Singer Pat Braxton Performing at Cafe Tatant at Roxbury Center for the Arts on Thursday, September 22

Vivacious jazz singer Pat Braxton is performing a dinner club set at Cafe Tatant at the Roxbury Center for the Arts in Dudley Square, Boston on Thursday, September 22, 2011.

Drinks and dinner are served beginning at 7:30, and the live show runs from 8:00 to 10:00 p.m.  Food is provided by Ethnica Gourmet Catering.

Tickets to the just the performance are $12 each.  A meal and show combo is $28 per person, or $54 for two.  To order tickets online click here.

For year round details on jazz concerts, festivals, night clubs, and campus events, visit MassJazz.com.

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

James Cotton in Concert at Shalin Liu Performance Center in Rockport on Friday, September 23

Rockport Music is hosting legendary blues singer and harmonica player James "Superharp" Cotton in concert at the Shalin Liu Performance Center in Rockport on Friday, September 23, 2011, at 7:00 p.m.  The show is presented by M.E. Productions.

Tickets to the show are $29, $39 and $49 and can be purchased online.

Born in Mississippi in 1935 Cotton was the youngest of eight brothers and sisters.  He learned his music at the Baptist Church where his father Mose was a preacher, and later he came under the guidance of blues master Sonny Boy Williamson.

For a schedule of upcoming concerts at Shalin Liu Performance Center this fall, click here.

For year round details on jazz concerts, festivals, campus events, brunches and nightclubs throughout Massachusetts, visit MassJazz.com.

For tourist information visit MassVacation.com.

Jazz Clarinetist Felix Peikli Performs at BOND Lounge in Boston on Wednesday, September 21

Norwegian stand-out jazz clarinetist Felix Peikli is performing with his band at the BOND Lounge| Restaurant at Langham Hotel in Boston on Wednesday, September 21, 2011 from 7:00 to 10:00 p.m.

The performance is part of the BOND Jazz Experiment taking place every Wednesday night, featuring some of the city's most talented young artists.  

Peikli began studying the clarinet at age eight, inspired by the music of Benny Goodman.  He performed at the Oslo Jazz Festival at age 12 and become an jazz icon throughout Europe.  In 2008, Peikli came to Boston's Berklee College of Music on a full scholarship and has since been performing with the Berklee Global Jazz Institute.

For a complete schedule of the fall lineup at BOND Lounge | Restaurant click here.

For year round details on jazz nightclubs, concerts, campus events, brunches and festivals throughout Massachusetts, visit MassJazz.com.

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

Jazz Vocalist Jon Regen Performs at Scullers on Wednesday, September 21

Jazz vocalist, pianist and songwriter Jon Regan is performing at Scullers Jazz Club in Boston on Wednesday, September 21, 2011 at 8:00 p.m. Tickets to the show are $20 and can be purchased online.

Based in New York City, Regan studied with legendary pianist Kenny Barron.  His latest album, Revolution, has ten original compositions, is being hailed as a masterpiece of invention, musicality and verve.

Scullers Jazz Club at the Doubletree Suites by Hilton Hotels, is considered one of the world's premier jazz clubs.  For a schedule of upcoming performances, click here.

For year round news on jazz concerts, festivals, campus events, brunches and nightclubs in Massachusetts, visit MassJazz.com.

For tourist information visit MassVacation.com and BostonUSA.com.

Blues Singer Shemekia Copeland Performs at Regattabar on Wednesday, September 21

Powerful blues singer Shemekia Copeland is performing at the Regattabar Jazz Club in Harvard Square on Wednesday, September 21, 2011 at 7:30 p.m. Tickets are $25 and can be purchased online or at the door.

Copeland, born in Harlem in 1979, is a talented young singer who has performed around the world, opening for the Rolling Stones and headlining the Chicago Blues Festival. 

Located at the Charles Hotel in Harvard Square, the Regattabar Jazz Club has a great schedule of performances featuring great jazz and blues musicians coming to town this fall.

For a full schedule of jazz festivals, night clubs, campus events, brunches and concerts in Massachusetts throughout the year, visit MassJazz.com.

