July 31-August 2, 2009
Grounds of Kent School, Kent, CT
The Litchfield Jazz Festival, now in its fourteenth summer, is thrilled to announce the 2009 line-up and its move to the gorgeous campus of Kent School in Kent, Connecticut. This summers festival, named a Top 100 Festival for the second time, will be held July 31 August 2. Kent is known as the cultural heart of the Litchfield Hills with an array of art galleries, cafes, shops and more. The weekend includes an opening night Friends of the Festival Gala hosted at The Morrison Gallery, three days of jazz, fine arts and craft exhibitors, a variety of food vendors and performances on a second stage by students from Litchfield Jazz Camp.
14th Annual Litchfield Jazz Festival Line-up
Friday, July 31:
Friends of the Festival Gala at The Morrison Gallery
Lewis Nash Quintet
Jane Monheit
Saturday, August 1:
Dafnis Prieto Si o Si Quartet
Trio Da Paz with vocalist Leny Andrade
Wycliffe Gordon & Jay Leonhart Quartet
Benny Green and Bucky Pizzarelli
Bill Henderson Quartet
Preservation Hall Jazz Band
Sunday, August 2:
Ted Nash Quartet - The Mancini Project
Lionel Loueke Trio
Dena DeRose Quartet featuring Claudio Roditi
Houston Person Quartet
Poncho Sanchez Latin Jazz Band
Over the years the festival has presented legends like Sonny Rollins, Tito Puente and Ray Charles as well as introduced new talent and fostered the careers of Diana Krall, Brad Mehldau, Jane Monheit and many others. This year, the Festival known for booking the best in jazz, (JazzPolice.com) presents the Preservation Hall Jazz Band, Bucky Pizzarelli, Poncho Sanchez, Jane Monheit, Wycliffe Gordon, Houston Person and many more. Tickets start at $35. Children under 12 are free on the lawn. For more information and tickets visit litchfieldjazzfest.com or call 860-567-4162. Make a weekend of it and enjoy your stay in Kent; visit kentct.com for B&Bs, restaurants, art galleries and more.
About the 14th Annual Litchfield Jazz Festival
Litchfield Performing Arts announces the 14th Annual Litchfield Jazz Festival, now at Kent School in Kent, CT. The line-up is set and tickets are on sale now at litchfieldjazzfest.com. Kent's gorgeous campus on the banks of the Housatonic River provide the perfect backdrop for the festival, said Vita West Muir, Executive & Artistic Director of the non-profit which produces the festival and its teaching arm, Litchfield Jazz Camp. The acclaimed festival was named for a second time this year a Top 100 Event & Festival in the US and Canada. Festivities kick off with the hot-ticket Friends of the Festival Gala on Friday evening, July 31, at The Morrison Gallery just down the road from the Festival grounds. Hors doeuvres and small plates are provided by co-sponsors Fife n Drum, Docs Trattoria and Bulls Bridge Inn and complemented by micro-brews, premium wines and music by outstanding students of Litchfield Jazz Camp. Opening Night performances follow under the Main Stage tent, at 7:45. First up, the powerhouse drummer Lewis Nash with his Quintet - Jeremy Pelt, Renee Rosnes, Peter Washington and Jimmy Greene. Nash has had a major career as a leader and working with Betty Carter, Ron Carter, Branford Marsalis, Tommy Flanagan and others. Headlining the evening is the lovely and talented vocalist, Jane Monheit.
Saturday, August 1 starts off with Dafnis Prietos Si O Si Quartet. AllAboutJazz.com called Dafnis easily the most impressive young drummer [in] the past decade. At 1:45 pm, Trio da Paz is joined by Brazils premier vocalist and reigning queen of bossa nova, Leny Andrade. Next up at 3:30 is The Wycliffe Gordon and Jay Leonhart Quartet. Gordon, internationally renowned trombonist/vocalist and Leonhart, a fixture on the New York scene with vocalists like Barbara Carroll and Ann Hampton Calloway, are joined by pianist Ted Rosenthal and drummer Alvin Atkinson. At 5:15 another duo takes the stage--two masters of swing, two generations apart--guitarist Bucky Pizzarelli and pianist Benny Green. Next, at 7:00 pm is the Bill Henderson Quartet. Eighty-three-year-old vocalist, Henderson's impressive career includes movie and television roles as well as vocal performances. His colleagues have included Ramsey Lewis, Horace Silver, Art Blakey, and Oscar Peterson. Winding up the day is the iconic Preservation Hall Jazz Band. Traveling world-wide since the founding in 1961 of the venerable Preservation Hall in the heart of New Orleans French Quarter, the band embodies a joyful, timeless spirit. Its current director, Ben Jaffe, is the son of the Halls founders.
Opening on Sunday, August 2, at noon is the Ted Nash Quartet The Mancini Project. Saxophonist Nash has an instantly identifiable talent that makes the distracted pay attention, Time Out Magazine. This project was born of Nash's deep connection to composer Henry Mancini (The Pink Panther, Moon River,) through his father, Dick Nash, who performed with Mancini for years. At 1:30 African guitarist and vocalist Lionel Loueke makes his festival debut. Born in Benin, a tiny country in West Africa, he grew up in poverty. In love with music, he determined to make it his life and embarked on a journey that took him first to Paris and then to Berklee College of Music in Boston. There he met the musicians who form his Trio today. The next performer, at 3:30 has been called the most creative and compelling singer-pianist since Shirley Horn. This is a second appearance for Grammy-nominated pianist/vocalist Dena DeRose. Her band includes Matt Wilson on drums, Martin Wind on bass, guitarist/vocalist Henry Johnson special guest trumpeter Claudio Roditi. Dena will spend the week leading up to festival as the vocal instructor at Litchfield Jazz Camp. Dizzy Gillespie called the next performer one of the best, and his appearance on this festival is long overdue. Legendary saxophonist Houston Person is perhaps best known for his long musical partnership with the late, great Etta Jones, but hes recorded over 75 albums as a leader. And closing the Litchfield Jazz Festivals first summer in Kent is Grammy-Award winning conga player Poncho Sanchez with his Latin Jazz Band, at 7:00 pm. A protege of Cal Tjader, Poncho brought down the house 10 years ago at Litchfield, and he is sure to do it again.
Jazz Superstar Diana Krall, who made her US festival debut on the inaugural Litchfield Jazz Festival in 1996, was recently asked if she remembered that performance. Remember it? she said. I even remember what I was wearing! She went on to call Litchfield one of the best festivals. Litchfield has a reputation for being a launching pad for new talent, while it pays homage jazz giants. Jam-packed with A-list jazz musicians, (JazzTimes) it presents a model jazz lineup (New York Times).
Premium tickets are $350 for Best Friends VIP weekend passes and $150 for the opening gala and performance. These include upfront seating and VIP parking. Advance-purchase general admission tickets start at $35. Discounted multi-day passes are available until June 19th. Children under 12 are admitted free on the lawn with an adult.
The Litchfield Jazz Festival is sponsored in part by the Connecticut Commission on Culture and Tourism, Steinway & Sons, The Republican-American, Down Beat, Kent Chamber of Commerce, Litchfield Magazine, Northeast Beverage Corporation of Connecticut, Magic Hat, Crystal Rock Water, WAMC Radio, Continental Airlines, LPA Members and others. Litchfield Jazz Camp students, who study for up to a month prior to The Festival and perform on the student stage, participate through generous support from the CT State Department of Education Interdistrict Grants. For tickets visit litchfieldjazzfest.com or call 860-567-4162.
For more information contact All About Jazz.
