BIX BEIDERBECKE MEMORIAL JAZZ FESTIVAL (Davenport, IA) – Aug. 3-5
The 2017 Bix Festival has a new location: the Rhythm City Casino Resort in north Davenport will offer festival concerts in its Event Center, and boasts three restaurants, free parking (with valet parking available), and is the festival host hotel and a major sponsor of the event. The Resort is in close proximity to many shopping and outside-of-venue dining options. (Festival-goers may make reservations at the RCCR by calling 1-844-852-4386 or 563-328-8000 and asking for the “Bix Fest group rate,” which begins as low as $109/night.) Scheduled bands include The Fat Babies (Beau Sample, Chicago), Roof Garden Jass Band (Dan Levinson, NYC), Dave Bennett Quartet (Michigan), Swing Central with Hal Smith, and The Graystone Monarchs (Josh Duffee, Davenport). A benefit concert on Thursday, August 3, will feature The Dave Bennett Quartet, The Fat Babies, and Swing Central.
All-event passes cost $105; all-day tickets cost $55 for Friday and Saturday; Thursday evening fundraiser event tickets are $25; individual weekend sessions cost $30; Youth under age 17 enter free when accompanied by a paid adult. (888) BIX-LIVS; (563) 324-7170; info@bixsociety.org. Visit online at www.bixsociety.org.
SATCHMO SUMMERFEST (New Orleans, LA) – Aug. 3-6
The 17th annual Satchmo Summerfest will draw thousands of trad-jazz fans to New Orleans on August 3 through 6. The free event is presented by French Quarter Festivals, Inc. Music will ring out all weekend on festival stages spotlighting traditional jazz, brass bands and children’s programming. Among many Summerfest highlights is the “Satchmo Club Strut” down Frenchmen Street. The three-day festival features more than 40 jazz performances by local legends and nationally touring virtuosos as well as screenings of jazz films and documentaries, in-depth seminars on jazz history, hands-on workshops, swing dance lessons, trumpet tributes to Pops, and interactive exhibits. This year’s musical lineup is not available at press time, but past festivals have featured The Dirty Dozen Brass Band, James Andrews, Glen David Andrews, Don Vappie & The Creole Jazz Serenaders, Leroy Jones, Wycliffe Gordon, Kermit Ruffins, and Mark Braud
Admission is free all weekend; (504) 522-5730; fqfi.org/satchmo.
TELLURIDE JAZZ FESTIVAL (Telluride, CO) – Aug. 4-6
Since 1977, Telluride—situated high in the San Juan Mountains of southwestern Colorado—has been the site of an this annual event produced by the Telluride Society for Jazz. The Telluride Jazz Fest is a three-day-and-night live music event centered around jazz that is staged annually on the first weekend of August. Scheduled for the 41st annual festival are headliners Mavis Staples, Macy Gray, and Bootsy Collins and World-Wide Funk Drive, with other featured performers Lee Fields and the Expressions, Miles Mosely and the West Coast Get Down, Vaud and the Villains, Divina and the Vagabonds, Hazel Miller Gospel Band, Ranky Tanky, Cha Wa Mardi Gras Indian Band, Bob Montgomery Quintet, Kevin McCarthy Trio, Voodoo Orchestra, Hooligan Brass Band, and many others.
Weekend all-access passes cost $185 in advance, $200 after May 31; three-day park passes cost $145 in advance and $160 after 5/31; day passes are $60-$70; children ages 11 and younger will be admitted free; camping costs $50 per person or $125 per car ($175 for RVs); (970) 728-8037 (please note that you may not place ticket orders by phone); visit online at www.telluridejazz.org.
LITCHFIELD JAZZ FESTIVAL (Goshen, CT) – Aug. 5-6
Plan a weekend get-away for the 22nd annual Litchfield Jazz Festival (August 5th-6th): whether you’re looking for an antiquing retreat, quiet time by a lake, or a weekend of great food and rural vistas, a few days in the Litchfield Hills will satisfy your every fancy. The festival itself takes place at the Goshen Fairgrounds, in Goshen, Connecticut. Headlining this year are Ken Peplowski’s Benny Goodman Tribute (with Bucky Pizzarelli, Joe Locke, Nicki Parrott, Matt Wilson, and Ehud Aherie) and the John Pizzarelli Quartet (performing the music of Frank Sinatra and Antônio Carlos Jobim); also appearing are Ada Rovatti Quartet, Michael Mayo Quintet, Julian Shore Quintet, Gabriel Alegria Afro-Peruvian Sextet, Joe Alterman Trio, Rudresh Mahanthappa Indo-Pak Coalition, and others.
