Nearly 38,000 Fans Attend Historic Performances,
September 18-20
“The No. 1 attraction on opening night — if not the entire festival — was ‘Jaco’s World: A Celebration of the Music of Jaco Pastorius’ …The music was bold and beautiful, with a dash of daring for proper seasoning.” –San Jose Mercury News
“Chris Botti, whose band nearly ushered in Monday morning on the Jimmy Lyons Stage, walked out during part of his set and played to audience members as vocalist Sy Smith serenaded a different part of the crowd on the arena floor. His big sounding nonet is perfectly suited for large outdoor settings, and its energy concluded the weekend with a buzz.” –SFGate.com
“…this one seemed to have it all — bluegrass (the Brothers Comatose) an abundance of gifted bass players, tributes to greats like [Jaco] Pastorius and [Clark] Terry, birthdays, unique pairings (Corea-Fleck), a band that features banjo, accordion and tuba (Musette Explosion), a bevy of great females vocalists, and on and on. An embarrassment of riches, really.” –Monterey County Herald
“Monterey, we’re back!’’ Shorty (a.k.a. Troy Andrews) shouted, to much love from the crowd on the warm September afternoon, as a group of Festival regulars with multi-colored umbrellas did their own version of line dancing down the aisles. Finishing with a bravura cadenza of an impossibly extended trumpet solo, Shorty had the crowd collectively holding its breath…” –No Depression
“[Ambrose Akimusire’s] The Forgotten Places on an early Saturday evening audience in the arena…emerged intricate, melodic, innovative and entrancing.” –Monterey County Weekly
“Dianne Reeves, queen of vocal jazz, had thousands literally lighting up the night with cellphone lights on a compelling ballad and sighing happily on each number sang in her basement-level baritone to third-octave soprano voice.” —Inland Valley Daily Bulletin
“Of all the festivals I have attended…this is by far the most welcoming and accessible. At the same time, it remains a well-respected hub of the bleeding edge of jazz music today. This is definitely the place to go if you are either completely inexperienced with jazz and want to learn more, or if you’re a seasoned expert.” –SF Bands and Music Magazine
“…the festival, under inspired artistic director Tim Jackson’s wise, idiomatically ecumenical watch, is a fine model of how to present a jazz festival which pays respects to all the many branches and legacies of jazz, from the historicist perspective to more adventurous artists on the current scene.” –All About Jazz
“…the Monterey Jazz Festival endures as a gathering place for the greats.”
–San Francisco Chronicle
“…one of the genre’s most beloved and globally praised annual events…”
–San Jose Mercury News
October 5, 2014, Monterey, CA: The 58th Annual Monterey Jazz Festival wrapped up Sunday, September 20 after an exceptionally hot weekend of debut artists, returning masters and new favorites. 37,895 fans came through the gates of the Monterey County Fairgrounds during the weekend of September 18-20, a nearly one percent increase from 2014. The weekend featured diverse styles of music from around the globe, from classic piano trios and big bands to modern jazz and Latin, Caribbean-styled jazz and fusion, mixed with engaging conversations, films, and comprehensive exhibits for 108 events over the weekend.
Musical Highlights: Friday
The Festival began on Friday, September 18 with the highly-anticipated Erroll Garner Project from Geri Allen, which proved to be one of the historic highlights of the weekend. The performance from the Chick Corea Trilogy Trio with Christian McBride and Brian Blade showed why they are one of the top groups in the world, with their telepathic interplay. The sprawling Jaco’s World showcased some of the top musicians in jazz today in a high energy tribute to the influential bassist, Jaco Pastorius.
On the Grounds, the Berklee Global Jazz Ambassadors got the music off to a youthful start on the Garden Stage, followed by the atavistic sounds of Musette Explosion, and the exuberant bluegrass of The Brothers Comatose. Dizzy’s Den hosted the electric Kurt Rosenwinkel New Quartet and Terence Blanchard featuring the E-Collective. Both shows were filled to capacity as was the Night Club, with a diverse lineup of the Dennis Murphy Band, Cyrille Aimée and Theo Croker and DVRKFUNK.
The Monty Alexander trio kicked off his weekend-long residency in the Coffee House Gallery with Jeff Hamilton and John Clayton, in what would be perhaps the most in-demand shows of MJF58, with standing room only crowds.
Musical Highlights: Saturday
As the temperatures rose on Saturday, the Arena shows began with Nikki Hill as she kicked off a high energy afternoon of blues and rock and roll, followed by Lucky Peterson and Trombone Shorty and Orleans Avenue. The evening performances, in a still very warm fairgrounds included Ambrose Akinmusire’s The Forgotten Places, a work that delighted – and perplexed — people in its orchestration and sound. The 2016 edition of Monterey Jazz Festival on Tour took a romp through contemporary post-bop, and the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra, led by Wynton Marsalis, played a meticulous set of classic songs to an appreciative audience.
