Joe Lovano (pictured), Jack DeJohnette, John Patitucci, Charlie Hunter and Janis Segal are only a few of the artists who will come together for the second annual Panama Jazz Festival, to be held Jan. 20-22 in Panama City. The festival, which was founded by multi-Grammy nominated pianist Danilo Pérez, will also feature Panamanian artists including pianist Victor Boa, trumpeter Victor Paz, saxophonist Carlo Garnett and vocalist Barbara Wilson.
The festival originally debuted in September 2003 and was hailed a success by critics and musicians. The upcoming festival is organized by Pérez and by Panama City’s mayor, Juan Carlos Navarro. The country’s new cultural minister Ruben Blades and the Panamanian government are also giving their support to the festival.
Pérez said in a press release, “It has been my dream for a long time to create an arena in my native country and Latin America where jazz is celebrated… One of the goals for this festival is to create an awareness of the many contributions of jazz made by Panamanian and Latin American musicians and musical innovators.” Larry Blumenfeld wrote on the previous festival, “This was Danilo Pérez’s gift to his native country, and to the current American jazz community he’s come to call home.”
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