44th annual Berklee High School Jazz Festival Taking Place in Boston on Saturday, March 10

Over 3,000 high school jazz musicians from thirteen states are coming to Boston for the 44th annual Berklee High School Jazz Festival on Saturday, March 10 2012.

The festival takes place at the John B. Hynes Veterans Memorial Convention Center at 900 Boylston Street in Boston's Back Bay.  It runs from 10:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m. and is free and open to the public.

For a schedule of concerts and clinics, click here. If you can't make it to the festival, you can view it live.

Find about more about Berklee College of Music.

To discover year round jazz concerts, campus events, night clubs, weekend brunches and other jazz activities across Massachusetts, visit MassJazz.com.

For visitor information, go to MassVacation.com and BostonUSA.com. 

Live Jazz in Greater Boston and Across Massachusetts on Friday, March 9

Ballet Hispanico

Looking for live jazz Friday, March , 2012 in greater Boston or somewhere in Massachusetts?  Check out these night clubs and concert halls, compiled by MassJazz.com.

Boston

March 9-11
Celebrity Series of Boston Presents
Ballet Hispanico
Cutler Majestic Theatre
219 Tremont Street
Downtown Boston

March 9
Ramsey Lewis Sun Goddess Tour
Scullers Jazz Club
400 Soldiers Field Road
Allston, Boston

March 9 – April 8
Huntington Theatre Company
August Wilson’s
Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom
Boston University Theatre
264 Huntington Avenue, Boston

March 9
Makanda Project with Joe Ford
Boston Public Library
Dudley Branch Auditorium
65 Warren Street
Roxbury

Yoko Miwa

Jazz pianist

Les Zygomates Wine Bar
129 South Street
Boston

Herman Johnson Jazz Quartet

Darryl’s Corner Bar & Kitchen

604 Columbus Ave

South End, Boston

Deva Mahal & Fredericks Brown

Beehive Jazz Club

541 Tremont Street

South End, Boston

Cambridge 

March 9-10
Bill Charlap Trio
Regattabar Jazz Club
Charles Hotel
Harvard Square, Cambridge

SF Jazz High School All-Stars Combo

Gill Aharon Trio

The Lily Pad

1353 Cambridge Street

Inman Square, Cambridge

The Chicken Slacks/ Funk & Soul

Ryles Jazz Club
212 Hampshire Street
Inman Square, Cambridge

North of Boston

Danny Heath Quartet

Chianti Tuscan Restaurant

285 Cabot Street
Beverly

Western Mass

Mark Ricker & Jimmy Burgoff
Blue Rock Restaurant & Bar
10 Bridge Street
Shelburne Falls

Cape Cod
Bart Weisman Jazz Group
Grand Cru @ Cape Codder Resort
1225 Iyannough Road
Hyannis

For year round details on jazz concerts, night clubs, radio stations, campus events, weekend brunches and jazz activities throughout Massachusetts, visit MassJazz.com.

For tourist information visit MassVacation.com 

Ma Rainey's Black Bottom by August Wilson Opening at Huntington Theatre Company in Boston on Friday, March 9

Huntington Theatre Company is presenting August Wilson's award-winning play, Ma Rainey's Black Bottom at the Boston University Theatre, from March 9 through April 8, 2012.

The play is part of Wilson's Century Cycle, and was Wilson's first Broadway hit.  In the play, legendary 1920s blues singer Ma Rainey and her musicians gather in a run-down Chicago studio to record new sides of old favorites when generational and racial tensions suddenly explode. 

Find ticket information here.

See a full schedule of plays at Huntington Theatre, which celebrates its 30th anniversary in 2012 as one of the region's most acclaimed theatre companies.  See more details about Huntington Theatre.

For year round details on jazz concerts, night clubs, campus events and other jazz activities in Massachusetts, visit MassJazz.com.

For visitor information go to MassVacation.com and BostonUSA.com.

