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Detroit Jazz Fest
Festival will feature Detroit jazz
BY MARK STRYKER
FREE PRESS MUSIC WRITER
Jazz drummer Louis Hayes is among the virtuoso practitioners of Detroit jazz who will play at the 27th annual Detroit Jazz Festival. (JUSTIN LANE/Special to the Free Press)
Tributes to Detroit's remarkable mid-century modern jazz explosion, including an all-star sextet loaded with Motown-bred royalty, highlight the lineup of the 27th annual Detroit Jazz Festival scheduled for Sept. 1-4 in downtown Detroit.
The Detroit Jazz All Stars includes pianist Barry Harris, trombonist Curtis Fuller, alto saxophonist Charles McPherson and drummer Louis Hayes -- all internationally recognized veterans who epitomize the hard-swinging legacy of bebop and hard-bop that came of age in Detroit in the 1950s. Those four will be joined by trumpeter Marcus Belgrave, who has long made his home in Detroit, and, from a younger generation of Detroiters, bassist Rodney Whitaker.
"Every year we bring in a returning Detroit jazz legend," said artistic director Frank Malfitano. "But this year we wanted to put an even greater emphasis on Detroit jazz legacy and I thought the best way to achieve that was to bring in an all-star unit comprised of as many Detroit jazz legends as we could get."
The full festival lineup has not been announced, but ads touting some of the headliners have begun appearing in national jazz magazines aimed at tourists and aficionados. More national headliners and other festival details will be formally announced May 11, said Malfitano. The festival remains one of the largest free jazz festivals in North America.
Continuing the Detroit theme, the 2006 festival will include performances by two high-powered tribute bands dedicated to Detroit-born heroes who have died in recent years: vibraphonist Milt Jackson and pianist Tommy Flanagan. Vibist Joe Locke will lead the Jackson tribute, appearing with Jackson's last rhythm section, consisting of Mike LeDonne, Bob Cranshaw and Mickey Roker. Drummer Lewis Nash, a former Flanagan sideman, will lead a quartet including Peter Washington, Renee Rosnes and Steve Nelson.
Other jazz headliners include the Clayton Brothers Quintet, Lou Donaldson with Dr. Lonnie Smith, Mose Allison, the Gerald Wilson Big Band, Sean Jones, Oscar-Castro Neves and Ilona Knopfler. R&B, blues and roots crossover acts include Taj Mahal, Richie Havens, Dr. John and the Lower 911 and Marcia Ball.
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