Jazzed Up

Now 30 years old, festival keeps swinging upward

Jazz organist Joey DeFrancesco headlines the Saturday night activities at Jazz Eureka.
Jazz organist Joey DeFrancesco headlines the Saturday night activities at Jazz Eureka.

It can't be called the 30th anniversary celebration, because there were several years without a Eureka Springs Jazz Festival, or, as it's called now, Jazz Eureka.

But there's a party going on this weekend nonetheless.

FAQ

Jazz Eureka

WHEN — Today-Saturday

WHERE — Various venues in Eureka Springs

COST — Some events free; headlining show $20-$50

INFO — jazzeureka.org

FYI

Jazz Eureka

Schedule of Events

All events are free and take place in Basin Spring Park unless otherwise noted.

Today

7-9 p.m. — Beto and the Fairlanes

Saturday

Noon-2 p.m. — Fayetteville Jazz Octet

2-4 p.m. — Rodney Block

4-6 p.m. — Grady Nichols

7:30 p.m. — Joey DeFrancesco with guests Joe Cartwright Band, The Auditorium. $20-$50.

Sunday

10 a.m.-1 p.m. — Jazz brunch, Crystal Dining Room of the Crescent Hotel. $24.95. Reservations at 253-9652

Jazz Eureka takes place at Basin Spring Park tonight and during the early afternoon hours of Saturday. The shows in the park are free. The festival's headlining event featuring jazz organist Joey DeFrancesco and guest Joe Cartwright Band takes place Saturday night at The Auditorium, a venue that event organizer Rod Sumner says is "great for jazz."

And so is Eureka Springs as a host city, he adds.

The Eureka Springs Jazz Festival first took place in 1985 and included headliner David Grisman. As it grew, the festival attracted some jazz talent of considerable stature, including genre superstars Herbie Mann, Charlie Byrd and Chick Corea. The festival waned in the late 1990s and went dormant. Sumner, an audio engineer and a jazz aficionado, worked to bring in back in recent years. The festival has returned with performances by headliners such as last year's double billing of Delfeayo Marsalis and Ellis Marsalis Sr. The last four years have featured the event -- renewed under the title Jazz Eureka -- rising to return to its better days.

"We're trying to re-establish the festival," Sumner says.

This year's event features a return of one of the bands that played the very first jazz festival 30 years ago. Austin, Texas, jazz fusion act Beto & The Fairlanes performs a free show at Basin Park. The world music-meets-salsa-meets-jazz band has released five albums in the intervening years. Music fans are encouraged to bring lawn chairs to the show or use the benches already in the park.

Sumner says 2015 headliner Joey DeFrancesco is great choice for the festival because he dips into many genres, and while technically proficient, he also appeals to many kinds of music fans.

"It's just good, accessible jazz. It crosses a lot of genres, with recognizable tunes," Sumner says. Joining him for the evening will be Kansas City-based jazz pianist Joe Cartwright and vocalist Molly Hammer.

"We have a really great lineup. It's music not just for jazz lovers, but music lovers," Sumner says.

The festival's events conclude with a jazz brunch Sunday in the Crystal Dining Room at the Crescent Hotel. Reservations are recommended.

NAN What's Up on 09/11/2015

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