03/12/2019
This year’s Winter Jazz Fest – the cold-weather version of the popular Twin Cities Jazz Festival – will return to Crooners Lounge & Supper Club on Sunday, March 31. The day will feature national and local favorites Gary Bartz, Francisco Mela, Debbie Duncan, Patty Peterson, Tanner Taylor and his trio, and Natania Kamin plus an ensemble of the area's top youth jazz performers.
Sunday, March 31, 2:00 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. at Crooners Lounge & Supper Club
"Music warms the body and the soul. This festival is sure to bring a spark of warmth during these cold months,” said Executive Director Steve Heckler.
Saxophonist Gary Bartz will be a welcome guest to this year’s festival, bringing an alto sound that has played with a number of jazz greats, starting in 1965 when Bartz joined Art Blakey and the Jazz Messengers. He then worked closely with McCoy Tyner, followed by work with Miles Davis before starting his own group, Ntu, which blended soul, funk, African folk music, hard bop, and avant-garde jazz. Over the course of his career, Bartz has released almost thirty of his own recorded albums, in addition to the many recordings he has appeared on.
Much loved drummer Francisco Mela will return to the Twin Cities and perform alongside Bartz, bringing both his masterful time keeping skills as well as well as the enthusiasm and charisma the Twin Cities Jazz Festival has come to love about Mela over the last five years. Hailing from Cuba, Mela has risen to catch the attention of artists like Joe Lovano, John Scofield and McCoy Tyner. Now a faculty member at Berklee College of Music, Mela still finds time to record and tour; his most recent project, FE, was released in 2016 and continues to highlight his Cuban, Latin-jazz, fusion and jazz sound, like his other three albums.
LOUNGE STAGE
2:00 – 2:45: Dakota Foundation for Youth Education Combo
3:00 – 4:00: Natania Kamin’s Ticket to Brasil
4:30 – 5:30: Debbie Duncan
6:00 – 7:15: Gary Bartz with Francisco Mela
DUNSMORE LISTENING ROOM STAGE
2:30 – 3:30: Tanner Taylor Trio
4:00 – 5:00: Patty Peterson Presents – Jazz Women All Stars
Tickets Advance General Admission Tickets are $35 in advance; $40 at the door. VIP Tickets including a deluxe buffet, front row seating, and meet & greet are $100.
Twin Cities Jazz Festival, established in 1999, is a non-profit organization, with a mission to keep the art form of jazz alive and well in our community. Save the date for the 2019 Twin Cities Jazz Fest, June 20 – 22, 2019.
For more information, visit TwinCitiesJazzFestival.com, or follow on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
Musicians and schedule subject to change.
