Fri 6/23-Sat 6/24
Tri-C JazzFest concluded its 44th annual event at Playhouse Square with eight ticketed concerts inside PHS’s theaters. But a lot of the action was outside on the street, where Euclid and East 14th were blocked off and local jazz, blues, pop, samba, reggae and other acts played on a big stage to the delight of a dancing crowd. The smaller stage Next Gen at the opposite end of the street showcased the talented kids in the Tri-C Jazz Camp.
Rain on Friday evening barely dampened the festivities as Cleveland samba school Samba de Cidade had the street echoing with percussion. The rain washed away the crowd for the Chris Burge Quartet (people listened from under the tents and theater canopies) who came back for Carlos Jones & the P.L.U.S. Band when it let up. The appearance of Robin VanLear’s dancers with lighted parasols and new giant puppets modeled on a Romare Bearden painting added magic to the evening’s end.
They re-appeared on a rain-free Saturday evening to join the ecstatic audience moving to the irresistible Latin sounds of Sammy DeLeon and his powerful 14-piece ensemble. (A funny side note: introducing a segment of Cuban music, DeLeon asked “Where are my Cubans at?” to dead silence from the huge crowd. He did a quick demographic recalculation and asked “Where’re my Puerto Ricans at?” earning shouts from every part of the street. A Hispanic person in Cleveland is 25 times more likely to be Puerto Rican than Cuban.)
Saturday’s lineup featured two women who represented the wide age spread of the area’s outstanding talents. Becky Boyd, who’s been performing for more than 40 years, wowed the crowd with her rich, resonant alto on arrangements of tunes such as Marvin Gayes “What’s Going On” as well as originals. And over on the Next Gen stage, 18-year-old Ava Preston, who’s been performing in area jazz clubs for five or six years already, also mixed originals with arrangements of standards as she displayed an agile vocal instrument and emotional depth that show she’s ready for a national audience.
View the PHOTOSTREAM here.
