This little festival that still can is chugging into its 14th year this week (June 20-27) and is one of the few that, for the most part, boosts the music of its locale, presenting indigenous musicians in something approximating their native environment.
Granted, who wouldn't want to fly to Perugia, Italy, for the Umbria Jazz Festival. (OK, after his notorious, profane outburst in 2007 [watch it here], Keith Jarrett might not feel exactly welcome there.) Montreal is famous for integrating the music into the heart of a beautiful city (as is Quebec City with its annual Festival d't), and SF JAZZ does a fine job of moving patrons around what we provincials agree is the most beautiful city on the planet.
But big-time jazz festivals book big-time touring acts, by and large giving short shrift to the resident musicians who keep the music alive in the clubs and bars day in and day out. Not so the intimate weeklong celebration known as the North Beach Jazz Festival.
For more information contact All About Jazz.
