Mid-Atlantic Jazz Festival Returns President's Day Weekend

 

 Warren Wolf and Joe Locke will be featured at a Vibes Summit on Saturday night February 17.

Mid-Atlantic Jazz Festival Returns to Rockville MD, President's Day Weekend, February 16-18, 2018. Presented by the Jazz Academy of Music to support and spotlight Jazz Education as well as present a range of top-notch Jazz performances, this year's Festival will be highlighted by a Jazz Vibes summit, and several stellar Jazz Vocalists. Headline performers include Warren Wolf, Jazzmeia Horn, Buster Williams, Joe Locke, Paul Carr, Carmen Bradford, Wycliffe Gordon, Eric Byrd Trio, Matthew Whittaker, Craig Handy and Carmen Lundy It takes place at the Hilton Washington DC/Rockville Hotel Executive Meeting Center, 1750 Rockville Pike, Rockville, Maryland 20852.

The Festival is held in various stages at the Hotel. The main stage is the Ronnie Wells Main Stage, and on Friday Night will have performances by Warren Wolf and the Mid-Atlantic Collegiate All Stars featuring the Baltimore, Maryland native who is a great vibraphone player, and currently a member of the San Francisco Jazz Ensemble. He played several years with Christian McBride as well as led his own groups. He will be followed by vocalist Jazzmeia Horn (seen in the video above), winner of the 2015 Thelonious Monk International Vocal Competition and who has worked with such artists as Winard Harper (with whom she has appeared at a prior MAJF), Junior Mance, Billy Harper, Delfeayo Marsalis, Mike LeDonne, Peter Bernstein, Johnny O’Neal, Vincent Herring, Kirk Lightsey, Frank Wess, and Ellis Marsalis. She thrilled audiences at the Kennedy Center last season and will be joined by saxophonist Joel Frahm for her performance here. Closing out the Friday Night performances will be the great Buster Williams and Something More. Williams, one of the great jazz bassists of all time has worked with a who's who of modern jazz including Art Blakey, Betty Carter, Carmen McRae, Chet Baker, Chick Corea, Dexter Gordon, Jimmy Heath, Branford Marsalis, Wynton Marsalis, Gene Ammons, Sonny Stitt, Herbie Hancock, Larry Coryell, Lee Konitz, McCoy Tyner, Illinois Jacquet, Nancy Wilson, Elvin Jones, Miles Davis, the Jazz Crusaders, Ron Carter, Woody Shaw, Sarah Vaughan, Benny Golson, Mary Lou Williams, Hank Jones, and so many more.

Saturday afternoon's program on the Ronnie Wells stage will include two Discovery Acts selected from performers who submitted to Paul Carr’s 2018 Discovery Act Competition. There performance will be followed by Lydia Harrell, the Boston-based winner of the 2017 Mid-Atlantic Jazz Voice competition. Saturday evening's performance starts with the Paul Carr Quartet with special guest, vocalist Carmen Bradford (Seen above with the Mid-Atlantic Jazz Orchestra at the 2012 Mid-Atlantic Jazz Festival). Carr is a strong, hard-bop centered saxophonist as well as educator and will have the great Ms. Bradford, formerly with Count Basie as part of his set.  After his set there will be a Vibes Summit with Warren Wolf, Joe Locke and another player to be announced. The evening closes with a performance by trombonist Wycliffe Gordon and the Mid-Atlantic Jazz Orchestra.

Sunday afternoon opens with Carmen Bradford and the Jazz Academy Orchestra which is followed by the Eric Byrd Trio. The Baltimore based Byrd is a superb pianist rooted in blues and gospel as well as bop and they will celebrate their new CD release "Saints Are Still Marching." They will be followed by one of my favorite singers from the DMV area, Janine Gilbert-Carter (seen in video above from 2009 where she was backed with Eric Byrd and others) who also has a new release, "My Foolish Heart." Sunday evening opens with a fabulous young pianist, Matthew Whitaker, followed by saxophonist Craig Handy and Second Line Smith with another great vocalist, Carmen Lundy closing out the main stage.

In addition to the Main Stage, there are many performers in the more intimate MAJF Club, including saxophonists Terry Koger and Braxton Cook (seen above), and vocalists Candice Bostwick, Petra Martin, and Chad Carter. Every night the Wes Biles Trio hosts a jam session in the MAJF Club. There are also a number of High School Big Band and Ensembles that perform with the High School Band Competition Finals taking place Saturday Afternoon in the Ronnie Wells Main Stage. There are also Films show, artist interviews and workshops for young musicians offered during the Festival.

The festival is presented by the Jazz Academy of Music. The Jazz Academy of Music Inc, a non-profit 501c3 organization, established in 2002, is a manifestation of a longtime dream of Paul Carr (seen performing at the 2011 Mid-Atalntic Jazz Festival), its Music Director, to extend the music education opportunities afforded him, as an inner city youth, to others. The Jazz Academy programs draw from and build upon the disciplines of music education Paul experienced in his youth. The mission of the Academy is to advance and preserve Jazz music through education. Its website is http://www.jazzacademy.org.

