Pittsfield CityJazz Festival schedule Oct. 4-13, 2012

The eighth annual Pittsfield CityJazz Festival takes place Oct. 5-13 in various venues around downtown Pittsfield. The music spans the spectrum of jazz, and includes the New England Jazz Ensemble with guest soloists Giacomo Gates and Ali Ryerson 8PM Oct. 13 at the Colonial Theatre; The Jazz Arts Trio, 7:30 PM Oct. 12 at Barrigton Stage; Jazz About Town, local musicians performing in Pittsfield restaurants and lounges during Columbus Day weekend, Oct. 4-8 (see schedule); and a new entry in the Jazz Prodigy series, Adam O’Farrill, a trumpet player who is garnering accolades across the northeast. (Get directions).

O’Farrill, son of renowned pianist Arturo O’Farrill, will appear at the Berkshire Athenaeum in an Oct. 10 concert sponsored by the Friends of the Athanaeum. His quartet has appeared at significant jazz venues in New York, and he will be making his Berkshires debut at the festival.

Colonial Theatre show added to schedule

Later that same evening, the Berkshire Theatre Group presents Michael Bellar and the AS-IS Ensemble at The Garage (the lounge at The Colonial Theatre). Show time for this high-energy, eclectic group is 8:30pm. They will also be conducting a improvisational workshop for musicians (of all ages) at 4pm. Read more … .

Pittsfield CityJazz Festival headline weekend

The headline weekend opens on Friday, Oct. 12 with the Jazz Arts Trio, headed by the remarkable concert pianist Frederick Moyer. What can safely be called the only jazz group of its kind, the Jazz Arts Trio, through note–for–note transcriptions of historic moments in piano jazz, is keeping alive music that otherwise would live on only in recordings. Their latest CD, Swing of Many Colors, includes a full re-performance of Ahmad Jamal’s landmark album But Not For Me: Live at the Pershing. The Jazz Arts Trio will appear at the Sydelle and Lee Blatt Performing Arts Center on Friday, Oct. 12, and is a co-presentation with Barrington Stage Co.

The New England Jazz Ensemble is a 16-piece big band whose repertoire will include material from the band’s latest CD, recorded live in performance in Hartford, Connecticut. They appeared at the first Pittsfield CityJazz Festival in 2006, putting the festival on the map when they issued a recording from that performance.

A renowned jazz/blues vocalist, Giacomo Gates’ will be a guest artist with the New England Jazz Ensemble. His CD Luminosity spent over three months in the top 20 of the Jazz Week charts; his latest recording, The Revolution Will Be Jazz, a tribute to Gil Scott-Heron, was the most-played CD on jazz radio for 7 consecutive weeks in 2011. Gates has been nominated as Jazz Vocalist of the Year by the Jazz Journalists Association.

Guest soloist Ali Ryerson has emerged as one of the most exciting and versatile flutists on the scene. She has performed with such diverse talents as Billy Taylor, Kenny Barron, Stephane Grappelli, Frank Wess, and (as principal flutist with the Monterey Bay Symphony) with Luciano Pavarotti. She put alto flute in the spotlight in her years of duet concerts and recordings with guitarist Joe Beck.

The New England Jazz Ensemble with Gates and Ryerson will appear on Saturday, Oct. 13, at the Colonial Theatre, with the Williams College Jazz Ensemble, under the direction of Andy Jaffe.

The new Berkshires Gateway Jazz Weekend in Lee took place Sept. 14-16. Produced by the Lee Community Development Corp., in collaboration with Berkshires Jazz. Headline performers included Grammy-nominated vocalist Karrin Allyson, the Amherst Jazz Orchestra, reed virtuoso Charles Neville, and the Sonny and Perley Quartet. .

Jazz About Town – Oct. 4 – 8

Thursday, October 4

• Sister City Jazz Ambassadors
• Patrick’s Pub – Park Square
• 6:30-9:30pm

Friday, October 5

• Woody Stroebeck Duo
• Spice Dragon – 297 North Street
• 6:30-9:30pm

• Fran Tokarz Guitar Trio
• The Lantern – 455 North Street
• 9-11pm

• Sister City Jazz Ambassadors
• Mission Tapas Bar and Restaurant – 438 North Street
• 7:30-10:30pm

Saturday, October 6

• Rob Fisch Quartet
• Patrick’s Pub – Park Square
• 7-10pm

• Johnny Pontoon Quintet
• Baba Louie’s Backroom – 34 Depot Street
• 7-10pm

• Ted Murray Trio
• Port Smitt Restaurant – Pecks Road
• 7:30-10:30pm

Sunday, October 7

• Benny Kohn Piano Brunch
• Dottie’s Coffee Lounge – 444 North Street
• 11am-1pm

Monday, October 8

• Andy Wrba and Friends
• Mission Tapas Bar and Restaurant – 438 North Street
• 8-11p

Directions to Pittsfield CityJazz Festival:

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