For tourist information visit MassVacation.com and BostonUSA.com.

Bruce Gertz Quintet kicks of Jazz at the Arsenal series in Watertown on Monday, September 19

Jazz bassist Bruce Gertz and his quintet are performing at the Arsenal Center for the Arts in Watertown, Massachusetts, on Monday, September 17, 2011 at 7:30 p.m.  Tickets to the show are $18 and can be ordered online.

In addition to Gertz, the quintet includes Jerry Bergonzi on tenor sax, Phil Grenadier on trumpet, Steve Hunt on piano, and Austin McMahon on drums.

The performance is part of the newly named Jazz at the Arsenal series taking place this fall. 

For more information about the Arsenal Center for the Arts, click here.

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

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

Great Live Jazz in Massachusetts on Saturday, September 17

Yoko Miwa 

 

Looking for live jazz in Massachusetts on September 17, 2011?  There are hundreds of jazz clubs, concert halls and college campuses in Massachusetts with great live jazz and blues this weekend.  Here is just a sampling:

Newton
Highland Jazz Series presents
Rebecca Parris and Paul Broadnax
Newtown South High School
140 Brandeis Road
 

Cambridge

Stanley Sagov & The Remembering the Future Band
Regattabar Jazz Club at Charles Hotel
One Bennett Street

Charles Farrell, Evan Parker & Jim Schapperoew

The Lily Pad

1353 Cambridge Street

Michael Borgida & Company

Cafe Luna

403 Massachusetts Ave

Cambridge

Boston  

Makanda Project Summer Project with Voices
Roxbury Heritage State Park
183 Roxbury Street, Roxbury

Toni Carelli Group
Top of the Hub
Prudential Center, 52nd floor
Back Bay, Boston

Yoko Miwa

Les Zygomates Wine Bar & Bistro

129 South Street

Downtown

Henri Smith

Darryl’s Corner Bar & Kitchen

604 Columbus Ave

South End

Zili Misik

Beehive Jazz Club

541 Tremont Street

South End

Cape Cod

Tema Jazz featuring Steve Tapper

Grand Cru @ the Cape Codder Resort & Spa
1225 Iyannough Road
Route 132 & Bearse's Way

Hyannis

Central Mass

 Philippe Crettien Trio

Acton Jazz Club

452 Great Road

Acton

Phyllis Fallon & Workingman’s Band

Concord Colonial Inn

48 Monument Square

Concord

North of Boston

Diane Blue 

Back Door Jazz & Comedy Club

15 Kearney Square

Lowell

You can find a complete list of jazz  festivals, radio stations, hotels with jazz, jazz brunches and jazz organizations by visiting MassJazz.com.

For tourist information year round in Massachusetts, visit MassVacation.com. 

James Farm kicks off Berklee Beantown Jazz Festival in Boston on September 23

James Farm

James Farm, a powerhouse jazz ensemble featuring saxophonist Joshua Redman, pianist Aaron Parks, bassist Matt Penman, and drummer Eric Harland, kicks off this year's Berklee BeanTown Jazz Festival with a concert at the Berklee Performance Center on Friday, September 23, 2011 at 8:00 p.m.

Tickets to the concert are $30-$42 and can be purchased online through World Music.

The 11th annual festival runs September 23-25, with an all-day, free outdoor festival schedule for Saturday, September 24, featuring an international cast of great performers including Oleta Adams, Danilo Perez, Pablo Ablanedo, Berklee Global Jazz Institute and more.

You can find a complete schedule by visiting BeanTown Festival.

For a history of the BeanTown Jazz Festival, click here.

For year round details on jazz festivals, concerts, campus events, brunches, radio stations, organizations and musicians in Massachusetts, visit MassJazz.com.

For tourist information visit MassVacation.com and BostonUSA.com.

Jazz Saxopohonist Andrew Halchak Performing at BOND Lounge in Boston's Langham Hotel on Wednesday, September 14

Standout saxophonist Andrew Halchak is performing at the BOND Lounge at Boston's Langham Hotel on Franklin Street on Wednesday, September 14, 2011, from 7:00 - 10:00 p.m.  There is no cover charge.

