I got a note from Risa Zincke, Joe’s manager for the last thirty years of his life. She reports that the MDR Leipzig Radio Symphony Orchestra performed Joe’s symphony, “Stories Of The Danube,” on October 17 under the direction of Kristjan Järvi. The performance was part of part of the October Festival in Leipzig, Germany, and was paired with Ludwig van Beethoven’s Symphony No. 6. Järvi worked with Joe on his last studio project, the album Absolute Zawinul by Järvi’s Absolute Ensemble. You can read an interview I did with Järvi about Joe and that album here. This was the first performance of Joe’s symphony since his passing in 2007. Guest musicians included Aziz Sahmaoui, formerly of the Zawinul Syndicate. You can see photos from the concert here.

The Syndicate, which Frau Zincke manages, continues to perform Joe’s music at venues throughout Europe. The band will celebrate “Zawinul Music Day” in Vienna on Nov. 24 at Porgy & Bess, followed by a Nov. 25 date at Treibhaus in Innsbruck. Those shows will feature vocalist Tini Kainrath, who has written words (in German, I assume) to Joe’s tune “Walk Tall” from his time with Cannonball Adderley. “Walk Tall” will be performed by Kainrath and the band. “Zawinul Music Day” is an event that Frau Zincke has organized in Vienna several times since Joe’s passing. I don’t think she’s been able to arrange one every year, but she continues to champion live performances of Joe’s music.