12/01/09

NYC Winter Jazzfest Hits West Village Jan. 8, 9

By Aubrey Everett

The 2010 NYC Winter Jazzfest will descend on the West Village this Jan. 8 and 9, with more than 40 different groups scheduled to perform over the course of the jam-packed two-day event. Organized and run by Brice Rosenbloom of boomBOOM Presents, the sixth annual Jazzfest will feature two showcases on Friday. Guest curator Meghan Stabile of Revive Da Live will host her showcase at Zinc Bar, while fellow guest curator Adam Schatz of Search & Restore will present at nearby Kenny’s Castaways. This year the event will be held in West Village venues, as opposed to last year’s Tribeca locations.

“Everyone is going to be unbelievable,” said Schatz, a New York City-based jazz event producer. “There really is an offensive amount of talent. It is almost too much, in the best way.”

Le Poisson Rouge, Sullivan Hall and the Bitter End will host the remaining shows not included in the two headlining showcases.

Schatz said he is enthusiastically spreading the word through his Web site, SearchandRestore.com, various posters throughout the city, and word of mouth among the jazz community.

This year the Jazzfest coincides with the Association of Performing Arts Presenters (APAP) conference, which gives the artists a chance to showcase their skills in front of presenters, promoters, talent buyers, educators, musicians and avid fans. This provides a potentially fruitful platform for the artists, as an estimated 5,000 arts professionals are expected to be in New York City for the annual APAP conference which runs through Jan. 12.

APAP conference badge-holders are invited to RSVP at rsvp@winterjazzfest.com in order to receive a complimentary full-festival pass. Single-day passes are available to the general public for $25, while two-day full-festival passes cost $30. For tickets and more information, visit www.winterjazzfest.com.

Jazzfest 2010 performers include Amanda Monaco’s Deathblow, Ambrose Akinmusire Quintet, Baptiste Trotignon, Ben Allison, Bitches Brew Project, Bobby Previte’s New Bump Quartet, Briggan Krauss, Charlie Hunter, Chelsea Baratz, the Claudia Quintet, Darcy James Argue’s Secret Society, Dr. Lonnie Smith, ELEW, Elliott Sharp’s Terraplane, Emile Parisien, the Fotojo String Band, Gretchen Parlato, Ibrahim Maalouf, Jaleel Shaw, Jamie Leonhart, Jamie Saft’s Whoopie Pie, Jayme Stone presents Africa to Appalachia, JD Allen Trio, Jenny Scheinman & Jason Moran, Jeremy Udden’s Plainville, Ken Thomson’s Slow/Fast, Linda Oh, Lionel Loueke, Marco Benevento, Mark Giuliana’s THING, Mary Halvorson, Matt Wilson Quartet, Michael Bellar’s As-Is Ensemble, Mike Reed’s People, Places & Things, Nicholas Payton, Peter Apfelbaum and the New York Hieroglyphics, RAAQ (Rez Abbasi’s Acoustic Quartet w/ Bill Ware), Rudder, Rudresh Mahanthappa’s Indo-Pak Coalition, Sachal Vasandani, Somi, Todd Sickafoose’s Tiny Resistors, Vijay Iyer Trio and Zim Ngqawana.