Halchuck is a Berklee graduate who is now pursuing his master's degree at New England Conservatory.  He is from Tuscon, Arizona, and has performed across the United States and Europe.

The show is part of BOND's Jazz Experiment series every Wednesday night, which features some of the city's best emerging jazz players. 

BOND restaurant | lounge is open seven days a week, offering gourmet sandwiches for lunch, afternoon tea, and global cuisine for dinner, plus an extensive wine list and distinctive cocktails. A special jazz menu is available on Wednesdays

For year round details on jazz nightclubs, concerts, campus events, brunches and festivals throughout Massachusetts, visit MassJazz.com.

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

Mexican Jazz Singer Magos Herrera Performs at Scullers Jazz Club in Boston on Wednesday, September 14

Magos Herros 

Grammy-nominated jazz singer Magos Herrera is performing at Scullers Jazz Club at the Doubletree Suites by Hilton Hotel on Wednesday, September 14, 2011 at 8:00 p.m.

Tickets to the show are $20 and can be purchased online.  Dinner and show is also available for $62.  For more details call  617-562-4111.

Born in Mexico City, Herrera combines a modern interpretation on jazz performance with Latin culture and Afro-Cuban influences.She has six CDs, including Distancia, which earned her a nomination for best jazz vocal.album in 2009.

For a schedule of upcoming performances at Scullers Jazz Club, visit the calendar of Coming Attractions. 

For full details on jazz concerts, festivals, campus events, brunches, radio stations and other jazz-related activities throughout Massachusetts, visit MassJazz.com.

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

7th annual Pittsfield City Jazz Festival Taking Place October 7-20 in Western Massachusetts

Grace Kelly, Phil Woods, Armen Donelian, Greg Caputo, and the BerkshiresJazz Youth Ensemble are among the performers at the 7th annual Pittsfield CityJazz Festival, October 7-20, 2011.

The festival gets under way on Columbus Day weekend, Oct. 7-9 with Jazz About Town, when several restaurants and lounges in downtown Pittsfield offer a variety of instrumental and vocal jazz performances, both indoors and outdoors. Among the many highlights:

• The inauguration of the festival’s Piano Prodigy Series, with Alma Macbride, who won the Mary Lou Williams centennial competition at Lincoln Center at the age of 14. Alma performs in a free concert at the Berkshire Athenaeum on Wednesday, Oct. 12.
• Jazz pianist Armen Donelian appears at the festival for the first time on Oct. 14. Renowned for both his original compositions and interpretations of jazz and classical works, Donelian’s trio includes bassist Dave Clark and drummer George Schuller.
• Grace Kelly returns to Pittsfield, concluding a year-long tour on Oct. 15, with NEA Jazz Master Phil Woods. The two appeared on stage at the festival in 2006, when Woods gave then 14-year-old Kelly his legendary leather cap, giving rise to the name of their new CD “Man with the Hat.” Grace and Phil welcome their friend, drummer Gregory Caputo, who will appear with them as a special guest artist.
• The festival concludes on Oct. 20 with jazz-themed Third Thursday block party.

For more details visit http://berkshiresjazz.org/

For tourist information visit MassVacation.com and BerkshiresVisitorBureau.

For year round jazz festivals, concerts, campus events, brunches, radio stations and more, visit MassJazz.com. 

Cuban Jazz Pianist Alfredo Rodriguez Performs at Scullers Jazz Club in Boston on Tuesday, September 13

Cuban jazz pianist Aflredo Rodriguez is performing at Scullers Jazz Club in Boston, Massachusetts on Tuesday, September 13, 2011 at 8:00 p.m.

Tickets to the show are $20 and can be purchased online.

Rodriguez left Cuba in 2009 to pursue a musical career and has since played around the world.  His influences range from Back and Beethoven to Bill Evens and Thelonius Monk.  Quincy Jones, with whom Rodriguez has toured and collaborated with on new compositions, said about Rodriguez, "He is very special and I do not say that easily because I have been surrounded by the best musicians in the world my entire life and he is one of the best.”

For more upcoming concerts at Scullers Jazz Club, located at the Doubletree Suites by Hilton at 400 Soldiers Field Road in Boston, click here.

