Jazz so hot it’s cool at 2009 Purdue Jazz Festival

Wednesday, December 17, 2008

High powered jazz talent ranging from the legendary Mingus Big Band to Chicago’s prominent Ryan Cohan Quartet, and from Allen Vizzutti on trumpet to Gary Smulyan on baritone saxophone, the 19th annual Purdue Jazz Festival, Jan. 14-18 offers an exciting mix of traditional and contemporary jazz.

Headliner concerts, jazz jams, and a competition for high school and middle school big bands tops the slate of activities that also includes jazz clinics, a Sunday jazz service at University Church and a swing dance at Jefferson High School.

Free events outnumber ticketed events at the festival co-sponsored by Purdue Bands & Orchestra and Purdue Convocations. Support from the Indiana Arts Commission makes possible the Festival’s newest event – the Community Jazz Showcase on Jan. 15 with Festival Artists-in-Residence, the Ryan Cohan Quartet.

The Showcase gives area residents a chance to see all of Tippecanoe County’s jazz talent on one stage at one time with the Jefferson, Harrison and McCutcheon Jazz Bands featured. During the day on Jan 15, each group will have a private work session with the Ryan Cohan Quartet who will perform with all three bands at the free 8 p.m. Showcase that night in the Long Center.

The public has two other chances to hear the Ryan Cohan Quartet, a group featured at the Festival in 2003 and brought back because of audience response. The Quartet performs at the Boiler Market in the West Lafayette Village from 8:30 to 10:30 p.m. Wednesday, Jan. 14. No cover is charged. They will also give a free noon concert on jazz competition day, Saturday, Jan. 17, in the Purdue Stewart Center’s Loeb Playhouse.

The Mingus Big Band serves as the Friday, Jan. 16, headliner, with the concert set for 8 p.m. Jan. 16, in Loeb Playhouse of Purdue’s Stewart Center, sponsored by Purdue Convocations. Availability of tickets for this concert - as well as the Festival Finale Concert with Allen Vizzutti, Gary Smulyan and the Purdue Jazz Band at 7:30 p.m. Jan. 17 in Loeb – is limited. Call the Purdue Box Offices, 494-3933 or (800) 914-SHOW.

On Saturday, instrumental jazz ensembles from five states - Indiana, Illinois, Ohio, Michigan and North Dakota – will arrive early as competition stretches throughout the day in eight locations in the Purdue Stewart Center, Purdue Memorial Union, University Church, Rawls Hall and Elliott Hall of Music. The music starts at 8 a.m. and continues through 5 p.m. It’s all free.

 All the festival guest artists will give clinics which are also free and open to the public on Saturday.

Other festival events include a jazz jam led by Purdue musicians at Vienna Espresso, Jan. 16; a jazz church service with the Danny Weiss Quartet at University Church at 11 a.m. Jan. 18; and a Midwinter Jazz & Swing Dance at Jefferson High School at 3 p.m. Jan. 18.

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