Advance tickets cost $37 (one-day lawn); $69 (one-day) tent; $70 (two-day lawn); $125 (two-day tent); Sunday brunch and other options are available. Day-of-event tickets are $46 (lawn) and $79 (tent); students (age 13-22) are $25 at the gate; children 12 and younger attend free with ticketed adult. The Litchfield Jazz Festival is a production of Litchfield Performing Arts: info@litchfieldperformingarts.com; (860) 361-6285; visit online at litchfieldjazzfest.com.
PROVINCETOWN JAZZ FESTIVAL (Provincetown, MA) Aug. 10 & 14
The 13th annual Provincetown Jazz Festival occurs on two dates and at two locations on Cape Cod, Massachusetts. On August 10, at The Crown & Anchor, 247 Commercial Street, Provincetown, Molly Ringwald performs songs from the Great American Song Book and her recently recorded CD Except Sometimes; this is her Cape Cod Debut. She will be accompanied by Alex Smith (piano), Ron Ormsby on bass, and Bart Weisman on drums. Opening act will be pianist Takumi Kakimoto, who will be accompanied by Ron Ormsby on bass and Bart Weisman on drums.
On August 14, clarinetist Ken Peplowski is featured at The Cotuit Center for the Arts, 4404 Route 28, Cotuit. Peplowski will be accompanied by Matt DeChamplain on piano, Ron Ormsby on bass, and Bart Weisman on drums. Vocalist Atla DeChamplain and pianist Matt DeChamplain will open the concert, with Ormsby and Weisman accompanying.
Tickets for the August 10th show are $30 ($50 VIP seating); tickets for the August 14th show are $30; Cotuit Center for the Arts phone is (508) 428-0669. For further information write bartweisman@bartweisman.com or call (508) 274-2513; visit online at www.provincetownjazz festival.org.
CENTRAL PENNSYLVANIA JAZZ FESTIVAL – (Harrisburg, PA) Aug. 10-13
A cruise along the Susquehanna River is a highlight of this 37th annual festival. Performances will also be staged at Gretna Hideaway in Mt. Gretna, the River City Blues Club in Harrisburg, and the lovely Mt. Gretna Playhouse. On Sunday, August 13, a Jazz Picnic will be held at Indian Echo Caverns in Hummelstown.
Performers include Dave Stahl’s Quintet, special guest Delfeayo Marsalis, with more to be announced. For ticket pricing for each event, please see Friendsofjazz.org; or call (717) 525-8926.
SUTTER CREEK RAGTIME FESTIVAL (Sutter Creek, CA) – Aug. 11-13
Hosted by the Mother Lode Ragtime Society, the 19th annual Sutter Creek Ragtime Festival will be staged August 11 through 13, at venues such as the Sutter Creek Ice Cream Emporium, the Hotel Sutter, and the Sutter Creek Theatre. Considered one of the most charming and possibly the most visited of California’s gold-mining villages, Sutter Creek is located 46 miles southeast of Sacramento. Performers for 2017 include Elliott Adams, Patrick Aranda, Nick Arteaga, Ramona Baker, Jack and Chris Bradshaw, Amanda Castro, Michael Chisholm, Danny Coots, the Drivons, Marty Eggers, Brian Holland, Vincent Johnson, Carl Sonny Leyland, Larisa Migachyov, Will Perkins, Stevens Price, the Ragnolia Ragtette, The RJB Trio, John Reed-Torres, John Remmers, Julia Riley, Marc Silverstein, Ray Skjelbred, Squeek Steele, Paul Stewart, Monty Suffern, the Sullivans, Adam Swanson, Virginia Tichenor, Galen Wilkes, and Ryan Wishner.
All-event badges cost $70 before July 15, or $80 after that date; day badge prices range from $15 to $35; children ages 16 and younger will be admitted free if accompanied by a paying adult; (209) 405-1563; suttercreekragtime.com.
MORRISTOWN JAZZ & BLUES FESTIVAL (Morristown, NJ) – Aug. 19
The seventh annual festival turns the green blue on Saturday, Aug. 19, from noon until 10 p.m. Parking is available in public lots and the train station just a couple of blocks away. Festival-goers should bring blankets and lawn chairs. This year’s free event will feature Vince Giordano and the Nighthawks at noon, the Bucky Pizzarelli Quintet featuring Ed Laub at 2 pm, Louis Prima Jr. and the Witnesses at 4, Ana Popovic at 8, and finishes with the Walter Trout Band from 8 until 10 pm.
Contact Don Jay Smith of LKS Associates at (908) 832-1020; don@lksassociates.com;
morristownjazzandblues.org/.
