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| Savanna Jazz Festival 2005 in September The Savanna Jazz Festival 2005 is bringing world class jazz music to San Francisco all at the historic Savanna Jazz Club located at 2937 Mission St. This year’s Festival takes place September 13th through the 18th. Opening the festival, Tuesday and Wednesday September 13th and 14th, is renowned pianist Cedar Walton and his Quartet. Having graced jazz festivals like the JVC Jazz Festival in Toronto and just back from playing the Lincoln Center’s Dizzy’s Club, Cedar is not to be missed. Cedar Walton plays modern straight-ahead jazz and features alto saxophonist Vincent Herring, one of the most demanded musicians on the jazz scene. He’s written film compositions like “Bolivia” and “Clockwise” now part of the standard jazz repertoire and noteworthy are his performances with Art Blakey’s Jazz Messengers. Cedar Walton has been likened to Herbie Hancock and Bill Evans, and deserves to be up there with the greats - Red Garland, McCoy Tyner and Wynton Kelly. Gina Harris, Patricia Dobashi, and Victoria Phillips, three female jazz vocalists will perform on Thursday September 15th. Be prepared for the revival of the swing era. This glorious evening will begin at 8 pm. Preserving the spirit of West Coast jazz, Octobop will perform on Friday September 16th directed by Geoff Roach with special guest LA trumpeter Carl Saunders. An eight-member ensemble with impressive salutations to leading jazz luminaries including Art Pepper, Shorty Rogers, and Gerry Mulligan compositions, Octobop brings a nostalgia to the festival for the 50’s and 60’s jazz orchestrations. As Jazz Journal International writer Carl Fontana put it “Carl Saunders—probably the best trumpet player you’ve never heard.” On Saturday, September 17th, The Barry Finnerty Group will share the stage with The Pascal Bokar AfroJazz Band. Barry Finnerty has performed at the Montreaux Jazz Festival, on Joe Sample’s records and on a few occasions with Miles Davis, Terry Bozio in the Brecker Brothers and Taj Mahal. Pascal Bokar has performed with US Top Jazz Luminaries such as Dizzy Gillespie, James Moody, Barney Wilen, Roy Haynes, Donald Brown, Tommy Campbell, and George Mraz. His AfroJazz Band is inspired by his conviction about bebop: “For people who have an ear for traditional music in West Africa, you can hear that it is not an accident that bebop was born out of the communities of Africa that have been displaced.” (Mercury News, 2001) On Sunday September 18th, the final evening of the festival, join moderator Sonny Buxton in the “Conversations on Jazz” forum with a special guest to be announced. The topic is “Are We Rewriting Jazz History?” Tickets for the Savanna Jazz Club Festival 2005 are sold per show and can be purchased in person at the Savanna Jazz Club. Savanna jazz is a member of the “Open Table” an online reservation system. Reservations accepted for each performance night. The Savanna Jazz Club won the 2005 Best Jazz Club award in a readers’ poll in the SF Weekly and has been recognized in the San Francisco Chronicle as a regular space for some of San Francisco’s senior jazz masters like Herb Gibson and Donald Bailey who played on Blue Note recordings with Jimmy Smith during the 50’s and 60’s. write your comments about the article :: © 2005 Jazz News :: home page |