The 22-year-old singer Stefanie Heinzmann stormed onto the scene and won over our hearts four years ago with her loud mouth and bubbly personality. In the meantime, the teenager with the formidable voice has become a performer with depth who is taken very seriously. This powerful singer fearlessly explores the boundaries of soulful pop. On her current album, named grippingly simply after her, she demonstrates once again that her music and her personality are still just as upbeat as ever as she sings about dealing with Facebook and Angry Birds and about music that goes deeper than Lady Gaga. She gives impressive proof of her talent at AVO SESSION Basel.

He has seen it all: the film business, the rock n’ roll scene, celebrity status and media hype. He played for hundreds of thousands of fans. He wrote songs that made German music history. German rock legend Marius Müller-Westernhagen made his mark on entire generations with hits like «Freiheit», «Willenlos» or «Johnny W.» and he knew how to play to huge stadium audiences in gargantuan rock shows, but he didn’t let that go to his head. He decided to quit his stadium tours and chose quality instead of quantity. He comes to Basel with his powerful, sweaty rock hits in tow, but also with a large portion of humour and honesty.

A lost property office is a wondrous place. Objects are sometimes turned in, but never missed; sometimes sought, but never found. Rummaging about in music’s lost and found, Stephan Eicher stumbled upon musicians Heidi Happy, Hank Shizzoe and Olivier Koundouno, who now appear with the master himself to present their dusted off and reinvented treasures. We can expect a unique concert evening featuring some pieces that may be tarnished, however, with a bit of polish, they will shine.

Paul Anka’s debut hit single ‘Diana’ catapulted him immediately into the Hall of Fame in 1957 at the tender age of 16, making him the youngest millionaire in the history of music. The hits that followed: ‘Lonely Boy’ and ‘Put Your Head On My Shoulder’ made the Canadian singer with Lebanese roots the most successful entertainer since Elvis. Ever since he started composing for other musicians, Anka has been one of the most successful musicians of all times. Buddy Holly’s ‘It Doesn’t Matter Anymore’ and Tom Jones’ ‘She’s a Lady’ were both written by Anka. He also wrote the lyrics for Frank Sinatra’s ‘My Way’ and Michael Bublé is his protégé. He has released over 120 albums and sold over 100 million records. These days, Paul Anka is known as the last great crooner, seasoned after years of singing in the big casinos of Las Vegas. When he translates his own as well as cover songs into elegant swing and gives his charm free reign on the stage, Anka glorifies the purest, most beautiful form of entertainment. Joined by his Big Band he presents his programme ‘Rock Swings’ including famous rock classics in Swing versions at AVO SESSION Basel.

The Blues singer Keb’ Mo’, who is actually named Kevin Moore, grew up in California, but now he lives in New Orleans. During the quest to find his own kind of music, he discovered archaic blues pioneer Robert Johnson, who became one of his most important sources of inspiration. The refined simplicity of his guitar playing, his freedom in form and the stories that Johnson told his listeners influenced Keb’ Mo’ deeply. The difference is that Robert Johnson, who would have celebrated his 100th birthday in May 2011, was paid in food and whiskey back in his days. These days, Keb’ Mo’ is rewarded with Grammys for his work. At AVO SESSION, Keb’ Mo’ plays his best known hits as well as songs from his new album ‘The Reflection’. He is joined by Jeff Paris, Keyboards, Guitar, Mandolin, Les Falconer, Drums, Vail Johnson, Bass, Kevin So, Keyboards and Michael B. Hicks, Organ.