HOT JAZZ JUBILEE (Sacramento, CA) – Aug. 25-27
Staged at the DoubleTree by Hilton in Sacramento, the fifth annual Hot Jazz Jubilee features performances by the Midiri Brothers, High Street Band, Side Street Strutters, Sister Swing, Yve Evans & Company, Holland & Coots, Blue Street Jazz Band, Tom Rigney & Flambeau, Crescent Katz, Old West Trio, Bob Draga with Friends, Cornet Chop Suey, High Sierra Jazz Band, Titan Hot 7, Pub Crawlers, Shelley, Bill & Eddie, Jay Paulus Society Band, 101st Army Dixieland Band, Gator Nation, Vince Bartels All-Stars (a.k.a. The Migrant Jazz Workers) and special guests Eddie Erickson, Ken Hall, Claudette Stone, and Pat Yankee.
Hot Jazz Jubilee will again have a Special Thursday Night set for those who plan on arriving early to the festival, featuring the River City Swingers-SYB, Bob Draga with Friends (including the Midiri Bros and Brian Casserly), and the High Street Band. This set will be held in the Grand Ballroom at the DoubleTree from 7 pm to 10:30 pm and the cost is $20.
Badge prices range from $20 for students per session to $115 for a three-day all events badge ($105 if purchased before July 31); hotjazzjubilee.com; (916) 813-7665.
PRESCOTT JAZZ SUMMIT (Prescott, AZ) – Aug. 25-27
The 17th annual Prescott Jazz Summit kicks off on Friday the 25th with “A Night at the Roxy,” at the Elks Theater in downtown Prescott. Singers Ginger Berglund (The Modernaires), Dennis Rowland (Count Basie), and trombonist-arranger Scott Whitfield, backed by all-star combos made up of the 20 musicians who will be performing throughout the weekend, will present the music of George Gershwin, Irving Berlin, Cole Porter, and All That Jazz. There will even be a bit of Old New Orleans thrown in to keep toes tapping, according to Festival director Mike Vax.
Free workshops and student band performances will be held during the day on Saturday at Yavapai College as part of the Jazz Summit’s educational programs. A 7:30 pm concert will have the Big Band All-Star traveling “From Glenn Miller to Count Basie and Beyond,” with the Yavapai Roughriders opening the evening’s festivities.
The venue on Sunday will move to The Club at Prescott Lakes for a gourmet luncheon buffet with the singers (plus Renee Patrick) and All-Stars musicians presenting hot jazz in the cool pines. The weekend wraps up with red carpet dining and the annual Jazz Summit jam session at Murphy’s Restaurant.
Check out the Prescott Jazz Summit website (www.prescottjazz.com) or call (928) 277-1576 or (484) 558-0066 for more information and ticket prices.
VAIL JAZZ PARTY (Vail, CO) – Aug 31-Sept. 4
The Vail Jazz Party takes place over Labor Day Weekend with a unique mix of world-class musicians in an engaging, one-of-a-kind format. All Vail Jazz Party events take place in Lionshead Village within the Town of Vail. The Vail Marriott is the headquarters hotel, and hosts all evening sessions of music. The jazz tent at Vail Square is the location for the the Opening Session on Thursday night, the Gospel Prayer Meetin’, and all daytime sessions.Whether it’s group performances, multi-artist jam sessions, or the inspiring multimedia tributes to jazz legends, the weekend has a party spirit that attracts musicians and jazz lovers from all over the world. Performers include Ernie Adams, Adam Arruda, Jacob Christoffersen, Jeff Clayton, John Clayton, Bill Cunliffe, Adrian Cunningham, Graham Dechter, EC3 (Ernest Coleman III), Sinne Eeg, Jerohn Garnett, Wycliffe Gordon, Karen Hammack, Tyrone Jackson, Jeff Hamilton, Niki Haris, Butch Miles, James Morrison, Dick Oatts, Ken Peplowski, Byron Stripling, and Akiko Tsuruga.
Performance pass $375, patron pass $450, individual performances, $55-$75; vailjazz.org; (970) 479-6146; (888) 824-5526.
GRUGELFEST 2017 (Toledo, OH) – Sept. 8-10
Grugelfest will be staged at its new location from Friday, September 8 through Sunday, September 10 at the Holiday Inn French Quarter Perrysburg, 10630 Fremont Pike, Perrysburg, Ohio (US 20 at I-75 Exit 193). This year’s bands: Toledo’s Cakewalkin’ Jass Band, Tex Wyndham and his Red Lion Jazz Band, The Red Rose Ragtime Band, Dave Greer’s Classic Jazz Stompers, and Jon Seiger and the All Stars. Ragtime piano provided by Tex Wyndham and by Kenan Leslie (“Li’l Laundry”) in honor of Sister Jean Huling, the Ragtime Queen. Profits from Grugelfest 2017 will benefit the Dyslexia Education Training Center of Northwest Ohio, an organization which teaches children with dyslexia how to read.