The Garden Stage Presented by HepcHope.com was alive with the blues with performances from Sonny Knight & the Lakers, energetic second sets from Nikki Hill and Lucky Peterson, the Caribbean swagger of Etienne Charles & Creole Soul, and the avant-rock of Kneebody. Dizzy’s Den hosted two informative panel sessions about the Erroll Garner Project, followed by the 20thDownBeat Blindfold Test with Pete Escovedo and Sheila E. The program for the rest of Saturday in Dizzy’s Den traversed many styles, including the bop of Crossing Borders, fusion from Wasabi, the soulful vocalist Lizz Wright, and the Latin jazz of the John Santos Sextet.
The Coffee House began the day with a percussion discussion with Peter Erskine and Jeff Hamilton, followed by the Berklee Global Jazz Ambassadors, and two standing-room-only shows from Monty Alexander. The Night Club was also a cornucopia of traditional and modern jazz, from the SFJAZZ High School All-Stars and the US Marine Corps All Star Jazz Band, to Dan Zinn, vocalist Allan Harris, guitarist David Gilmore, and a second set from Ambrose Akinmusire.
Musical Highlights: Sunday
With temperatures in the low 90s, more than 20 degrees over the average, Sunday’s Arena shows began with a youthful start with the 2015 Next Generation Jazz Orchestra, which featured the country’s finest high school student musicians and Artist-In-Residence, Wynton Marsalis and Ted Nash. Snarky Puppy then took the stage in their highly-anticipated and exuberant return to Monterey, followed by the Pete Escovedo Latin Jazz Orchestra with Sheila E.
The evening’s Arena performances, now accompanied by a reasonable temperature, were kicked off by the Chick Corea and Bela Fleck, playing classic jazz and jazzy classical, in a superb set. Dianne Reeves had the Arena in a feel-good mood with a set of contemporary jazz, and Chris Botti showed why he is one of the world’s best-loved entertainers with a set that crossed genres and styles in a show-stopping finale.
In the Night Club, the inspiring end energetic winning bands from the 2015 Next Generation Jazz Festival performed along with the Festival’s own honor bands, with the final evening shows with the cutting edge Rudresh Mahanthappa and a final set from the Monterey Jazz Festival on Tour.
All Saturday and Sunday, an expanded lineup of 17 events took place on the North Coast Brewing Company Jazz Education Stage, ranging from student groups, from Next Generation Jazz Orchestra combos and alumni, to student jam sessions, a percussion workshop hosted by John Santos and presented by Kaiser Permanente, along with tai chi classes presented by HepcHope.com, and movement workshops presented by Community Hospital of the Monterey Peninsula.
Dizzy’s Den highlights included a celebration of A Love Supreme panel talk with Ravi Coltrane and Rudresh Mahanthappa, followed by standards from Michael O’Neal and Kenny Washington, and three expert sets by Jazz at Lincoln Center Ensembles. The Garden Stage, presented by HepcHope.com also had stellar performances by winning Next Generation top college bands – the University of Miami Frost School of Music “Extensions” and the Central Washington University Big Band I, followed by the hard gospel of the Jones Family Singers, the debonair Kyle Eastwood, the virtuoso vocal group Duchess, and the young pianist, Justin Kauflin.
The Coffee House remembered jazz education icon and MJF hero Clark Terry, followed by the Next Generation Jazz Festival top groups, the Pacific Crest Jazz and University of the Pacific combos, and Monty Alexander once again packed them in with two final sets of hard bop to end the evening.
All weekend long, James Francies was featured on the Courtyard Stage, and the Coffee House Galley exhibit presented the artwork of Leo Meiersdorff, and a special retrospective on John Coltrane’s A Love Supreme.
The Jazz Theater also showed simulcasts of the Arena performances, as well as screenings of Jaco and Keep On Keepin’ On, documentaries about Jaco Pastorius and Clark Terry.
The Festival also repeated the installation of grass sod in the Arena, providing a green carpet for patrons to enjoy during the weekend. After the Festival, the grass sod was donated to the Monterey community for free.
2015 Partners Add Excitement to the Weekend
Partners provided activities and events throughout the weekend to enhance the Festival experience for our patrons. HepcHope.com presented the Garden Stage, Amoeba Records was set up at the center of the Midway with their always-popular artist meet and greets and record signings. North Coast Brewing Company, celebrating their 10th year as Official Monterey Jazz Festival Beers, hosted the North Coast Brewing Jazz Education Pavilion for the third year in a row. Scheid Family Wines, Official Wines of Monterey Jazz Festival, hosted the District 7 Premier Club, and DownBeat, JazzTimes, The Jazz Cruise, Larabar, Nature Valley, Macy’s, and others hosted booths on the Midway. In addition to providing instruments for the Festival, Yamaha hosted the Yamaha Experience Tent all weekend and the popular Instrument Petting Zoo featured during Sunday’s Family Day.
The announcement of 2015 Monterey Jazz Festival Arena and Grounds artists will be made in spring 2016, when tickets for the 59th Monterey Jazz Festival will be available for purchase.
The 59th Annual Monterey Jazz Festival will take place on the Monterey County Fairgrounds, September 16-18, 2016, with more than 500 artists performing on 8 stages for 3 nights and 2 days of the world’s best jazz.
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For more information, high-resolution pictures and interview opportunities please contact:
Timothy Orr
Marketing Associate, Monterey Jazz Festival
Direct Line: 831.646.8670
Monterey Office: 831.373.3366
[email protected]
www.montereyjazzfestival.org