Now in its ninth year, the DC Jazz Festival has become the city’s biggest arts festival, once again boasting hundreds of acts performing in dozens of venues in all four quadrants of our nation’s capital. The festival kicked off last weekend with The Phillips Collection hosting the annual Jazz N’ Families Fun Days. Tonight, the event begins in earnest. While we highly recommend going through the entire schedule to see what suits your fancy, here are DCist’s picks for the events you should see between today and June 16.
Top Pick: Roy Haynes is nothing short of a jazz icon. He began his career playing with the likes of Charlie Parker and has played with pretty much every notable jazz artist of the past seven decades. Now in his late 80s, the legendary drummer still performs regularly, always surrounding himself with talented young musicians. Haynes will lead his Fountain of Youth band tonight at The Hamilton. Local first call drummer Nasar Abadey will open with his band, Supernova. 7:30 p.m. Tickets $32-$41.50.
Runner-up: Pianist Marc Cary‘s roots lie in the District’s go-go dance halls, but he has since gone on to explore Indian classical, electronic music, and extensions of straight-ahead and avant-garde jazz. He will celebrate the release of his latest release, For the Love of Abbey, a tribute to the late, great Abbey Lincoln, tonight at Bohemian Caverns. 8 and 10 p.m. sets. Tickets $20 online, $25 at the door.
Also: Lenny White was at the forefront of the jazz-fusion movement in the early ’70s, having played drums with Miles Davis and Chick Corea’s Return to Forever. He has also been leading his own groups for decades, and will bring his latest project, New Voices, to the Millennium Stage tonight. 6 p.m. Free.
Top Pick: Nicholas Payton was among a crop of young lions to come out of New Orleans in the early 1990s. Now an established bandleader, he tours the world and consistently puts out excellent music. He will be at The Hamilton tonight with his latest band, dubbed XXX, featuring drummer Lenny White. 7:30 p.m. Tickets $25-$35.
Runner-up: Inspired by the era of its Georges Braque exhibition, tonight’s Phillips After 5 event at The Phillips Collection features music and art from the 1930s and ’40s. There will be a live performance from pianist Allyn Johnson, always a favorite here at DCist. 5 to 8:30 p.m. Tickets $10-$12. Advance purchase is highly recommended.
Also: The Hot 8 Brass Band plays music rooted in the traditional sounds of New Orleans, but also incorporates contemporary funk, R&B, and hip-hop influences. The group will be at the Sixth & I Historic Synagogue tonight for an 8 p.m. show. Tickets $20.
Top Pick: Stefon Harris has become one of the top vibraphonists in jazz. With his band, Blackout, he is stretching the boundaries of the genre by incorporating electronic and other 21st century sounds. Blackout will be at The Hamilton for an 8:30 p.m. show. Tickets $25-$35.
Runner-up: Guitarist Kenny Wessel spent more than a decade playing with free jazz pioneer Ornette Coleman, and has since become an expert in Indian classical music and an award winning composer. He will be at Twins Jazz on tonight and tomorrow, leading his own band through 8 and 10 p.m. sets. Tickets $18 plus food/drink minimum.
Also: The National Gallery’s Jazz in the Garden concert series is one of the city’s most popular summer events, drawing thousands every week. This evening’s show features local Latin jazzers Sin Mideo. 5 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. Free.
Top Pick: Combining the West African rhythms of his youth with a totally thorough understanding of jazz harmony, guitarist Lionel Loueke has created a sound that is all his own. He has played with the likes of Herbie Hancock and Terence Blanchard, but this weekend he will lead his own group at Bohemian Caverns. 8:30 and 10:30 p.m. sets on Saturday, 7 and 9 p.m. sets on Sunday. Tickets $18 online, $23 at the door.
Runner-up: CapitalBop is once again teaming up with the festival to bring its popular D.C. Jazz Loft series to the festival. Tonight’s show is a must see for fans of avant-garde music. Multi-instrumentalist Joe McPhee will play as a duo with German saxophonist Peter Brötzmann. Local guitar alchemist Anthony Pirog will open with his quartet. The performance will take place at Union Arts & Manufacturing. 8:30 p.m. show. Tickets $15.