VIP Patron ticket (including admission to all sessions, reserved seating, name in the program, Saturday Morning Patron Breakfast, and copy of Ralph Grugel’s legacy CD: The Bums at Fagan’s), $160; All-event ticket, $130; individual session ticket, $45. For tickets, call the Huntington Center Box Office at (419) 321-5007. Call the Holiday Inn French Quarter and ask for special Grugelfest rates: (419) 874-3111. Visit us online for more information: www.grugelfest.com.
PENTASTIC HOT JAZZ FESTIVAL (Penticton, B.C., Canada) – Sept. 8-10
The 21st Pentastic Fest will feature Dave Bennett & Memphis Speed Kings, Black Swan Classic JB, Cornet Chop Suey, Bob Draga and Friends, Gator Nation, Lance Buller, Benny & the Good Men, Cocuzzi Coots Courtet, Tom Rigney & Flambeau, and Lennart Axelsson and his European All Stars. The 2017 festival’s various venues include the SS Sicamous, the Days Inn & Conference Centre, the Elks Hall, and the Trade and Convention Centre. A shuttle makes regular runs between the venues to transport patrons from one location to another.
Tickets cost $60 Friday, $75 Saturday and $55 Sunday, or $110 for all three days; pentasticjazz.com; (866) 599-3494.
CLEVELAND CLASSIC JAZZ PARTY (Cleveland, OH) – Sept. 14-17
Presented by the Allegheny Jazz Society at Wyndham Hotel at Playhouse Square (in the center of Cleveland’s theatre district), 1260 Euclid Ave., Cleveland, Ohio, the fourth annual party showcases Duke Heitger, Joel Forbes, Randy Reinhart, Nicki Parrott, Andy Schumm, Frank Tate, Dan Block, Ricky Malichi, Ken Peplowski, Pete Siers, Scott Robinson, Hal Smith, Dan Barrett, Petra van Nuis, Howard Alden, Faux Frenchmen, Andy Brown, Ehud Asherie, James Dapogny, Nancy Griffith, John Di Martino, Rossano Sportiello, and historian Phil Atteberry.
Ticket prices range from $50 per session to $310 for full-four-day admission. One free student ticket is available with each paid ticket to any session; (216) 956-0886; alleghenyjazz.org.
DENVER VINTAGE JAZZ FESTIVAL (Denver, CO) Sept. 15-17
Staged at the three-story City Hall Events Venue, 1144 Broadway Blvd., in Denver, this exceptional festival, staged in connection with Lindy on the Rocks, focuses primarily on pre-war swing and vintage jazz of the 1930s and ’40s. This year’s bands include the Michael Gamble & The Vanguard Serenaders, Kris Tokarski Quintet with Chloe Feoranzo, The Joe Smith Orchestra Featuring the All-Stars, The Spicy Pickles, and The Denver Jazz Club Youth All-Stars, plus hundreds of swing dancers and selected Denver-area musicians.
The Full Festival Pass is $109, with Individual Session Passes costing Friday Evening ($30), Saturday Afternoon ($20), Saturday Evening ($30), Sunday Afternoon ($10), and Sunday Evening ($20). Denverjazzfestival.org; (303) 883-6691; cmDance.org; www.LindyOnTheRocks.com.
CENTRAL PENNSYLVANIA RAGTIME AND AMERICAN MUSIC FESTIVAL (Orbisonia/ Rockhill Furnace, PA) Sept. 22-24
These two tiny towns—Orbisonia and Rockhill, each with populations of less than 500—were forever united by the East Broad Top Railroad and Coal Company. The railroad, constructed in 1873, ceased operation in 1956, but it continues to a source of pride in Huntington County. In the railroad’s early days, ragtime was the popular music of the day, and this festival celebrates that exciting musical style. This year’s performers, drawn from the world’s best ragtime pianists, are sure to please.
For ticket pricing and other festival information, please contact David Brightbill at (814) 447-3984; rockhillragtime.org/
SOUTHERN OREGON MUSIC FESTIVAL (Medford, OR) – Sept. 29-Oct. 1
Seventeen bands will perform a total of 95 sets of danceable music at five distinct venues, all within seven blocks in downtown Medford, Oregon. Bands include Dave Bennett Quartet, Dave Bennett & the Memphis Speed Kings, Cornet Chop Suey, Bob Draga with Friends, Gator Nation, High Sierra Jazz Band, High Street Band, Carolyn Martin’s Western Swing Band, Midiri Brothers, Oregon Coast Lab Band, Tom Rigney & Flambeau, Gino and the Lone Gunmen, Wally’s Warehouse Waifs, The Young Bucs, Danny Maika, Leify Green, and Twice as Good 2XG.
Membership levels (all-event) are $125, $210, or $325; all-event passes cost $85 until Sept. 22, $90 thereafter ($20 for students 12-23); daily ticket prices range from $30 to $50; (866) 448-1948; somusicfest.org; email: info@somusicfest.org.
