Grammynominated re-imagination. At 21, Eldar is both a dauntingly accomplished player and a self-possessed student of the music, eager to soak up whatever experiences come his way.

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