Jazz Pianist Ramsey Lewis Playing at Scullers Jazz Club on March 8-9

Jazz pianist, composer and legend Ramsey Lewis brings his Sun Goddess Tour to Scullers Jazz Club in Boston on Thursday, March 8 and Friday, March 2012.  Joining Ramsey on the tour is Henry Johnson, Tim Grant, Joshua Ramos and Charles Heath.  Show times are 8:00 and 10:00 p.m. both nights.

Tickets are $38 and can be purchased online.

The Chicago native hit the jazz scene in the 1950s with a string of hits like The In Crowd.  Lewis has three Grammy Awards and seven Gold Records.  He received the prestigious Jazz Masters Award in 2007 from the National Endowment for the Arts.

Find a full schedule of upcoming shows at Scullers Jazz Club, located at 400 Soldiers Field Road in Boston's Allston neighborhood.

For year round details on jazz concerts, night clubs, campus events, festivals, brunches and other jazz activities throughout Massachusetts, visit MassJazz.com.

For visitor information, go to MassVacation.com and BostonUSA.com.

Jazz Singer Gian Faraone at BOND Lounge in Boston on Wednesday, March 7

Up-and-coming jazz singer Gian Faraone is performing at BOND Lounge at Boston's Langham Hotel on Wednesday, March 7, 2012 from 7:00 to 10:00 p.m.

Raised in an Italian household in Venezuela, Faraone is forging a unique new sound influenced from a range of artists, from Pavarotti to Sinatra.

The show is part of the BOND Jazz Experiment, which runs from  each Wednesday evening and highlights emerging artists and accomplished performers covering the jazz spectrum, including classic jazz from the American Songbook, rhythm and blues and funk.  For reservations call 617 956-8765.

For year round jazz in concert halls, clubs, hotel lounges and college campuses throughout Massachusetts, visit MassJazz.com

For tourist information, visit MassVacation.com or BostonUSA.com

Jazz Drummer Kendrick Scott, Live from Berklee's Cafe 939, on March 8

Famed jazz drummer Kendrick Scott is performing a live concert at Cafe 939 in Boston's Back Bay.  The show is part of the new collaboration between York area jazz station WBGO Jazz 88.3 FM, NPR, and Berklee College of Music, designed to to showcase Berklee alumni.  Read the full press release here.

The show is sold out but listeners can hear the show live by clicking here.

The Checkout - Live at Berklee brings critically acclaimed, New York–based Berklee alumni back to Boston for a series of homecoming concerts at Berklee's Cafe 939. The concerts are broadcast live worldwide over NPR.org/checkoutlive and in New York over WBGO.

For a schedule of upcoming events at Berklee, click here.

To find year round details on jazz concerts, night clubs, campus events and festivals in Massachusetts visit MassJazz.com.

For visitor information, visit MassVacation.com and BostonUSA.com.

Cape Cod Trumpeter Lou Colombo Dies

Our prayers, sorrow and appreciation go out to the family of Lou Colombo, legendary jazz trumpet player on Cape Cod, who died in a car accident in Ft. Meyer, Florida this week.

The Brockton-born musician played on Monday nights for decades at the family-owned Roadhouse Cafe in Hyannis, building a faithful clientele who loved top flight jazz.  That fan base included many performers who came to play at the Cape Cod Melody Tent, including Colombo's friend Tony Bennett. 

Colombo also performed at the Provincetown Jazz Festival and was a strong supporter of local jazz on Cape Cod.

His family posted this message on its site at the Roadhouse Cafe in Ft. Meyers, where Lou had been playing through the winter.

Here's a heart-felt tribute to Lou by Dave Rojay in Cape Cod Today.

Thank you Mr. Colombo for your great music. 

Live Jazz in Boston area and across Massachusetts on Saturday, March 3

Yoko Miwa Trio

Looking for live jazz Saturday, March 3, 2012 in greater Boston or somewhere in Massachusetts?  Check out these night clubs and concert halls, compiled by MassJazz.com.