OREGON COAST JAZZ PARTY (Newport, OR) – Oct. 6-8
Oregon Coast Council for the Arts celebrates 14 years with the Oregon Coast Jazz Party October 6-8, 2017 at the Newport Performing Arts Center and at the Shilo Inn Suites Hotel, both in Newport. Music Director Holly Hofmann will perform this year, and has assembled a roster of longtime favorites—as well as exciting performers who haven’t appeared before at the Oregon Coast Jazz Party. New to the event this year are pianist George Cables’s trio with bassist Essiet Okon Essiet and drummer Victor Lewis, pianist George Colligan, guitarist Russell Malone, Thomas Marriott on trumpet, vocalist Greta Matassa, and drummer Ryan Shaw. And many superb favorites return for this year: bassist John Clayton, pianist Gerald Clayton, drummer Jeff Hamilton, bassist Mary Ann McSweeney, tenor sax man Houston Person, drummer Chuck Redd, and pianist Mike Wofford.
Jazz party patron levels, $250, $500 and $1,000; Ticket prices TBA; (541) 265-2787; oregoncoastjazzparty.org.
BLUE RIDGE RAGTIME FESTIVAL (Lynchburg, VA) – Oct. 6-8
Pianists Frederick Hodges, Martin Spitznagel, Ethan Uslan, and the dynamic duo of Bryan and Yuko Wright headline the region’s first ragtime festival, to be held in picturesque downtown Lynchburg, Virginia at the city’s historic Academy Theater. The entertaining weekend will include several full-length indoor concerts, symposia, and silent film screenings, with a variety of syncopated piano music from the 1890s-1930s. There will also be outdoor performances on the nine fancifully-decorated pianos that adorn downtown Lynchburg’s streets as part of the “Hill City Keys” program. Take advantage of “off hours” to tour a nearby Civil War cemetery famous for its antique roses or visit Thomas Jefferson’s summer home, Poplar Forest. Plenty of unique dining options within walking distance of the festival site. For more information, visit the Academy Center of the Arts online: academycenter.org.
JEFF & JOEL’S HOUSE PARTY (Branford, CT) Oct. 13-15
Jeff Barnhart and Joel Schiavone, two of the leaders of Connecticut Jazz and the Connecticut Jazz Festival, decided to collaborate and Jeff and Joel’s House Party was born. JJHP is returning to The Elks Lodge in Branford Connecticut, 58 South Montowese Street (Route 146), October 13-15, 2017.
The “Taste of the Weekend” will kick off Friday with our special guests Banu Gibson of New Orleans fame and Grammy Award winner Vince Giordano joined in a jazz quintet with Dan Levinson, Tom Palinko, and Jeff Barnhart.
Returning musicians are Fred Vigorito, Noel Kaletsky, Tom Boates and Kevin Dorn,
joined, of course, by Jeff and Joel. New to JJHP will be Dalton Ridenhour (keyboard), Matt Musselman (trombone), Mike Davis (trumpet) and Frank Tate (bass).
Musical Director Jeff Barnhart conducts the amazing musical merry-go-round. The JJHP experience is like listening to a different band with each musician grouping. Until July 1, 2017 sales are limited to the full weekend package at $225 per person with Friday night at $25 per person. Seating is limited to preserve the house party feel of musicians and audience. Delicious meals are served at each Saturday and Sunday session.
For information and to purchase tickets, please call 203-208-1481; jeffandjoelshouseparty.com;
email: info@jeffandjoelshouseparty.com.
SUN VALLEY JAZZ & MUSIC FESTIVAL (Sun Valley, ID) – Oct. 18-22
Venues for the 2017 edition of the Sun Valley Jazz and Music Festival include the Sun Valley Inn, the River Run Lodge, the Sun Valley Lodge, Satchmo’s, the Sun Valley Opera House, and the Sawtooth Speakeasy. This year’s Fest features a one-time appearance by the Tommy Dorsey Orchestra under the direction of Terry Myers. Other scheduled entertainers include the Barnhart/Midiri Quartet, Blue Renditions, Blue Street Jazz Band, Bob Draga with Friends, Boise Straight Ahead, Bruce Innes Trio,Carolyn Martin Swing Band, Cocuzzi Trio, Cornet Chop Suey, Yve Evans, Gator Nation, High Sierra Jazz Band, High Street Party Band, Holland & Coots, Tom Hook, Jacob Miller & The Bridge City Crooners, Jerry Krahn Quartet, Ivory&Gold, Kings of Swing, Midiri Brothers Sextet, Paris Washboard, Pearl Django, PBJ (Paul Reid, Brian Casserly, & Jim Lawlor), Gary Ryan, Sherri Colby’s Racket Makers, Side Street Strutters with Meloney Collins, Sun Valley Jazz All Stars w/Marilyn Keller, Terry Myers Quartet with Jaimie Roberts, Tom Rigney & Flambeau, We Three, and the Yale Whiffenpoofs.