For more information on the performers and the Mid-Atlantic Jazz Festival, including artist bios (and video clips), tickets, accommodations and more, visit https://www.midatlanticjazzfestival.org/ or email inquiry@midatlanticjazzfestival.org.

Janine Gilbert-Carter At Last

I was at the 2013 Mid-Atlantic Jazz Festival performance by Janine Gilbert-Carter which was recorded and released under the title “At Last." Carter is among a number of wonderful vocalists that can be heard in the Mid-Atlantic region, regularly performing around Washington DC and its suburbs. Carter, has toured internationally and as I write this, about to appear at the Metropolitan Room in New York City. She was mentored by the late Washington vocal legend Ronnie Wells. and brings a background in gospel, blues and jazz together with singing that is full of heart and passion delivered with humor or pathos and with her wonderful intonation and timing. On this self-produced recording, before a packed audience of friends and fans, she is backed by pianist Eric Byrd, bassist Wes ‘Sugah’ Biles, drummer Jeff Neal and saxophonist Brian Lee Settles.

She gets the audience involved in a call and response on a lively “Let the Good Times Roll,” while captures the indigo mood of the Ellington classic, “Don’t Get Around Much More,” with  tenor sax from Settles. This is a set list of favorite songs including a nice “Stormy Monday” (Byrd is outstanding on piano); a  reworking of Al Green’s “Let’s Stay Together”; lovely ballad renditions of “Since I Fell For You” and “My Family Valentine”; and some strong scatting on “How High the Moon.” Much of her interpretation of “Fever” is a duet with bassist Biles followed by a rocking “I Don’t Hurt No More,” (with more outstanding playing from Settles) before closing with “At Last,”  a song that is always being requested by those attending her performances. Eric Byrd takes us to church during his solo here.

The performances that evening were marvelously recorded, mixed and mastered by Bluehouse Productions. Some folk might question the inclusion of so many well-known and familiar songs, but these are the songs that are her bread and butter and favorites of those who came for to see her that night. In her voice, these are not tired standards, but heartfelt renditions of classic songs. All that were at that show received this recording that stands up as more than a souvenir. This is available at cd.baby.com. Her website is http://www.janinecarter.com.

Here is Janine Gilbrt-Carter singing "Stormy Monday" at Westminster Church in Washington DC as part of their weekly Friday night Jazz series.

Janine Gilbert-Carter's "Inside a Silent Tear"

One of the many fine singers around the Washington DC area, Janine Gilbert-Carter “lives at the intersection where jazz, blues and gospel all come together,” according to Jeff Gruber, who engineered Janine’s most recording, Inside a Silent Tear. Recorded at the Historic Blair mansion, she is backed by a terrific quartet comprised of Eric Byrd on keyboards, Wes ‘Sugar’ Biles on bass, Jeff Neal on drums and Brian Lee Settles on tenor sax on a set of some well known standards mixed with less familiar items to showcase her soulful singing.

A solid Ain’t Misbehavin’ opens this performance up with Eric Byrd’s piano providing the proper foil before taking a nice solo showing his touch, technique and restraint. I was not familiar with Bill Withers’ Grandma’s Hands, with its gospel-funk groove set by Wes Biles on an electric bass and Byrd on electronic keyboards showcases another side of Carter’s vocals on this gem of a song. The title song, from Blossom Dearie’s songbook, features some nice tenor sax from Brain Settles caressing Carter’s wistful vocal that displays the wonderful control and tone of her interpretation here. The tempo picks up for a relaxed, swinging All of Me, with a brief section which is almost a duet with bassist Biles. Carter, matched by the gospel-laced piano of Byrd, is quite impassioned here on a solid interpretation of Sam Cooke’s A Change is Gonna Come.


Everything Must Change is perhaps her finest performance of the many excellent ones here finding her on a reflective mood and followed by a swinging How High the Moon, with some nice scatting before another fine solo from pianist Bryd. There are nice accents in his playing and the arrangement here brings freshness to her wonderful take on this. Don’t Touch Me, another of the highlights, allows Carter to show her bluesy side, and Byrd’s solo here reminds me of the great Charles Brown. Nice and Easy is enlivened by its light latin groove. Carter gives this classic a more intimate feel than the well-known Sinatra recording. There are some understated tenor sax embellishments on this by Brian Settles. Settles solos with a feathery tone on both Our Love Is Here to Stay, and the closing Teach Me Tonight, in addition to Carter’s heartfelt vocals. 


Inside a Silent Tear shows why so many in the Washington DC area regard Janine Gilbert-Carter as a ‘local’ treasure. Her vocals are honey-toned, yet full of personality and soulfulness and the backing provided by her band is marvelous. Her website is http://www.janinecarter.com/index.php from which this can be purchased and it is also available at cdbaby.com. For those in Washington DC area, she is regularly at LaPorta’s in Alexandria, Virginia.


I purchased this CD.