Blue Note Jazz Festival Celebrates Its Third Year With Thirty Days Of Music

NEW YORK, April 11, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- The Blue Note Jazz Festival, New York City's largest jazz festival, will return in 2013 with a full month of performances, June 1 – 30, with over 120 performances at 9 venues throughout New York City in addition to Blue Note Jazz Club. Additional venues include Allen Room at Jazz at Lincoln Center, B.B. King Blues Club & Grill, Hester Street Fair, The Highline Ballroom, Lehman Performing Arts Center, Lucille's Bar & Grill at B.B. King Blues Club, SummerStage and Town Hall. Ticket information and a complete schedule of events are available on the official website, www.BlueNoteJazzFestival.com.  Additional venues and performances will be added in the days leading up to the Festival launch.

"Jazz was born from a mix of genres and we wanted to pay tribute to that history by showcasing a diverse mix of musicians," said Steven Bensusan, President at Blue Note Entertainment Group.  "This year, we're stretching the boundaries of The Blue Note Jazz Festival by making the festival 10 days longer, giving us a great opportunity to book a more diverse array of performances than ever before, including cross-over artists, eclectic orchestras and international luminaries, as well as some of the genre's true living legends."

This year's festival will highlight both the legendary masters and up-and-coming stars of jazz. Specific highlights include:

• Flamenco-inspired vocalist Buika at Town Hall, whose latest album, produced by Eli Wolf, comes out this year  and who NPR named one of the world's "50 Great Voices" 
• Dobro guitarist and American country legend Jerry Douglas, performing for three nights at Blue Note Jazz Club, who counts among his past collaborators Eric Clapton, Dolly Parton and Vince Gill, and who has toured extensively with Alison Krauss and Union Station 
• English guitarist John McLaughlin, making his first club appearance in years, who rock legend Jeff Beck once referred to as "the best guitarist alive"
• GRAMMY-award winning Puerto Rican band leader and pianist Eddie Palmieri, who will be performing with his Salsa Orchestra at B.B. King Blues Club & Grill
• Joshua  Redman Quartet, who will be performing with Brad Mehldau, Larry Grenadier and Brian Blade & Orchestra at Town Hall to support their May 2013 release, "Walking Shadows"
• Saxophonist Wayne Shorter's 80^th Birthday Celebration at Town Hall, featuring three bands  - the Wayne Shorter Quartet, Esperanza Spalding Trio, Sound Prints: Dave Douglas and Joe Lovano Quintet - paying tribute to "jazz's greatest living composer" (according to The New York Times)  
• McCoy Tyner & The Latin All Stars performing two shows at Blue Note Jazz Club, featuring Gerald Cannon, Francisco Mela, Gary Bartz, Conrad Herwig, Brian Lynch and Miguel Valdez
• Tommy Emmanuel performing one night only at B.B. King Blues Club & Grill, a household name in his native Australia, whose unique "finger style" of guitar playing (more akin to piano playing) led to a wide-ranging career playing with popular bands such as Air Supply and Men at Work, and who now, at age 57, performs 300 solo performances a year

In addition to these acts, other performers scheduled to participate in the 2013 Blue Note Jazz Festival include salsa great Poncho Sanchez; saxophonist David Sanborn; international acts such as Gato Barbieri, Chucho Valdés, Sadao Watanabe; ensemble acts such as Rebirth Brass Band, Harlem Gospel Choir and Dizzy Gillespie Big Band; vocalists Amel Larrieux, Susana Baca, Delbert McClinton and Buffy Sainte-Marie; guitarist Ottmar Liebert; pianists Bob James, Danilo Perez and Kenny Werner;  trumpeter Dave Douglas;  genre-bending jazz orchestra Bjorkestra; spoken-word artist, musician and star of the classic film "SLAM", Saul Williams; and San Diego-based soul-and-funk super group The Greyboy Allstars featuring Houston Person, James Carter, and Gary Bartz.

To preface the festival, the Blue Note Jazz Festival will sponsor a series of free concerts, outdoor events and educational programs presented by nonprofit organizations JazzReach and JazzHouse Kids, both dedicated to teaching jazz programs to young audiences.  JazzReach will present Blue Note Jazz Festival for Kids from May 29-May 31.

About Blue Note
The Blue Note Jazz Club has become a cultural institution in New York and one of the premier jazz clubs in the world. Jazz is undoubtedly America's music, and while the Blue Note strives to celebrate the music's great history, the club is a place where progression and innovation – the foundation of jazz - are encouraged and practiced on a nightly basis. Located at 131 W. 3rd St. between 6th Ave and McDougal St., in the heart of Greenwich Village, the Blue Note offers music every night at 8pm and 10:30pm. On Friday and Saturday nights at 12:30am, Blue Note hosts the Late Night Groove Series. The Blue Note Brunch is held every Sunday with sets at 12:30pm and 2:30pm.

SOURCE Blue Note Jazz Club