All-event $157 Early Bird special (including $5 for Tommy Dorsey Orchestra) ends July 31; starting Aug. 1, $167; $177 at door; Tommy Dorsey ticket $25 without fest pass; day and evening passes range from $28 to $72 (please call or see website for details); (877) 478-5277; sunvalleyjazz.com.
ROSWELL JAZZ FESTIVAL (Roswell, NM) – Oct. 18-22
Every October, world class jazz musicians from across the country convene in Roswell at venues for every taste from intimate to large club settings, community jazz worship services, Sunday afternoon museum concerts, and more. The Guest of Honor for the 2017 Roswell Fest is Allan Vaché. A host of world-class musicians will gather for this fall’s 11th annual Roswell Jazz Fest including headliners Houston Person, Chuck Redd, Warren Vaché, Ken Peplowski, and Ernie Andrews; pianists Bruce Barth, Richard Dowling, Michael Francis, Roger Dickerson, Carl Sonny Leyland, and Larry Fuller; bassists Richard Simon, Frank Tate, Erik Unsworth, and Tom Wakeling; drummers Ricky Malichi and Hal Smith; tubist Jim Shearer; guitarists/banjoists Howard Elkins and Curt Warren; trumpeter Randy Sandke; saxophonist Mack Goldsbury; trombonists John Allred, Dan Barrett, and Russ Phillips; and vocalist Hillary Smith.
Ticket prices and full schedule not available at press time. Please call or write for more information: (505) 359-4876; roswelljazz.org; email: jazzroswell@gmail.com.
PISMO JAZZ JUBILEE (by the Sea) (Pismo Beach, CA) – Oct. 26–29
Pismo Jazz Jubilee (by the Sea) is celebrating its 41st year with new indoor venues, new bands, more comfortable seating, better handicapped-accessibility, and more buses—and a New Orleans themed-event. The Pismo Jubilee is always the last full weekend in October.
New bands for 2017 include: The Uptown Lowdown Jazz Band, Bob Schulz’s Frisco Jazz Band, The JC Jazz Crew (Justin Au, Chloe Feoranzo, Conrad Cayman), Mariachi Autlence, and guest artists Washboard Steve and Brian Holland.
Returning favorites include: Tom Rigney and Flambeau, High Street Band, Sue Palmer’s Motel Band, Cornet Chop Suey, The Midiri Brothers, High Sierra Jazz Band, Night Blooming Jazzmen, Crescent Katz, and We Three + 1 (Bob Draga, Jeff Barnhart, Danny Coots, Larry Scala).
In addition, the Central Coast welcomes Ivory and Gold, Larry Scala’s Rhythm Jesters, Creole Syncopators, Judith and the Jazz Krewe, Ulysses Jasz Band, Dick Williams’ Jammers, and Pacific Swing. The guest artists are Pat Yankee, Jeff Barnhart, Bob Draga, Danny Coots, Carl Sonny Leyland, and Larry Scala. The school bands scheduled to date are: The Hancock College Jazz Band and Dos Pueblos High School Jazz Band.
The prices for Early Bird 3-day badges (before 9-11-2017) are $95. “Pre-Jubilee” 3-day badges (Sep 11th – Oct 25th)) are $105. 3-Day badges can be purchased at the Jubilee for $110. Will call will be at the Vet’s Hall this year.
New this year: three-day badges are only $30 for attendees under 30 years old (with ID); and $90 over 90 years old. Children under 12 are free. Volunteers get in free.
Day badges and evening badges are available. For badge Sales and Hotel Specials go to: http://pismojazz.com/JubileeByTheSea.htm. Information: PismoJazz@PismoJazz.com. Badge Sales (805)539-5696. Information only (Rhonda) (805) 937-8402.
COLORADO SPRINGS JAZZ PARTY (Colorado Springs, CO) – Oct. 27-29
This year the Friends of Colorado Springs Jazz again present the Colorado Springs Jazz Party at Antlers Hotel, 4 S. Cascade Ave., in the shadow of Pike’s Peak. The 2017 Jazz Party brings together world-class musicians with international recognition and featured this year are local talents at the Sunday performance. The party features three sessions—two on Saturday and one on Sunday afternoon—after opening with a cocktail reception on Friday. Performers include Alvin Atkinson, Drums; Dan Barrett, Trombone; Adrian Cunningham, Clarinet; Vincent Gardner, Trombone; Eddie Metz, Drums; Richard Moten, Bass; Nicki Parrott, Bass and Vocal; Ken Peplowski, Saxophone; Ben Polcer, Trumpet; Ed Polcer, Cornet; Rosanno Sportiello, Piano; Johnny Varro, Piano; and Wayne Wilkinson, Guitar; On
Sunday: David Siegel, Violin and Stefan Doucette, Guitar.