Boston/Cambridge

Peter Smith Trio

The Battery Wharf Lounge

Fairmont Battery Wharf Hotel

Soulfolk Experience – Maritri Garrett

Beehive Jazz Club

541 Tremont Street

South End, Boston

Elevation Theory

Darryl’s Corner Bar & Kitchen

604 Columbus Ave

South End, Boston

Yoko Miwa

Jazz pianist

Les Zygomates Wine Bar
129 South Street
Boston

Justin Beech Trio

Lucky’s Lounge

355 Congress Street

Boston

Patrice Monahan's Shufflin Time Band

The Lily Pad

1353 Cambridge Street

Inman Square, Cambridge

West of Boston
Paul Broadnax Trio
Remember Nat King Cole
Amazing Things Arts Center
160 Hollis Street
Framingham

North of Boston
Tenth Annual A Capella Night
Rogers Center for the Arts
Merrimack College
315 Turnpike Street
North Andover

Cape Cod
Greg Abate
Cotuit Centerfor the Arts
4404 Route 28
Cotuit, Cape Cod

For year round details on jazz concerts, night clubs, radio stations, campus events, weekend brunches and jazz activities throughout Massachusetts, visit MassJazz.com.

For tourist information visit MassVacation.com.

Bart Weisman Klezmer Swing Concert at Cotuit Center for the Arts on Cape Cod this Friday, March 2

Jazz drummer Bart Weisman and his Klezmer Swing group are performing at the Cotuit Center for the Arts on Cape Cod this Friday, March 2, 2012 at 7:00 p.m. in the Art Gallery.

 Tickets are $18 / $15 for members, and can be purchased online or by calling 508-428-0669.

The group includes Monica Rizzio on violin and vocals , Clayton March on clarinet and mandolin, Alan Clinger on guitar, Laird Boles on bass, and Mr. Weisman on drums.

Weisman is founder and musical director of the Providence Jazz Festival,  which takes place each August on the Cape. 

For year round details on jazz in Massachusetts, visit MassJazz.com.

To find tourist information visit MassVacation.com and CapeCodChamber.org.

Playing for Change Live Tour comes to Berklee Performance Center in Boston on Friday, March 2

Playing for Change Live - currently on an international tour - comes to the Berklee Performance Center in Boston on Friday, March 2, 2012 at 8:00 p.m. Tickets are $36-$46 and can be purchased online or at the door. 

The show, presented in Boston by Scullers Jazz Club, presents street musicians from around the world who came together in 2009 to create a powerful musical statement that seeks to affect change through music .

Vocalist Clarence Milton Bekker is one of the featured performers at the tour.

Find year round details on jazz in Massachusetts by visiting MassJazz.com.

For tourist information go to MassVacation.com and BostonUSA.com. 

Lawrence Morris Brings A Conduction to New England Conservatory on March 2

Lawrence "Butch" Morris brings his unique talents as composer, conductor, arranger, and performer to the New England Conservatory on Friday, March 2, 2012 at 7:30 p.m. 

Tickets are $20 general admission and $18 for students, and can be ordered onlline.

Morris is recognized internationally as the principal theorist and practitioner in the evolution of Conduction® (a term borrowed from physics), a type of structured free improvisation where Morris directs and conducts an improvising ensemble with a series of hand and baton gestures. In this structured yet free improvisation, Morris conducts an ensemble from the classical, jazz, and contemporary music departments at NEC, where he was recently in residence.

The show is co-produced by the Institute of Contemporary Art/Boston and New England Conservatory in cooperation with JazzBoston.

For year round details on jazz concerts, night clubs, campus events and other jazz activities in Massachusetts, visit MassJazz.com.

For visitor information go to MassVacation.com or BostonUSA.com.

SF Jazz Collective Performs at UMASS/Amherst on Thursday, March 1

The acclaimed SF Jazz Collective performs at the Fine Arts Center at University of Massachusetts in Amherst on Thursday, March 1, 2012 at 7:30 p.m.

Tickets to the concert can be purchased online or at the door.

Hailing from Puerto Rico, New York, Venezuela, Philadelphia, New Zealand, and Israel, the Collective's multi-cultural lineup mirrors the explosion of jazz talent around the globe. For more about the band, click here. 

You can see a schedule of upcoming concerts at the Fine Arts Center here.