For year round details on concerts, festivals, campus events, brunches, radio stations and other jazz related resources, visit MassJazz.com

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

9/11 Berklee Memorial Concert in Boston

Berklee College of Music is hosting a musical tribute on the ten year anniversary of 9/11 in Boston on Sunday, September 11, 2011.  The concert takes place at the Berklee Performance Center starting at 7:30 p.m.

Berklee students and alumni will perform original songs and instrumental pieces that were selected from a large field of submissions, presenting  a wide range of genres and styles.

The event will stream live at Concert Window.

WICN to be the home of the New England Jazz Hall of Fame in Worcester, Massachusetts

WICN 90.5 FM Public Radio is going to be home to the New England Jazz Hall of Fame, a tribute to the greats who have made the region’s jazz scene so vibrant. The Hall of Fame is a special project of the New England Jazz Alliance (NEJA), which initiated it as a traveling exhibit in 2001. A decade later, the scope and popularity of the Jazz Hall of Fame has required organizers to find a permanent home.

That will be at the WICN radio station, located at 50 Portland Street in Worcester, right in the heart of the city’s cultural district. The good news was announced on April 29,  2011 during the Smithsonian Institute’s Jazz Appreciation Month, by WICN president Tom Lucci and NEJA president Ed Bride.

“April 29 is Duke Ellington’s birthday,” Lucci and Bride said in a joint statement, “and three Ellington alumni – Johnny Hodges, Harry Carney and Paul Gonsalves – were among the original ten inductees in 2001.”

“We’re thrilled with our evolving relationship with WICN,” said Bride this summer. “The performance space at WICN is an ideal spot to display our historical information as well as host relevant performances.”

The NEJA plans to announce the process for nominating inductees into the Hall of Fame shortly, and the winners will be announced next winter, with an induction ceremony planned for April 2012 during Jazz Appreciation Month sponsored by the Smithsonian Institute.

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

For tourist information visit MassVacation.com.


This article first appeared in MassJazz Travel Guide, summer 2011 issue.

Live Jazz and Blues in Massachusetts: Saturday, September 10, 2011

Mr. Nick and the Dirty Tricks at the Beehive

Looking for live jazz in Massachusetts on September 10, 2011?  There are hundreds of jazz clubs, concert halls and college campuses in Massachusetts with great live jazz and blues this weekend.  Here is just a sampling:

Boston  

Marcio Philomena Group
Felix Peikli Quartet

Boston Ahts Festival
Christopher Columbus Park
North End, Boston

Maggie Galloway and the Bob Nieske Group
Top of the Hub
Prudential Center, 52nd floor
Back Bay, Boston

Elevation Theory

Darryl’s Corner Bar & Kitchen

604 Columbus Ave

South End, Boston

Mr. Nick and the Dirty Tricks

Beehive Jazz Club

541 Tremont Street

South End, Boston

Boston Suburbs

An Evening with Ronnie Earl
Regent Theatre
7 Medford Street

Arlington
 

Matt Savage
National Heritage Museum
33 Marrett Road

Lexington

The American Songbook - The Jazz View
Music of Jimmy McHugh
Arsenal Center for the Arts
321 Arsenal Street
Watertown

North of Boston

September 10
North Shore Jazz Project Presents
J. Geils Quintet
Barn at Castle Hill
290 Argilla Road
Ipswich

 South of Boston

Rock the Bells Festival
Featuring Erykah Badu
Comcast Center
Marshfield

 Cape Cod

Bart Weisman Group

Featuring Marcelle Gauvin

Grand Cru @ the Cape Codder Resort & Spa
1225 Iyannough Road
Route 132 & Bearse's Way

Hyannis, Cape Cod

Central Mass

Nick Goumas Quintet

Amazing Things Arts Center

160 Hollis Street

Framingham

Western Mass

Roy Gerson, jazz pianist

Castle Street Café

10 Castle Street

Great Barrington

You can find a complete list of jazz  festivals, radio stations, hotels with jazz, jazz brunches and jazz organizations by visiting MassJazz.com.

For tourist information year round in Massachusetts, visit MassVacation.com.