Prices for patron badges range from $250 to $1,500; individual sessions cost $50-$75, students $25; Sunday brunch costs $30; info@csjazzparty.com; (719) 471-3124; csjazzparty.com.
THE MIKE DURHAM CLASSIC JAZZ PARTY (Newcastle upon Tyne, UK) – Oct. 27-29
There is some great music in store on the other side of the Pond. The Mike Durham Classic Jazz Party will run from mid-day on Friday until late on Sunday evening at the Village Hotel, Newcastle upon Tyne, some 70 miles south of Scotland in northeast Great Britain. The festival takes place in a luxurious setting with assigned seating of eight to a table, and tables are rotated twice daily. The program explores jazz from its first 40 years, with special jam sessions in the Victory Pub in the wee small hours. This year’s musicians include trumpeters/cornetists Mike Davis, Andy Schumm, Duke Heitger, Jamie Brownfield, Malo Mazurié; reed players Michael McQuaid, Matthias Seuffert, Jean-Francois Bonnel, Lars Frank, Claus Jacobi, Richard Exall, Ewan Bleach; trombonists Jim Fryer, Kristoffer Kompen, Graham Hughes; pianists Keith Nichols, Martin Litton, David Boeddinghaus, Morten Gunnar Larsen; banjoists/guitarists Thomas “Spats” Langham, Martin Wheatley, Jacob Ullberger; percussionists Nick Ball, Nick Ward, Josh Duffee, Richard Pite; bassists/tubists Henri Lemaire, Malcolm Sked, Elise Sut, Phil Rutherford; bass saxophonist Frans Sjostrom; violinist Emma Fisk; and vocalists Joan Viskant, Nicolle Rochelle, and “Spats” Langham.
Places for the 2017 Party will cost £160 per person for the weekend. (Exchange rates as of June 8: $1.30 US = £1 UK.) All bookings are 100% refundable in case of cancellation due to serious illness, bereavement, or other unavoidable cause. For tickets and other information, please visit whitleybayjazzfest.org; email: wbjazzfest@btinternet.com.
ARIZONA CLASSIC JAZZ FESTIVAL (Chandler, AZ) – Nov. 2-5
Staged at the Crowne Plaza San Marcos Golf Resort in Chandler, Arizona, the 28th annual festival features ample dance floors at four venues and offers jammers three sets at which to strut their stuff.
2017 will be another exciting year for ACJF. They will be welcoming four bands for the first time (Hot Jazz Pie, the Kris Tokarski Trio, the incredible husband and wife piano team Stephanie Trick & Paolo Alderighi, and straight from New Orleans the New Orleans Swamp Donkeys). The St. Louis Rivermen return after a seven-year absence.
The Festival opens on Thursday, November 2, 2017, at 5:30 p.m. with lively music from Stephanie & Paolo and closes at 5 p.m. on Sunday, November 5, after the Grand Finale presented by the New Orleans Swamp Donkeys.
Other performers include Howard Alden, B.A.D. Rhythm, Dave Bennett Quartet, Danny Coots, Cornet Chop Suey, 52nd Street Jazz Band, High Sierra Jazz Band, Brian Holland, Queen City Jazz Band, Dan Reed’s Dixieland Hotshots, Sun City Stomperz, and the Wildcat Jazz Band.
All-event badge prices cost $110 before Aug. 15, or $130 thereafter; (480) 620-3941; azclassicjazz.org; email: herjazz125@gmail.com. For Crowne Plaza info, call (480) 812-0900.
SUNCOAST JAZZ CLASSIC (Clearwater Beach, FL) – Nov. 17-19
The 27th edition of the Suncoast Jazz Classic takes place in five indoor venues at two adjacent resort hotels, the Sheraton Sand Key and the Marriott Sand Key, in Clearwater Beach on the Gulf of Mexico. The Suncoast kicks off poolside on Friday, November 17 with a parasol parade and moves indoors to feature a lineup of premier jazz bands and performers: High Sierra, Wally’s Warehouse Waifs, Dave Bennett, Tom Rigney and Flambeau, Professor Cunningham and His Old School, Cornet Chop Suey, Danny Sinoff Quintet (with Patricia Dean, Herb Bruce, Scott Smith & Gabe Wallace), Al Downing Allstars (with Synia Carroll), Allred-Vache Florida AllStars (with Bill Allred, Allan Vache, Johnny Varro, Eddie Metz, Jr., Charlie Silva & Davey Jones), and special guests Bob Price, Lorri Hafer, Nate Najar, John Lamb, Mark Feinman, Pepper, Bakey & Betty, Dan Howard, Herb Roselle, Betty Comora, and Jam Sessions with Dr. Jim Gover.
