This free festival will be filled with multiple stages of entertainment. Art in the Heart Downtown Art Show & Sale, Wine Down Tasting Experience, Generation Next Youth Talent Competition, Jazz Juniors educational activities, jazz exhibits and more will be there. Other festival highlights includes the Jacksonville Jazz Piano Competition, ‘Round Midnight Jazz Jam, Jazz Talks, Sunday Jazz Brunches and other exciting activities.
This year the Jazz Festival offers free performances from renowned artists such as the Sonny Fortune Quartet, Basia and Tito Puente Jr. and his Orchestra.
The parade will be on Sunday, May 30 at 1:30 p.m. The parade in the streets led by JB Scott’s Swingin Allstars! Festival attendees are encouraged to bring their instruments and parasols to participate in this spirited celebration through downtown Jacksonville!
The Charleston Jazz Festival will take place on Saturday, May 8th at the Charleston Music Hall. Kim Waters, Kenny Lattimore and Daniel Davis will be preforming. Join us for the first year of this annual event!
Charleston jazz lovers are in for a treat this spring when local music enthusiast, concert promoter, and producer Steve Simon, the CEO of Steve Simon Presents, brings the first annual Charleston Jazz Festival to the Charleston Music Hall on Sat. May 8.
Headlining the event is award-winning jazz saxophonist Kim Waters with support from R&B vocalist Kenny Lattimore and 20-year-old jazz and hip/hop inspired violinist Daniel Davis. Waters is known for his sultry saxophone melodies, with inspiration coming from the likes of Duke Ellington and George Duke. Lattimore has been in the R&B scene for over a decade and brings his smooth vocal tunes, originals, and tasteful classics. Local jazz violinist-turned-musical star Daniel D. has opened for major players like Kanye West and has performed for President Obama. He and his violin create soulful versions of contemporary songs, like “Billie Jean” and Kanye West’s “Stronger.”
The City of Jacksonville is once again presenting Starry Nights which was well-known as one of Jacksonville’s most popular outdoor events for more than a decade, combining the wonderful sounds of the Jacksonville Symphony Orchestra and an exciting variety of top entertainers. This event creates a festive downtown atmosphere in Metropolitan Park with the beautiful St. Johns River serving as the perfect backdrop.
Here are some of the concert dates and performers.
April 10 – Styx
Styx transformed from a suburban Chicago basement in the early 1970s to the virtual arena rock prototypes by the late 1970s and early 1980s, due to a fondness for big rockers and soaring power ballads. Styx’s mainstream success began with “Lady.” Most of their subsequent releases throughout the late 1970s earned at least platinum certification and spawned such hit singles and classic rock radio standards as “Come Sail Away,” “Renegade,” “Blue Collar Man,” and “Fooling Yourself.”
April 24 – Idina Menzel
Featuring Broadway powerhouse Idina Menzel, the Tony award-winning “Elphaba” from the international blockbuster “Wicked.” With a diverse repertoire of classic pop, musical theater favorites (including hits from “Wicked” and “Rent”) as well as songs from her album “I Stand,” Idina Menzel demonstrates why she is one of the great vocal performers of our time. Catch her this spring on the FOX television series “Glee!”
April 24th – Conductor Matthew Kraemer
Recognized for his “musical sensitivity” and “energized sense of interpretation”, conductor Matthew Kraemer begins his tenure as associate conductor of the Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra in September 2009. In this role he will appear on each of the orchestra’s major series, including subscription weeks, Pops, and Family concerts. He will play a vital role in the BPO’s award winning education and community engagement programs, in addition to assisting Music Director JoAnn Falletta during her Kleinhans Hall weeks, recording sessions and on tour. The 2009-2010 season will also mark his third and final year as associate conductor of the Virginia Symphony. Upcoming season highlights include an all Mozart program and The Music Man with the BPO, Strauss’ Don Juan and Stravinsky’s Firebird with the VSO, and performances with Philippe Quint, Ben Folds, and Chris Botti. He will also debut with the Jacksonville Symphony and the Baltimore Symphony orchestras in the spring of 2010.
