BET Jazz: The Jazz Channel and the St. Lucia Tourist Board will present a stellar and diversified lineup for the 14th annual St. Lucia Jazz, scheduled for April 29th-May 8th, 2005. Considered the “best party in the Caribbean," St. Lucia Jazz attracts over 10,000 visitors a year. The festival showcases more than a dozen acts in a variety of venues around the island known for its natural beauty and friendly people.
St. Lucia Jazz features multiple shows daily, including acoustic, new age and straight-ahead jazz, soul, fusion and R&B. Unique to St. Lucia Jazz are the festival's “fringe" events, which are held in a variety of locations and venues around the island. The “fringe" activities provide an opportunity for travelers to experience the entire island and its culture, along with musical performances. For example, concerts will take place in the enchanting venue of Balembouche, an old colonial plantation and cultural heritage site, and free performances at noon on Derek Walcott Square in the capital of Castries.
The confirmed lineup to date for St. Lucia Jazz 2005 includes: R&B artists New Edition; The Isley Brothers featuring Ron Isley; Chanté Moore and Kenny Lattimore; UK reggae band UB40; famed veteran Jazz saxophonist Pharaoh Sanders; trumpeter Chris Botti; Jazz vocalist Kevin Mahogany; local musician Rob “Zi" Taylor; and Tracy Hamlin. In addition, opening St. Lucia Jazz is international reggae artist Beenie Man.
For more information and tickets, visit the official St. Lucia Jazz Web site at www.stluciajazz.org, or contact the St. Lucia Tourist Board toll-free (888) 4-ST-LUCIA. Information on St. Lucia is also available online at www.stlucia.org, the official site of the St. Lucia Tourist Board.
About St. Lucia Jazz
Since its establishment in 1992, St. Lucia Jazz has grown in magnitude and stature to become one of the preeminent Jazz Festivals in the world. World-class artists such as R&B legends Smokey Robinson, Gladys Knight and Patti Labelle, Marlena Shaw, Carlos Santana, Kenny “Babyface" Edmonds, and jazz greats Dr. Billy Taylor, Maynard Ferguson, Wynton Marsalis, Branford Marsalis, Herbie Hancock, Stanley Jordan, Roy Hargrove, James Carter and George Benson have all played before an audience of St. Lucian locals and international tourists. For more information about the St. Lucia Jazz Festival, please visit http://www.stluciajazz.org.
About BET Jazz: The Jazz Channel
BET Jazz: The 24 Hour Jazz Channel, a subsidiary of BET and Viacom, Inc. (NYSE: VIA and VIA.B), is the principle location for the fulfillment of all jazz interests. The network is the first and only 24-hour television programming service dedicated exclusively to jazz music and culture, and reaches more than 10 million homes according to Nielsen Media Research. BET Jazz features many of the finest names in jazz through in-studio performances, festivals, concert coverage and celebrity interviews. Many of the shows feature original programming as well as historic footage unavailable on any other television network.
For more information contact All About Jazz.