For year round details of jazz concerts, night clubs, campus events and jazz activities throughout Massachusetts, visit MassJazz.com.

To find tourist information about Massachusetts, visit MassVacation.com.

Esperanza Spalding at the Oscars - What a Wonderful Performance

Image Credit: Sandrine Lee

Congratulations to Esperanza Spalding, Grammy Award winning jazz musician and Berklee alumna, who performed What a Wonderful World at the 84th Academy Awards, along with the 120 member Southern California Children's Chorus.

Spalding and the Chorus performed during the show's In Memoriam montage.

The song, What a Wonderful World, was recorded by jazz great Louis Armstrong in 1968. 

On April 22, 2012 World Music/CRASHarts is presenting Esperanza Spalding and the Radio Music Society in concert  at the Orpheum Theatre in downtown Boston. For ticket information click here.

For year round details on jazz concerts, night clubs, campus events, festivals, weekend brunches and jazz activities in Massachusetts, visit MassJazz.com.

For visitor information, go to MassVacation.com or BostonUSA.com.

Great American Songbook Concert at Berklee Performance Center in Boston on Sunday, February 26

Hoagy Carmichael 

 

Livingston Taylor, Donna McElroy, Julian Lage and Matt Glaser are performing from the Great American Songbook - featuring the works of Hoagy Carmichael and Johnny Mercer - in concert at the Berklee Performance Center in Boston on Sunday, February 26, 2012 at 7:30 p.m.

Tickets to the show - reserved seating - are $15 general admission and $10 for students, and can be purchased online or at the door.

Berklee is also broadcasting the show live through ConcertWindow live streaming.

To find out about jazz concerts, night clubs, campus events, festivals, weekend brunches and other jazz activities in Massachusetts throughout the year, visit MassJazz.com.

For visitor information go to MassVacation.com and BostonUSA.com.

Live Jazz and Blues in Massachusetts on Friday, February 24

Hugh Masekela

Looking for some live jazz, blues or world music in Massachusetts on Friday, February 24, 2012?  MassJazz offers this selection of performers and venues across the Bay State.

Boston

Grace Kelly
Scullers Jazz Club
Doubletree Suites Hilton
400 Soldiers Field Road, Boston

Either/Orchestra: The Collected Unconsciousness
Institute of Contemporary Art
100 Northern Avenue, South Boston

 

Deva Mahal and Fredricks Brown

Beehive Jazz Club

541 Tremont Street

South End, Boston

Malabar

Darryl's Corner Bar & Kitchen
604 Columbus Avenue
South End, Boston

Cambridge

An Evening of POEMJAZZ
Featuring Robert Pinsky and Laurence Hobgood
Regattabar Jazz Club

Charles Hotel
Harvard Square, Cambridge

Rhythm of the Americas Trio

Gill Aharon Trio
The Lily Pad

1353 Cambridge Street

Inman Square, Cambridge

Dan Fox’s Jazz Singers Showcase

Ryles Jazz Club
212 Hampshire Street
Inman Square, Cambridge

North of Boston

The Legendary Ladies of Song:
The Music of Doris Day, Peggy Lee and Rosemary Clooney
Rogers Centerfor the Arts
Merrimack College
315 Turnpike Street
North Andover
 

Western Mass

Jill Connolly
Blue Rock Restaurant & Bar
10 Bridge Street
Shelburne Falls
  

Roomful of Blues
Bull Run Restaurant
215 Great Road, Shirley
 

Central Mass

Yoron Israel with High Standards
Amazing Things Arts Center
160 Hollis Street
Framingham

Southeastern Mass

Hugh Masekela
Zeiterior Theatre
684 Purchase Street
New Bedford
 

Paula Cole
Narrows Center for the Arts
16 Anawan Street
Fall River

Cape Cod

Bart Weisman Jazz Group

Cape Codder Resort & Spa
1225 Iyannough Road
Route 132 & Bearse's Way, Hyannis

For year round details on jazz concerts, night clubs, radio stations, campus events, weekend brunches and jazz activities throughout Massachusetts, visit MassJazz.com.

For tourist information visit MassVacation.com