By Autumn Gray
Albuquerque and Santa Fe may not be on the map as some of the country’s best jazz cities, but the annual New Mexico Jazz Festival that they host attracts the same renowned performers as New Orleans and New York.
Started in 2006 following upon the success of the Santa Fe Jazz and International Music Festival, the NM Jazz Festival is in its 18th year. The event, which is a collaborative of the Outpost Performance Space in Albuquerque and the Lensic Performing Arts Center in Santa Fe, promises to bring to the area a variety of acts – from National Endowment of the Arts Jazz Masters to avant-garde musicians. It is scheduled for Sept. 5-29.
The highlight for many jazz fans will be NEA Jazz Master Dave Holland, an English composer and double bassist who is regarded as one of the most versatile and prolific bassist/composers in jazz history. Holland and his New Quartet are scheduled to perform at 7:30 p.m. September 14 at the Lensic.
“People will play at clubs in New York and at Jazz at Lincoln Center the night before they are here. We get that kind of talent – Grammy winners, those who would be at Newport Jazz (in Rhode Island) and in New Orleans,” said festival director Tom Guralnick, who is also founding executive director of the Outpost.
The Outpost kicks off opening night with local luminaries Michael Anthony, a jazz guitarist, and trumpeter Paul Gonzales. The two elder statesmen of the jazz scene played in L.A. for years, and Anthony is widely known as a local mentor to younger generations of musicians.
Not only does the festival’s array of talent vary widely but so do its venues. Attendees can attend a star-studded show at the 800-seat historic Lensic one night, sit under the stars for Blues Night at Albuquerque’s Civic Plaza the next, share an intimate club environment among 150 music lovers at the Outpost, or enjoy food and drink at participating restaurants while listening to incredible live music.
For ticket information and a complete schedule, visit NewMexicoJazzFestival.org.
About 7,000 people are expected to attend the festival. While jazz afficionados will come to see legends of the stage, many who might say they don’t like “traditional jazz” will also have reason to go.
“Jazz is a term that almost doesn’t have a meaning because there’s so much variety in it,” Guralnick said. “Like rock, you’ve got everything from the Beatles to Metallica, and that’s true of jazz as well.”
Performances will range from Puerto Rican-based Latin jazz to blues, to hip-hop influenced jazz.
As a complement to the festival’s stage music, the Guild Cinema is set to show jazz films Sun Ra – Space is the Place and Sun Ra – A Joyful Noise on Sept. 9-11. An art exhibit featuring more than 100 jazz-related album covers will also be on display along the Outpost’s gallery walls. A reception is set for 3-5 p.m. Sept. 8.
The NM Jazz Festival is the largest endeavor of the year for the nonprofit Outpost, with 25 performances planned on a budget of $350,000. About 45 percent of support comes from ticket sales and the remainder from donations, grants, and sponsorships.
