Photo by Len Katz
Detroit International Jazz Festival.
Detroit's Hart Plaza is going to see a lot of action come September.
The lineup for the 41st Annual Detroit Jazz Festival was announced Monday, just after Gov. Whitmer issued a state-wide stay-at-home order for the next three weeks in an effort to combat the spread of COVID-19. This comes as some much needed good news considering all upcoming events have either been canceled or postponed, including Detroit's Movement music festival, which moved from its three-day Memorial Day slot to Sep. 11-13, remaining, however, at its Hart Plaza location.
This year's jazz fest will maintain its tradition of being the world's largest free jazz festival, spanning all of Labor Day weekend, Sep. 4-7. Decorated jazz legend Herbie Hancock will kick-off the festivities on Friday night.
“True to our mission, the Detroit Jazz Festival provides a platform for emerging and legacy artists to present true jazz presentations to enthusiasts and fans across the world…this year is no exception,” Detroit Jazz Festival Foundation President and Artistic Director Chris Collins said in a press release. “This year’s festival will showcase a very dynamic group of artists from various disciplines and generations, representing our embedded mission to present multiple facets of jazz in one festival setting.”
Each year, the festival enlists an artist-in-residence, and the 2020 iteration will welcome Memphis-born, Flint native, Grammy and Tony Award-winning jazz vocalist Dee Dee Bridgewater.
Other performers revealed by the festival's partial lineup include Pharoah Sanders, Gregory Porter, Abdullah Ibrahim, Omar Sosa and Marialy Pacheco, Kurt Elling's Big Blind with Ben Vereen, the David Binney Angeleno Quartet, Jimmy Greene Quintet, Roberto Fonseca, the Dave Brubeck 100th Anniversary Tribute featuring the Brubeck Brothers, Jerry Bergonzi, the Detroit Jazz Festival Orchestra and Choir, and more.
Another feature returning this year is Detroit JAZZ Fest Live, which allows those folks unable to attend the festival to view a live stream of performances from all four stages by paying $20.
For the full festival schedule, updates, maps, and registration for the live stream visit detroitjazzfest.org.
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