Scott Hamilton & Friends 2/24

The Stanford Jazz Festival is pleased to present a performance of tenor saxophonist Scott Hamilton on Friday, February 24, at Dinkelspiel Auditorium on the campus of Stanford University. In this special performance, Scott not only teams up with his local favorite co-stars in the Larry Vuckovich Trio, he expands his usual quartet format to include the great vocalist Kenny Washington, the incendiary young trumpet star Erik Jekabson, and Latin percussionist John Santos. The combination of these dynamic artists gives Scott a wider palette and more interactive potential than Bay Area audiences are accustomed to hearing from him, promising a very rare night of top-flight jazz.

With a resume that begins with Roy Eldridge, Jo Jones, and Benny Goodman, Scott Hamilton knows the jazz tradition and language inside and out. In the years since his time with those late, great artists, Scott has taken his full-toned tenor in wonderful directions of his own. Over 40 albums and as many international tours later, Scott is widely regarded as one of the most talented jazz artists in the world.

In addition to the beloved master pianist himself, the Larry Vuckovich Trio is powered by bassist Jeff Chambers and drummer Chuck McPherson, whose combined credits include stints with the top artists such as Freddie Hubbard, Roberta Flack, Harold Land, Dizzy Gillespie, Les McCann, Eddie Harris, Benny Carter, Tommy Flanagan, and Joe Henderson — and that’s just scratching the surface.

Expect an evening of jazz fireworks!

Scott Hamilton plays “more swinging, inventive, and hot tenor sax than anyone else on the scene today.” —Down Beat Magazine

“. . . any discussion of the best jazz piano players in the world must now include Larry Vuckovich!” —KSJS, San Jose

Tickets for this special performance of Stanford Jazz Festival are on sale now. Buy tickets by phone: 650-725-ARTS (2787). Buy tickets online:www.stanfordjazztickets.org . See complete lineup and details atwww.stanfordjazz.org. For more information, call 650-736-0324.

SJF alumna up for GRAMMY® on The Mosaic Project

Several Stanford Jazz Festival artists are up for GRAMMY® awards for their participation on Terri Lyne Carrington’s new CD, The Mosaic Project, on Concord Records. SJF alumna on the disc include pianist Geri Allen, trumpeter/flugelhorn player Ingrid Jensen, vocalist Gretchen Parlato, and clarinetist/saxophonist Anat Cohen, all of whom contributed beautiful parts to the fascinating arrangements on this excellent album. Other great musicians among the all-female personnel on this fine recording include Dianne Reeves, Dee Dee Bridgewater, Nona Hendryx, Cassandra Wilson, Esperanza Spalding, Helen Sung, and Tineke Postma, in addition to Terri Lyne herself on drums.

The Mosaic Project is nominated for Best Jazz Vocal Album. Find out more about it by clicking here.

Stanford Jazz Festival artists get GRAMMY® nominations

Congratulations to jazz pianists Fred Hersch and Gerald Clayton, who each have albums nominated for GRAMMY® awards in the Best Jazz Instrumental Album category. In addition to the nomination for Alone at the Vanguard, Fred has been nominated for Best Jazz Solo for his solo on “Work,” also from Alone at the Vanguard. Gerald’s CD is called Bond: the Paris Sessions. Both pianists performed at the 2010 Stanford Jazz Festival.

Click here to go to the official Fred Hersch website.

Click here to go to the official Gerald Clayton website.

Bird with Strings airs this Sunday on KCSM

One of the highlights of the 2011 Stanford Jazz Festival wasBird with Strings on July 16, which featured SJW faculty member Andrew Speight on alto saxophone, the Alexander String Quartet with guests, and a killin’ rhythm section. They performed arrangements written for Charlie Parker and strings by the best arrangers in jazz; performing these arrangements was pretty much the focus of Charlie Parker’s life in early 1950s, so their significance can’t be overstated. But if you attended Jazz Camp or Jazz Residency, this concert happened before you arrived at Stanford, so you couldn’t catch this prime opportunity to hear this great music played by Andrew at his bebop best.

