The Lethbridge Jazz and Blues Festival has announced an outstanding lineup for their ninth year.
“We have all sorts of Juno Award winners and Grammy Award winners,” summarized Lethbridge Jazz and Blues Festival president Don Robb adding they have collaborated  with with local organizations including the Geomatic Attic, Lethbridge Folk Club and Nikka Yuko Japanese Centre
 The Lethbridge Jazz Festival is excited to present an outstanding lineup for their ninth year.

Lethbridge Jazz and Blues festival president Don Robb is pleased with the festival’s steady growth.
“We were under the banner of the Medicine Hat Jazz Festival for two years before that and we had 800 to 1,000 people over two days. Last year we had over 5,000. So We’re pretty pleased with our growth ” Robb said, adding they are excited to be back at the Sterndale Bennett Theatre.

“It was under renovation last year, so it wasn’t available to us ,but we’re back this year,” he said
 The Festival begins with the Young Lions concert at the Gate, Friday, June 7 at 12:45 p.m..
“It’s one of the cornerstone events of  the festival. It’s called the young lions because the older  generation of jazz musicians would say these young lions are going to take over from us and they will. So we have over a dozen bands and choirs from local schools participating,” he said.

 After that, they are trying out a new venue — the City Hall foyer, where Kayley Kinjo and the Hypocrites will be playing for  special collaboration with the Nikka Yuko Japanese Gardens.
“We’re experimenting with it as a venue. It‘s wide open and music sounds great there,” Robb said.
Tickets for that show are $45 in advance $50 at the door. Tickets for this show and all of the others  are only available online http://www.lethbridgejazzblues.com/

 the other cornerstone event is Saturday, June 8 with the free event Jazz In the Park, which features  touring acts Rondell Roberts, Montuno West, Velle Weitman and the Dirty Catfish Brass Band performing from noon to 5 p.m.

“The past couple years have been all local acts, but we’re changing things up again,” he said, adding local acts will be  performing in several venues including the Mocha Cabana, Streetside, Telegraph and Firestone and others they are considering. The line ups are to be announced.

 

The Lethbridge Folk Club is co presenting a special show at Stoketown Cafe with Calgary’s Karl Roth Trio at 8 p.m..
Sweet inspiration Gospel choir returns to the festival, at Southminster United Church, with host  Dawn Pemberton Wednesday June 12 at 7:30 p.m.. Tickets are $10.

 Jim Brenan breaks in the Sterndale Bennett Theatre, Thursday, June 19 at 7:30 p.m..

“He‘s a legendary saxophone player who has played with  a who’s who of jazz  musicians,” Robb said, adding he has played with luminaries like Michael Mossman, Ralph Bowen, Kenny Barron, Slide Hampton, Kenny Wheeler, Ravi Coltrane to name a few. Tickets are $20.

 The Sterndale Bennett Theatre is also  the venue for Toronto based Grammy Award winning  musician and composer and drummer Larnell Lewis, Thursday, June 14. Tickets are $30 for the show, which begins at 7:30 p.m.

 the Lethbridge Jazz and blues Festival ends big ,  Saturday, June 15 with  a jazz lunch at the Owl Acoustic Lounge at 3 p.m. featuring Tricia Edwards, who plays  a lot as a soloist, jazz combo and classical accompanist who also plays with Calgary‘s more popular salsa and Latin bands.Tickets are $15.

 Jazz and funk band The Shuffle Demons close off the festival at the Sterndale Bennett Theatre, June 15 at 7;30 p.m.. Tickets are $25.

“They had a minor hit with the old Hockey night in Canada theme,” Robb said, adding there are no festival passes.
“We’ve kept the ticket prices reasonable, so you can pick and choose which shows to go to,” he said.
 Tickets are available today.