After the first day of the 2018 Xerox Rochester International Jazz Festival, the bar for riveting performances is already high. The artists I caught were far from conventional and boasted charisma that was matched only by their musical profundity. First up was Phony Ppl, a Brooklyn-based quintet who owned the stage at Anthology. The band’s […]
Xerox Rochester International Jazz Festival
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Jazz Fest 2018, Day 1: Frank reviews Duchess Trio, Seal, and Vintage Trouble
With the maternal armcharm in tow, I strolled down the gangplank to the bloodbath that is the Xerox Rochester International Jazz Festival. It felt like someone had crammed an extra Saturday night or two into this particularly balmy Friday. I first did the broadcast boogie boogaloo with Ron Netsky and the Jazz 90.1 characters before […]
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Jazz Fest 2018, Day 1: Ron reviews Terell Stafford Quintet, Matt Savage, and Alfredo Rodriguez and Pedrito Martinez
There are so many variations on what constitutes a jazz group these days that it was almost shocking to see the Terell Stafford Quintet walk onto the Kilbourn Hall stage in ties and jackets and launch into a hard-core, hard-bop classic. The tune, “Hocus-Pocus,” was by the late, great trumpeter Lee Morgan, and Stafford, one […]
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Jazz Fest 2018: CITY’s Daily Jazz Blogs
And that’s it for the 2018 Xerox Rochester International Jazz Festival. The festival reported more than 208,000 people in attendance. Catch up on the nine days of action with our reviews of 79 acts
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The F Word: Occupy Jazz Fest
Logistically speaking, the Jazz Fest bigwigs do a phenomenal job. But there are still some things music fans have to do on their own to keep things running smoothly.
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Festival Preview Guide 2018
The winter gear is stored away for another terrible time, and even the spring attire is banished back to the depths of the closet. It’s now time to bust out the festival hats — Rochester’s top season is upon us. Of course, part of what makes this such a fun time of year is that […]
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Jazz Festival announces full 2018 lineup
Xerox Rochester International Jazz Festival producers John Nugent and Marc Iacona on Tuesday announced the lineup for this year’s festival, the XRIJF’s 17th edition, and to music fans, the most wonderful time of the year. The festival runs June 22 through June 30 in downtown Rochester. Having already announced this year’s Kodak Hall at Eastman […]
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Jazz Fest 2017, Day 9: Frank reviews Danielle Ponder and the Tomorrow People and The Hooligans
Shootin’ pretty pictures (instead of dirty pool) and trying to give solid testimony to the plethora of artists I’ve seen over the last nine days has left your boy a little punchy folks — tore up from the floor up; beat up from the feet up. But just the same, I once more lugged my […]
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Jazz Fest 2017, Day 9: Ron reviews Donny McCaslin, Matthew Stevens Trio, and Benny Green
The final night of the Jazz Festival was a disappointing end to a great festival for me. For instance, I expected a lot from Donny McCaslin’s set at Xerox Auditorium. McCaslin is a fine saxophone player, and his recent involvement in David Bowie’s final album has given him new visibility. But if tonight’s show is […]
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Jazz Fest 2017, Day 9: Daniel reviews Balkun Brothers and Bonerama
When the band playing consists of only electric guitar and drums, somehow you just know it’s going to be gritty. Such was the case when the Balkun Brothers, Steve and Nick, took the stage with their Southern-style blues rock. There’s something about a rock duo that can sound incredibly full and satisfying, despite the lack […]
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Jazz Fest 2017, Day 8: Frank reviews Binker and Moses, tries to see King Crimson, and ends the night with Caravan Palace
It has been exactly a year when I last set foot in a church. In fact, it was the same church I was in tonight to see, hear, and experience the elegant chaos of British duo Binker and Moses. B&M rocked Christ Church like a hell-bound stage coach reverberating around the nooks and spaces usually […]
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Jazz Fest 2017, Day 8: Ron reviews 4 By Monk By 4, Tessa Souter, and Ariel Pocock
At Kilbourn Hall Friday night, 4 By Monk By 4 was something akin to a Thelonious Monk symphony, or at the very least, a Monk piano sonata. Because the great jazz composer’s tunes have a lot in common with each other — notably off-kilter timing and dissonant melodic twists — an hour of nothing but […]