Before the festival, enjoy a special, one night only performance by Louis Prima, Jr., on Wednesday, November 15th, at the Central Park Performing Arts Center, in Largo. A separate ticket is required for this performance. Tickets range from $29.50-$44.50 depending on seating preferences. You may order tickets from www.largoarts.com, in person at the box office, or call the box office hotline at (727) 587-6793.
Four-day weekend packages cost $175 or $225 (including Thursday Night VIP Gala and Friday Night Swing Dance); three-day pass, $125; daily tickets cost $40 or $50; Youth/Student Weekend Pass (under age 21) $10; Friday Night Swing Dance tickets, $25; suncoastjazzclassic.com; write: PO Box 395, Largo, FL 33779; (727) 248-9441. (Extend your stay and play—special hotel rates honored as available several days before and after the festival.)
WEST COAST RAGTIME FESTIVAL (Rancho Cordova, CA) Nov. 17-19
The 31st annual fest will be staged at the Sacramento Marriott Rancho Cordova, 211 Point East Drive, some 15 miles east of Sacramento. Six ground-floor venues present live music nearly nonstop through the festival’s three days. This fall’s performers include Elliott Adams, Paulo Alderighi, Nick Arteaga, Cleve Baker, Clint Baker, Ramona Baker, Tom Barnebey, Jeff Barnhart, Ed Berlin, Big Mama Sue & Fast Eddie, Tom Bopp, The Bradshaws, Diego Bustamante, Michael Chisholm, Danny Coots, Kylan deGhetaldi, Jared DiBartolomeo, Richard Dowling, Richard Duree, Marty Eggers, Lisa Gonick, Dale Hadley, Rosemary Hallum, Frederick Hodges, Brian Holland, Stan Isaacs, Vincent Matthew Johnson, Max Keenlyside, Carl Sonny Leyland, Frank LiVolsi, Carl Lunsford, Jonathan Meredith, Larisa Migachyov, Alethea Sung-Miller, Bruce Mitchell, Oliver Moore, Ezequiel Palleia, Will Perkins, David Thomas Roberts, Jack Rummel, Christoph Schmetterer, Sean Sharp, Martin Spitznagel, Squeek Steele, Stanley Stern & Mario Oieda, Adam Swanson, Virginia Tichenor, John Reed Torres, Stephanie Trick, Ian Whitcomb, Ryan Wishner, Dick Zimmerman, Ivory&Gold®, Raspberry Jam Band, Porcupines, Sullivans/Drivons, Pacific Coast Ragtime Orchestra, and Special Guest Max Morath.
All-events badges cost $105, and $115 after Nov. 1; Fri-Sat badges $95; Sat-Sun $85; Fri $50, Sat $60; Sun $40 through Oct. 31. (916) 457-3324; westcoastragtime.com/.
SAN DIEGO JAZZ FEST (San Diego, CA) Nov. 22-26
The Town & Country Resort and Convention Center, 500 Hotel Circle North, San Diego, serves as festival headquarters for the 38th Annual San Diego Jazz Fest, as continuous music enlivens seven different rooms. Invited guest artists this year include Stephanie Trick, Paolo Alderighi, Katie Cavera, Chloe Feoranzo, and Carl Sonny Leyland, with invited bands and groups The Original Cornell Syncopators, High Sierra J.B., Dave Bennett Quartet, High Society J.B., Big Butter J.B., Kris Tokarski Quintet, Memphis Speed Kings, Night Blooming Jazzmen, Uptown Lowdown J.B., Sue Palmer and her Motel Swing Orchestra, Grand Dominion J.B., Titanic J.B., Euphoria Brass Band, Frederick Hodges & the Crown Syncopators, The World’s Finest Apples, Yerba Buena Stompers, Jazz Jammers, Mad Hat Hucksters, Uptown Rhythm Makers, Champagne Dixie, Mission Bay HS Preservationists, Saturday Swing Dance, and more to be announced.
All Event Badges: 5-Days $115 each; 4-Days $110 each; 3-Days $105 each; daily badges available at the door. Please write: AFCDJS, P.O. Box 880387, San Diego, CA 92168-0387; call 619-297-5277; or email: jazzinfo@SDjazzfest.org; visit us at www.sdjazzfest.org/
Festival lodging will be at the Town & Country Resort and Convention Center, 500 Hotel Circle North, San Diego, CA, 92108.; 800-772-8527 or 619-291-7131. Please ask for Jazz Festival reservations for the festival rates, which start at $109 per night, not including fees and taxes.
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