Date
Friday 20 June 2008 — Sunday 29 June 2008
Location
Various Venues
Edmonton,
Canada
Link
Description
2008 Edmonton International Jazz Festival
A diverse range of sounds and styles come together to create a music medley during the
Edmonton International Jazz Festival (EIJF). Artists from across Canada, the United States,
Cuba, Portugal, Finland and Poland, as well as Edmonton’s home-grown jazz talent, play a
variety of city venues from June 20 - 29, 2008. From big-band to bebop, the 2008 EIJF offers a
style of jazz to suit every taste.
“The term ‘jazz’ is intimidating to many,” says Kent Sangster, Executive Director of the
Edmonton Jazz Festival Society. “With the amazing array of music and talent featured in our
line up, this year’s Festival is the perfect opportunity to hear the genre’s many forms. We have
jazz for everybody, from seasoned aficionados to jazz newbies, for those who want a mellow
groove to those who want to dance the night away.”
The Winspear Centre hosts the Festival’s two headline concerts. The Jazz at Lincoln Center
Orchestra with Grammy-award winning trumpeter Wynton Marsalis play June 25, and Oregonbased
“little orchestra” Pink Martini takes the Winspear stage June 24. Tickets for both these
shows are available now through the Winspear Centre box office.
Several jazz music stars grace the MacLab Theatre stage throughout the EIJF. The Opening
Night Gala concert kicks off the festival Friday, June 20, featuring The Black Heritage Pioneer
Singers and Dixieland Express Jazz Band, with special guest Rollanda Lee. The Edmonton
Jazz Orchestra with 2007 Juno Award-winning Latin Jazz pianist Hilario Duran; John Scofield,
one of the “big three” of current jazz guitarists; jazz master saxophonist Dave Liebman; Molly
Johnson, one of Canada’s top female vocalists; and a-capella group Naturally Seven also play
the MacLab Theatre.
This year, the EIJF makes its Velvet Underground debut with a fountain of funky flavour June 21,
with Brooklyn-based improvisational groove group Out To Lunch and Edmonton’s own Dave
Babcock. Legendary funk and soul master Maceo Parker brings his funky music to the Urban
Lounge for the ultimate wrap-up dance bash on the Festival’s closing night, June 29.
With a show every night of the ten day festival, the Yardbird Suite is home to an array of acts.
Finnish pianist-harpist-composer Iro Haarla; Canadian drummer Joel Haynes; U.S. vocalist
Andy Bey; Canadian DMB Quintet; Australian group Way Out West; American bassist Chris
Tarry; Juno award-nominated guitarist Michael Occhipinti; Cuban-Canadian piano prodigy
David Virelles; Edmonton sax player Jeff Antoniuk; Polish guitarist Maciek Grzywacz; and the
Oles-Koonse Duo from the U.S. round out the series. The late night hardcore series boasts
midnight gigs with Edmonton stalwarts Jim Head, Mike Lent, Bob Tildesley, and Dino
Dominelli. Late night jam sessions follow each of the hardcore shows.
The Catalyst Theatre highlights jazz with a world-music flair in a series of concerts featuring
Edmonton saxophonist Jerrold Dubyk; Calgary-based multi-instrumentalist Amir Amiri;
Edmonton-based violinist George Andrix; bassist and Alberta favourite Rubim de Toledo;
virtuosic guitarist Duane Andrews; Québec pianist Yves Leveille; and Portuguese doublebassist
Carlos Bica. Edmonton pianists Wayne Feschuk, Doug Organ, Chris Andrew, Andrew Glover, Bob Kitt
and Rob Thompson present their musical stylings at the Sutton Place Hotel’s Central Park
Lounge. Also at Sutton Place, Bobby Cairns and Mo Lefever host Jazzy Brunches, and Bill
Richards hosts the Chocolate Buffet. Four Rooms Restaurant, Jeffrey’s Café, Hulbert’s
Coffee House, Fresh Start Bakery and Madison’s Grill host some of Edmonton’s finest with
the Festival’s ever-popular Club Series, featuring the likes of trombonist Audrey Ochoa, vocalist
Anna Beaumont, Dixieland diva Rollanda Lee, groups Harpe Jazz, Mobius, Celsius, and many
more.
JazzWorks, a series of creative and professional development workshops for budding artists
which débuted at the 2005 Yardbird Jazz Festival, returns as a key component of this year’s
Festival.
Line-up (15)
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