Dates: June 1-10, 2012
Highlights of the 2012 DC Jazz Festival
- June 4 - Jazz Meets the Classics, co-presented by the Kennedy Center, will feature an all-star lineup performing unique and exciting jazz interpretations of works by Bach, Chopin, Mozart, Rachmaninoff and Tchaikovsky. Headlining the concert is the Classical Jazz Quartet, with NEA Jazz Masters bassist Ron Carter and pianist Kenny Barron, vibraphonist Stefon Harris and drummer Lewis Nash. Also headlining is NEA Jazz Master and 10-time Grammy Award-winner Paquito
D'Rivera, joined by Spain’s Pepe Rivero Trio, Michael Phillip Mossman and Pernell Saturnino.
- Jazz in the ‘Hoods program highlights the innovative CapitalBop D.C. Jazz Loft, Bohemian Caverns, and more than 80 performances at over 50 museums, clubs, restaurants, hotels, and galleries across the city. The annual series showcases many DC-based jazz groups at a variety of free and ticketed performances held in 21 neighborhoods, including Adams Morgan, Capitol Hill, Chinatown, Downtown, Dupont Circle, Foggy Bottom, Georgetown, the H Street Corridor, Southeast, Southwest, Takoma Park, the U Street Corridor and Woodley Park. The D.C. Jazz Loft Series – which added a new, edgy, innovative dimension to last year's Festival – returns with performances from some of the nation’s most renowned, boundary-pushing musicians. See the full schedule.
- June 2-3 - Jazz ‘n’ Families Fun Days - The free event at The Phillips Collection is geared towards families with performances from the finest jazz musicians from around the region who improvise pieces inspired by paintings in museum’s intimate galleries. Children can participate in a variety of fun-filled activities to introduce them to the rich traditions of jazz and art, including an instrument petting zoo, storytelling and hands-on art workshops where they can create their own jazz-inspired artwork.
- Jazz at the Hamilton - Located in the heart of Downtown DC, The Hamilton will feature 10 nights of performances with such noted
artists as Randy Weston, Monty Alexander, the Brass-A-Holics with the legendary Chuck Brown as a
special guest, Roy Hargrove, Jimmy Heath, David Sanchez, Les Nubians, Antonio Hart, Cyrus Chestnut,
Jonathan Batiste, Ben Williams, Etienne Charles, John Scofield, Roberta Gambarini, Charlie Sepulveda, Akua Allrich and Marshall Keys, as well as Jazz Gospel brunches with the WPAS Gospel Choir and Lori Williams.
- Jazz at the Howard - The newly restored and reopened historic Howard Theatre celebrates the tradition of jazz in DC with headline artists including multiple Grammy Award-winning vocalist Dianne Reeves and famed Italian guitarist Pino Daniele.
History of the DC Jazz Festival
The Duke Ellington Jazz Festival was created in 2004 to present major jazz artists and celebrate the history of music in Washington DC. After years of success, in 2010 the event was re-branded and named the DC Jazz Festival to highlight the national and international impact of jazz in the nation’s capital. The event is produced by Festivals DC, an organization to develop cultural and educational programs in Washington, DC. The DCJF presents year-round programs with performances featuring local, nationally and internationally acclaimed artists that promote music integration in school curricula, and actively support community outreach to expand and diversify its audience of jazz enthusiasts. The DC Jazz Festival is sponsored in part with a grant from the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA), the Mid-Atlantic Arts Foundation, and by the DC Commission on the Arts and Humanities, an agency supported in part by the National Endowment for the Arts.Official Website: www.dcjazzfest.org