You and anyone else who missed the original performance of this amazing show are in luck! KCSM Jazz 91.1 FM will broadcast the performance this Sunday evening, September 25, at 8:00 p.m. Pacific time! Hosted by Jim Bennett on his In The Moment show, the performance was not only historic — many of the arrangements have not been heard since Charlie Parker himself performed them — but it was also music of the highest caliber.

This Sunday evening, September 25, at 8:00 p.m., you can tune in via radio or the internet to hear the concert: visit KCSM’s web site for more information by clicking here.

For more info about Jim Bennett and the In The Moment show, click here.

You can read the program notes from the original concert by downloading a PDF file here, and see the original event information on the Stanford Jazz Festival web site here.

Lee Hildebrand wrote an excellent article on Andrew Speight for the San Francisco Chronicle just prior to the performance of Bird with Strings; you can read it here.

See photos of the original performance by clicking here.

For more information on Andrew Speight, visit his own website here, and see his page on the San Francisco State University web site here.

Don’t forget to tune in this Sunday!

Win tickets to Bill Charlap and Renee Rosnes this Saturday, July 9

Bill Charlap and Renee Rosnes are two of the best jazz pianists in the world. And they’re married. So when they decided to perform together at the Stanford Jazz Workshop, they had a tough compromise to make: Who was bringing the rhythm section?

Bassist Peter Washington and drummer Lewis Nash are the beneficiaries of this decision. But so are you, as together, Renee and Bill have been playing with Peter and Lewis for well over a decade; this is going to be one heck of a great show! The performance is Saturday night at 8 p.m. in Dinkelspiel Auditorium on the campus of Stanford University, and you can be there for free!

Just be among the first 10 people to answer this question correctly: From whose trio did Peter Washington and Lewis Nash come originally, from Bill’s or from Renee’s?

The winning answers must be correct for both Peter and Lewis!

Email your answer to [email protected]. Winners will be notified by return email. Tickets will be held at Will Call on the evening of the performance, on July 9. Box office opens 1 hour prior to showtime, at 7 p.m.

Good luck!

 

SJW iPhone app now available

sjf-2013-ios_icon-v2 FINALKeep up with the Stanford Jazz Festival, Jazz Camp, and Jazz Residency on the go! This app is a guide to the Stanford Jazz Workshop’s summer Jazz Festival and related activities, such as Jazz Camps, Summer Classes and Special Events. It contains comprehensive information about all of the festival’s concerts, artists, venues, sponsors and ticketing, and it allows you to explore all of these in whatever level of detail you desire.

Click here to download the SJW iPhone app now!

SF Chronicle interviews Andrew Speight in Sunday Datebook

Of the music of Charlie Parker, Andrew Speight told Chronicle writer Lee Hildebrand that “It had all the precision and beauty of Bach or Mozart.” The fascinating article delves deep into Andrew’s upbringing in a jazz-focused family in Australia, and is available in today’s Sunday San Francisco Chronicle, or you can read it online by clicking here. Andrew performs a special concert of the music of Charlie Parker this coming Saturday, July 16, at 8 p.m. in Dinkelspiel Auditorium on the Stanford campus. Called “Bird with Strings,” the show will present arrangements written for Charlie Parker at his request that showcase his superb melodic gifts backed by strings, oboe, and rhythm section. This is a rare opportunity to hear one of the great modern exponents of bebop (Andrew Speight) interpreting these astonishing arrangements, and you can find out more by clicking here.

2011 official Festival lineup released

Alright, jazz fans, here’s the part you’ve been waiting for: The official lineup for the 2011 Stanford Jazz Festival, June 24 – August 6. Tickets go on sale on May 2! All events on the Stanford campus at Dinkelspiel Auditorium or Campbell Recital Hall.

Opening Night

Two nights! Rare Bay Area appearance!

