[Dixielandjazz] New Jersey Jazzfest 2003

[Stephen Barbone]

June is a great month for jazz in the New York City / Philadelphia /
Wilmington corridor. As previously posted, the Clifford Brown Fest runs
from 6/15 to 6/22 in Wilmington. From 6/14 to 6/28, the JVC Jazz Fest
runs in NYC, a scant 100 miles North.
And today, I just received a flyer for the New Jersey Jazz Fest 2003,
near Morristown NJ, 50 miles west of NYC.

All three are broad based jazz festivals with some OKOM, some bebop and
some beyond. All have MAJOR JAZZ PLAYERS participating.

You can check out Clifford Brown and JVC easily through google searches.
But NJJF is harder to find for out of the area folks who might be
visiting. It takes place 6/21 and 6/22. Info phone is 800-303-6557,
Tickets $35 per day or $65 for a two day pass, at 973-543-2829, or check
out http:www.njjs.org

There are 3 venues going at the same time.

Saturday 6/21 headliners are: Winard Harper Sextet (think Art Blakey);
Kenny Davern Quartet; Wycliff Gordon Quintet; Bucky Pizzarelli Quartet
(think Django, 2 guitars, violin & bass); Jeanie Bryson Quartet; Bill
Charlap solo piano.

Sunday 6/22 headliners are: Vince Giordano's Nighthawks; Randy Reinhart
Sextet (Think Bix 100th Birthday Tribute); Toshiko Akiyoshi Trio; Norman
Simmons/Eric Alexander Quintet; Hanna Richardson Trio; Jay Leonhart
Trio.

Plus jazz bands from local High Schools and Colleges. (where the future
is)

That's a lot of great music for a mere $65.

And in addition to those musos above, some of whom appear at JVC also,
one can hear:

In the Wilmington area, 6/15 to 6/22 , Duke Ellington JB, Wynton
Marsalis & LCJB, Preservation Hall JB, Arturo Sandoval, Kenny Barron,
Randy Brecker, David Weiss, Terrell Stafford, Roy Hargrove, Herbie
Hancock, Barbone Street JB, Greg Osby plus others all free except LCJB
at $10.

And don't forget that clarinet summit at the Iridium Club in NYC the
week of 6/15 to 6/21, during the JVC Festival. Tony Scott, Buddy
DeFranco, Kenny Davern and a few others will be there together giving
lessons to us mere reed mortals.

Also at JVC one can hear Jon Faddis, Roy Hargrove, Jimmy Heath, Warren
Vache Sr., Phil Woods, Chick Corea, Dave Brubeck, Howard Alden, Joe
Ascione, Dan Barrett, Jon Erik Kellso, Dan Levinson, Ken Peplowski,
Randy Sanke Dick Sudhalter and a whole bunch of other jazz musos. That
will cost a little more as they are either in clubs, or concert halls.

To put it in perspective, if you shop carefully for food and lodging,
for little more than the price of a jazz cruise you can come to the East
Coast and hear many of the best jazz players in the world today,
including some legends, during a 2 week period.

Jazz, in general, lives. And so does OKOM as it makes headway in
"modern" jazz festival venues.

Cheers,
Steve Barbone