The Jazz Club of Sarasota marks its 40th anniversary with the 40th Sarasota Jazz Festival, its biggest ever. The events take place in various Sarasota County venues from March 8-14, 2020. Ken Peplowski returns for his third year as music director for the mainstage concerts.“Since it’s a big anniversary, we’re presenting an overview of the best of straight ahead jazz going on now,” he said. We’ve booked Sarasota favorites who have returned often over the years as well as people coming here for the first time.” Peplowski has chosen The Manhattan Transfer to headline the milestone event. Other jazz stars include Dick Hyman, Clairdee, Houston Person, Charles McPherson, Russell Malone, Terell Stafford, and festival band La Lucha (Alejandra Arenas, Mark Feinman and John O’Leary). “We try to have something for everybody on each night. If people already know one performer, they can come and discover another,” Peplowski said. The festival traditionally brings a mix of free and ticketed events that feature internationally acclaimed performers; local and regional musicians; jazz stars of tomorrow, joined this year by high school jazz bands; a pub crawl by trolley; two screenings of a jazz film with mini-concert; and the presentation of the Satchmo Award, the Club’s highest honor.This year the Jazz Club has added four new events: two Master Classes, one taught by Janis Siegel of The Manhattan Transfer and the other by acclaimed trumpeter and educator Terell Stafford; a fifth stage for its Jazz Party, now offering a reduced admission price; and a Founders Luncheon honoring the Hal and Evelyn Davis family. In a significant change of venue, the festival’s mainstage concerts will be presented in the Sarasota Municipal Auditorium, 801 North Tamiami Trail, with several other concerts staged at venues within a short walking distance of the Auditorium and a master class at Fogartyville Art Center. Other long-established festival events will be held in their traditional venues at Phillippi Estate Park, Burns Court Cinema, and nightclubs in downtown Sarasota. For detailed information and tickets contact the Jazz Club office (email to admin@jazzclubsarasota.com or call 941.366.1552 on Wednesday-Friday, 9am-5pm).

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