Surya Nepal Jazzmandu 2025 celebrates the many voices of contemporary jazz, and two of its most intriguing acts, the Catia Werneck Quartet from France and Switzerland's MOHS, promise to take audiences on very different yet equally compelling musical journeys.
According to the website of Jazzmandu, born in Rio de Janeiro into a family of musicians, Catia Werneck has built her career on bridging Brazilian roots with the elegance of jazz. Her father's love of jazz and her own early training in piano and percussion laid the foundation for a career that blossomed after she moved to Paris at 21. There, she became a regular presence on the French jazz festival circuit, collaborating with celebrated artists such as Touré Kunda, Patrick Bruel and Chico Buarque, and lending her voice and songwriting to film soundtracks. Her extensive discography, from her 1997 debut Estrêla do Sultão to the adventurous 2017 release Jongando, reflects a lifelong exploration of bossa nova, samba, and jazz traditions.
For Jazzmandu, Werneck brings a lineup of seasoned musicians: Alma Naidu on vocals and piano, Andreas Dombert on guitar, Ferdinand Schwatrz on bass and Florian Stierstofer on drums, to present a sound that is rooted in Brazilian rhythms and rich with global influences. The quartet's performance at "Valley Jams" on October 10 at Electric Pagoda in Thamel promises an irresistible blend of North-Eastern Brazilian Forró, jazz improvisation and soulful storytelling.
Sharing the festival spotlight with an entirely different sonic approach is MOHS, a Swiss quartet that has made waves in Europe since 2019 with their distinctive mix of acoustic jazz and electronic textures. Founded by guitarist Erwan Valazza and trumpeter Zacharie Ksyk, later joined by bassist Gaspard Colin and drummer Nathan Vandenbulcke, MOHS crafts atmospheric compositions that balance intricate melodies with raw spontaneity. Their third album, Baïne, continues their exploration of soundscapes that are both powerful and serene, drawing comparisons to the moods evoked by artists like Jon Hassell and Khruangbin, according to the festival's website.
Their performance at "Valley Jams" at The Baha, Sanepa on October 10 offers festival-goers an immersive experience of nu-jazz which is an eclectic music genre that fuses conventional jazz elements, such as improvisation and harmony, with modern electronic music, hip-hop, and other contemporary influences like funk and soul. MOHS will also take the stage again at "Sounds of Acid Jazz" on October 13 at Eden, Jhamsikhel, sharing the evening with Germany's Leona Berlin for a night of R&B, soul and nu-jazz grooves.