Also: Earlier this year, drummer Terri Lyne Carrington released Money Jungle: Provocative in Blue, her homage to Duke Ellington, Charles Mingus and Max Roach, to coincide with the 50th anniversary of their 1963 Money Jungle album. She will be at The Hamilton to with a group to perform selections from the album. 8:30 p.m. Tickets $25-$35.
Also: The Smithsonian Anacostia Community Museum hosts the Craig Alston Quartet. 2 p.m. Free.
Top Pick: The Sixth & I Historic Synagogue hosts one of the festival’s marquis events tonight. From Bagels to Bongos, featuring the The Arturo O’Farrill Afro Latin Jazz Orchestra with a number of special guests, explores a convergence of cross-cultural musical styles from the Catskills, Northern Africa, Iberia, and the Middle East. 7 p.m. Tickets $25.
Runner-up: CapitalBop‘s D.C. Jazz Loft series continues with influential drummer Gerald Cleaver, leading his group, Black Host, tonight at The Fridge. Local mainstay Brian Settles and his band, Central Union, will open. 8:30 p.m. Tickets $15.
Also: It’s couples’ night at Twins Jazz, where saxophonists Sarah Hughes and Brad Linde will team up with the cello/guitar duo of Janel & Anthony for an evening of exploratory music. 8 and 10 p.m. sets. Tickets $12 plus food and drink minimum.
Also: Saxophonist Elijah Balbed is one of the bright young stars of the local jazz scene. He will lead a quintet for an afternoon performance at the Dumbarton House. 3 p.m. Tickets $12.
Top Pick: If you’ve never been inside the Turkish Embassy residence, it’s worth paying a visit. There was a time when the historic home hosted the only integrated jazz jam in the city, thanks to the then-Ambassador’s son, record mogul Ahmet Ertegun. Vocalist Hilary Kole will give a 7:30 p.m. performance tonight. Tickets $25.
Runner-up: Any fan of local music, whether you’re into jazz or not, should make it a point to see the Bohemian Caverns Jazz Orchestra on any given Monday at the historic club. There are few better deals in the city than seeing 17 of the area’s best musicians play two sets. Tonight’s performance will feature guest vibraphonist Warren Wolf. 8 p.m. Tickets $15 online, $20 at the door.
Also: One thing that separates the DC Jazz Festival from many other festivals is its commitment to raising the profile of the many spaces in and around D.C. that feature jazz. Check out the Jazz in the ‘Hoods lineup to see what’s going on around town during the festival.
Top Pick: Poncho Sanchez‘s Latin Jazz Band is one of the most road-tested outfits around, delivering infectious rhythms from all over Latin America and top notch improvisors. The group will be at The Hamilton tonight for a 7:30 p.m. show. Tickets $35-$45.
Runner-up: Marshall Keys, saxophonist and alum of D.C.’s own funk band, The Blackbyrds, is serving as the June Artist-in-Residence at Bohemian Caverns. Tonight’s performance will feature special guest Alex Bugnon on keys, and will pay tribute to Claude Nobs, the founder and general manager of the Montreux Jazz Festival. 7:30 and 9:30 p.m. sets. Tickets $15 online, $20 at the door.
Top Pick: During a distinguished career that spans over 30 years, bassist Michael Formanek‘s resume includes work with Elvis Costello, Chet Baker, Stan Getz, Freddie Hubbard, and a host of other greats. Tonight, he leads a group of all-stars at the Atlas, with a band that includes saxophonist Tim Berne, drummer Gerald Cleaver and pianist Jacob Sacks. 8 p.m. Tickets $15-$25.
Runner-up: The pianist Alex Brown is a regular performer at the DC Jazz festival, and this gifted young artist is always a must see. The area native will be at Bohemian Caverns tonight, performing 8 and 10 p.m. sets with guitarist Yotam Silberstein. Tickets $18 online, $23 at the door.
Also: Pianist Cyrus Chestnut is another staple of this festival, and this year he will once again bring a group to The Hamilton. The twist here is that his band is comprised of some of the top students from his alma mater, the Berklee College of Music. 7:30 p.m. Tickets $25-$35.