SJW announces 2011 Jazz Festival

Allen_ToussaintProviding an intimate interaction of jazz and community found nowhere else, the Stanford Jazz Festival is pleased to announce the lineup of its 40th season. Beginning on June 24 with Grammy®-winning, New Orleans-based living legend Allen Toussaint (at right), presenting rare appearances by the great Brazilian songwriter and singer Milton Nascimento, and winding up in August with an all-star week that includes Joe Lovano and the Bad Plus, the Festival will present upwards of 100 of the world’s greatest jazz artists in the comfortable and convenient setting of the Stanford University campus.
JIm_NadelUnique among jazz festivals in the way it brings great jazz artists together to collaborate and to work closely with students, the Stanford Jazz Festival is the result of the vision of founder and Artistic and Executive Director Jim Nadel (pictured, left). “Our community-based approach to teaching and nurturing jazz has resonated with a great many musicians over the years,” says Nadel. “The musicians’ love for the music and the open exchange of ideas have been the key ingredients in the success of our Jazz Camp and Jazz Residency programs as well as the world-class performances that characterize the Stanford Jazz Festival.”

Milton_NascimentoAs he’s done for each of the Festival seasons since 1972, Nadel has put together a compelling mix of styles and talent that includes living legends of jazz (Allen Toussaint, Oscar Castro-Neves, George Cables, Milton Nascimento – pictured right, Ndugu Chancler, and Jimmy and Tootie Heath), international marquee artists (Gary Burton, Bill Frisell, Irvin Mayfield, Wallace Roney, Robben Ford, Bill Charlap, and Renee Rosnes), and buzz-generating younger musicians (Gretchen Parlato, Anat Cohen, Claudia Acuña, Charlie Hunter, Scott Amendola, Marcus Shelby, Taylor Eigsti, Julian Lage, and Yosvany Terry).

Madeline_EastmanUnderscoring the status of the Stanford Jazz Workshop’s programs as among the elite in all of jazz education, well over half of this year’s Stanford Jazz Festival events feature performers who are alumni or faculty of the Jazz Camp or Jazz Residency programs, which run concurrently with the Festival between July 17 and August 5 this year. Among the superstar faculty and former students who will appear are Madeline Eastman (pictured left), Larry Grenadier, Jenny Scheinman, Ruth Davies, Ethan Iverson, Taylor Eigsti, Julian Lage, Victor Lin, Patrick Wolff, Bennett Paster, and Joe Gilman.

Claudia_AcunaWhile Nadel often features his passion for bebop in his programming, his vision encompasses all styles. In 2011, Festival fans will be treated to a rainbow of world jazz, including Brazilian (two special shows with Milton Nascimento, Oscar Castro-Neves), Chilean (Claudia Acuña, pictured right), Colombian (Edmar Castaneda), and Afro-Cuban (Yosvany Terry). For classic standards and swing, the Festival has several special shows, including clarinetist Ken Peplowski; Unforgettable: A Tribute to Nat “King” Cole featuring vocalist Allan Harris; and For Singing and Swinging: The Great American Songsmiths featuring Clairdee and Bobbe Norris. Bassist Ruth Davies hosts the perennial favorite Blues Night, which this year features the world-renowned guitarist Robben Ford as the special guest artist.

Complete details on the 2011 Stanford Jazz Festival lineup will be available here by the end of April. Festival artist information will include song samples and video clips, so ticket buyers can sample each performance.

Tickets for the Stanford Jazz Festival go on sale May 2. Buy tickets by phone: 650-725-ARTS (2787). Buy tickets online by clicking the buttons on this page once they’re active on May 2. For more information, call 650-736-0324.

The Stanford Jazz Festival is presented by the jazz education nonprofit Stanford Jazz Workshop, in conjunction with presenting sponsor See’s Candies. Stanford Jazz Workshop has been bringing the best in jazz to local audiences and jazz musicians through both the festival and its summer education programs for youth and adults for nearly 40 years, and is funded in part by the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation and the National Endowment for the Arts.