Grammy Award winning jazz musician, Earl Klugh is set to headline the 2015 edition of the Stanbic Jazz Festival in Accra this February.

The Jazz legend will be performing for the first time in Ghana at this year’s edition of the festival which comes off at the Accra International Conference Centre on February 19 and February 20, 2015.

Speaking in an interview with Myjoyonline.com after a media briefing Tuesday, Head of Marketing and Communications at Stanbic Bank, Mawuko Afadzinu said: “Last year was massive. The hall was filled to the brim on both days. Jazz enthusiasts had an incredible time.”

According to him, “All indications are that Earl Klugh is going to be much bigger than what we saw last year. It’s taking to a new stratosphere both in terms of the acts, the quality of performance, the support artistes and the entire experience.”

Stanbic Bank and its partners are hopeful that in the future, “We want this to be a defining experience, one like no other in this country. We want it to become a huge tradition which ultimately can become a leading source of foreign exchange earnings” in the country.

A master of the acoustic-classical guitar, Earl Klugh is one of the most imitated icons of the instrument. He has issued dozens of discs, 24 of which have been on Billboards top-10 list of jazz albums. Six of these made it to the No. 1 slot.

The jazz virtuoso's recordings have received 13 Grammy nominations. His collaboration with pianist Bob James, One on One, won the 1980 Grammy Award for Best Pop Instrumental Album.

Born on September 16, 1953, Klugh was a teenager when saxophonist Yusef Lateef heard him practicing in a small music store where the young guitarist worked while in school. That led to an invitation to sit in with Lateef which, in turn, led to Klugh's first appearance on an album; Lateef's 1970 recording, Suite 16 on Atlantic Records.

As a composer and songwriter, Klugh's credit appears on a wide range of recordings from artists such as Aretha Franklin, Jamie Foxx, Roberta Flack, Mary J. Blige, Kenny Loggins, AI Jarreau and many others. He has also been a guest artist with musicians ranging from Buffett, Loggins, Brenda Russell and Stevie Wonder to jazz masters Miles Davis and Mccoy Tyner. 

Apart from Earl Klugh, the two-day event will also feature Arkah Blay and other local jazz artistes.