Top Pick: Dana Leong brings a truly unique approach to jazz. First of all, his main instruments are cello and trombone. Next, he mixes is improvisational sensibilities with electronics and loops — not to mention the first-rate musicians with which he surrounds himself. Leong’s band will be at the Sixth and I Historic Synagogue for an 8 p.m. show. Tickets $15.
Runner-up: There’s nothing we can say about legendary bassist Ron Carter that we haven’t said already. If you haven’t seen him play, you should. He will be leading his Golden Striker trio tonight at The Hamilton. 7:30 p.m. Tickets $35-$45.
Also: Vocalist Susana Baca played a key role in the revival of Afro-Peruvian music, even serving as Peru’s Culture Minister. Baca will perform her native music tonight at the Howard Theatre. 8 p.m. Tickets $28 in advance, $32 day of show.
Top Pick: Lee Konitz first made his name playing in in Miles Davis’s legendary Birth of the Cool ensemble. That was in 1949. The master saxophonist is still going strong and he will be at the Atlas, leading an ensemble assembled by D.C.’s own Brad Linde. The 17-piece band features drummer Matt Wilson and pianist Florian Weber. The group will pay tribute to Lennie Tristano, one of the most influential composers and pedagogues in jazz history.
Runner-up: Pharoah Sanders first made his name during the free jazz movement of the late 1960s, most notably through his playing on John Coltrane’s later recordings. Since then, his approach to music has become more subdued, but he nonetheless retains the edge of a relentlessly exploratory musician. The 72-year old Sanders will be performing at Bohemian Caverns from tonight through Sunday. 8:30 and 10:30 p.m. tonight and tomorrow, 7 and 9 p.m. sets on Sunday. $35 online, $40 at the door.
Also: Every year, the Kennedy Center partners with the festival to present one of its marquee events. This year, the festival’s artistic advisor, Paquito D’Rivera, leads the PanAmericana Ensemble for Jazz Meets the Latin Classics. The program features classical works by Latin composers such as Piazzolla, Lecuona, Rodrigo and Villa Lobos, but puts them in an improvisational setting. 7:30 and 9:30 p.m. sets. Tickets $35.
Top Pick: Tonight’s performance by The Roots at Kastles Stadium at the Wharf presents a significant departure for the DC Jazz Festival, which usually limits its programming to acts more closely associated with traditional jazz. However, if there’s any hip-hop outfit that understands jazz and can find a meeting point between the two genres, it’s ?uestlove and the legendary crew. 6 p.m. doors. Opener Snarky Puppy at 6:45 p.m., The Roots at 8 p.m. Tickets $35-$75.
Runner-up: The D.C. Jazz Loft Series Blowout Show represents the culmination of this year’s collaboration between CapitalBop and the DC Jazz Festival. The bill includes performances by Siné Qua Non, ERIMAJ, Karriem Riggins Quartet and Heidi Martin‘s Moon in Scorpio. The performances will take place at the D.C. Jazz Loft Pop-up Hall, located at 906 H Street NE. 6 p.m. $16.
Also: The Brass-A-Holics have become regulars at the festival and always deliver a killer show that gets people moving. They’ll be at The Hamilton for an 8:30 p.m. set. Tickets $25.
Top Pick: John McLaughlin was still in his teens when Miles Davis tapped him to play guitar on In A Silent Way, one of the early documents of jazz-rock fusion. He then went on to form the Mahavishnu Orchestra in the early ’70s, which is among the most important bands of that fertile era. Since then, he has mastered Indian classical music, performed and recorded orchestral works and is among the most respected musicians in the world. McLaughlin will lead his latest project, The 4th Dimension, tonight at The Howard Theatre. 6 p.m. Tickets $45 in advance, $50 day of show.
Runner-up: As part of the festival’s efforts to bring shows to east of the Anacostia, saxophonist Fred Foss will perform a 10 a.m. show at the Kenilworth Aquatic Gardens. Free.
Also: Local mainstay and drummer Nasar Abadey will lead a quartet at the Anacostia Art Gallery & Boutique. 4 p.m. Free.
In Other News: Smooth jazz fans should consider heading over to Merriweather Post Pavilion this weekend to catch the Capital Jazz Fest.
