Jazz in the Park will close out the music season at Peekskill’s Riverfront Green this Sunday, August 19. The music festival runs from noon to 7 p.m. and features a lineup of luminous stars in the jazz world.
Hosted by on-air WBGO (Jazz 88) radio personality Sheila Anderson the day features a musical lineup including:
Cross Cultural Connections Pro Am Ensemble featuring students and professionals. The CCC Pro-Am Ensemble is Cross-Cultural Connection’s workshop ensemble in which students from diverse backgrounds play alongside seasoned professional clinicians. The result is a powerful current of joy that is a delight for performers and audiences alike as they experience the power and beauty of American folk music – Jazz. Show Time for the CCC Pro Am Ensemble is Noon to 12:45.
The TK Blue Quartet from New York City. T.K.Blue is a musician of the highest caliber who is at the peak of his creative output. Mr. Blue’s artistry is found on over eighty-five recordings and he has performed with a long list of great international artists.
“T.K.Blue’s melodies are infectious. He’s a dynamic composer.” says Dee Dee McNeil, jazz journalist for musicalmemoirs.wordpress.com. Show Time is 1:15 to 2 p.m.
The Harlem Blues and Jazz Band which is celebrating its 50th anniversary this year. The Harlem Blues & Jazz Band was founded by a great jazz fan, Dr. Albert ‘Doc’ Vollmer on March 4th, 1973. As the band manager Dr. Vollmer has been the driving force for taking the band all over the world. Show Time is 2:30-3:15 pm
Cynthia Scott is a jazz vocalist known for her work as one of Ray Charles’s Grammy winning “Raelettes” and for her subsequent solo career. She was named Jazz Ambassador for the U.S. Department of State in 2004 and was Wynton Marsalis’s choice for the first person to give a concert in the Lincoln Center’s Rose Room. She was inducted into the Arkansas Black Hall of Fame in 2016. Show time is 3:45 to 4:30
Peekskill’s own Ray Blue is a soulful and tender saxophonist, composer and music educator. He has a big warm sound that captures and holds you tight. He has seven releases with his most recent projects on Jazzheads. His latest release Work remained on the Jazz Week Chart for more than two months, peaking at #7, and his holiday single, soon to be a classic, Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas topped off at #2. Ray is earning considerable attention in the U.S. and Europe with his stellar band and his heartfelt soloing. A new recording #PEOPLE was released in June, 2023. Show Time is 5 to 5:45
The afternoon of jazz closes out with Mark Morganelli and The Jazz Forum All-Stars celebrate Brasil! Flugelhornist Mark Morganelli has recorded with Paquito D’Rivera, James Moody, Clark Terry, Harry “Sweets” Edison, Roland Hanna, Milt Hinton, Bucky Pizzarelli and others. He continues to perform with his Jazz Forum All-Stars and the Brazil project around the region and “Brasil!” is his fifth CD as leader. Morganelli and his wife, Ellen Prior opened their new Jazz Forum club venue in Tarrytown, NY in June, 2017. Show Time is 6:15 – 7:00
Sponsors of the free event are: Jazz Foundation of America, M& T Bank, Arts Westchester, Blum Family Foundation, Cathy Starling Foundation, Glenn Hoagland Foundation, Ray Blue Music LLC and the City of Peekskill.
