The highlight of the Copenhagen Jazz Festival this year is the open-air performance of two American superstars: 88-year old jazz legend Tony Bennett and, 60 years his junior, the pop icon Lady Gaga.

The two are renowned on their own – Bennett (everyone knows his signature tune ‘I Left My Heart in San Francisco’) has won 18 Grammy awards in a career stretching back to the 1950s (in 1965, Frank Sinatra called him the “best in the business”), while Gaga became the first female artist of the 2010s to release three number-one albums in the US – but together they are even better.

Their collaboration actually dates back a lot further than the recent H&M advertising you might have seen.

After meeting in 2011, they recorded a duet for Bennett’s album, and then in 2014 they released a collaborative record together, Cheek to Cheek.
Recorded in New York and accompanied by a jazz orchestra, it presents their own, modern interpretations of some of the biggest jazz classics, with the overall aim to make jazz more accessible to young people.

The album especially received positive critique regarding Gaga’s vocals, which might have been underestimated due to her previous mainstream pop orientation.

The legendary show at Tivoli will be enjoyable for a varied audience, and it is definitely a must-see in this summer’s concert season.

Tony Bennett and Lady Gaga
Wed July 8, 22:00; Plænen, Tivoli; 575kr