Eighth-annual Salem Jazz and Soul Festival set for weekend of Aug.16-17

The 2014 Salem Jazz and Soul Festival will take place the weekend of Aug. 16-17 at the Salem Willows. The two day concert will feature performances by 10 bands from around New England and New York.

The free festival will also include a music-education tent, a family tent, a 21-plus beer pavilion and more than 30 local artisans selling hand-crafted goods. It will run from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. both days.

The Salem High School Jazz band will open Saturday’s concert, followed by Pocket Money Orchestra, Amadee Castenell, and Moon Hooch. Delta Generators will headline Saturday.

Sunday will open with the North Shore Jazz Project All-Stars, followed by Cape Ann Big Band, Liquid Revolution, and the Frotations. Alissia Benveniste and the Funketeers, a 15-person funk band made up of Berklee College of Music students, will headline Sunday.

DJ Radio Scotvoid will spin between sets and Aurelia Nelson of North Shore 104.9 will emcee along with festival co-founder, Henley Douglas Jr.

Salem Trolley will offer an inexpensive shuttle to the festival, which will stop regularly at the National Parks Service Visitors Center on Essex Street, the Salem Ferry Landing on Blaney Street and the Bentley School, 25 Memorial Drive, where there will be additional parking.

Also, Mahi Mahi Cruises and Charters will ferry audience members from Pickering Wharf to the Willows all day, for a reasonable fee.

The festival encourages audience members to walk, ride bicycles or take the trolley to the Salem Willows, as parking will be limited.

The festival is a a 501(c)(3) non-profit dedicated to producing free concerts and supporting music-education causes on the North Shore of Massachusetts.

Band bios can be found at www.salemjazzsoul.org and photos are available upon request.

The festival is a nonprofit, volunteer-run organization that produces free concerts and raises money for music education causes on the North Shore.

Check salemjazzsoul.org for more information.

Contact: Judy Parisella
Phone: ***-***-7444
Email: jparisella@salemjazzsoul.com

Sarah McKenzie performing at SJSF/Berklee Summer Series on Aug. 9

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Judy Parisella
Phone: 978-491-7444
Email: jparisella@salemjazzsoul.com

Sarah McKenzieLeading up to the Salem Jazz and Soul Festival’s main event, Aug. 16-17, Sarah McKenzie, an Australian student attending Berklee College of Music, will play the final SJSF/Berklee Summer Series concert of 2014 in Derby Square, Salem, on Saturday, Aug. 9.

The free show will take place from 5 to 7 p.m. and will feature an educational interview about music and the Berklee experience.

Be Driven will sponsor the performance.

McKenzie is a pianist, vocalist, and composer who attends Berklee on a full scholarship. Her second album, “Close Your Eyes,” won the ARIA award for Best Jazz Album 2012.

McKenzie was mentored by legends like Graeme Lyall, Jamie Oehlers, James Morrison, and, most recently, JoAnne Brackeen, the first and only female member of Art Blakey’s Jazz Messengers. In 2010, she won the James Morrison Scholarship (Vocal) and was the only finalist to be nominated in both vocal and instrumental sections. McKenzie also sang backing vocals for Michael Bublé on the multiplatinum artist’s Call Me Irresponsible tour and was the opening act for five-time Grammy nominee Chris Botti in 2011.

The eighth-annual Salem Jazz and Soul Festival will follow during the weekend of Aug. 16-17, featuring 10 bands, a family tent, music-education tent, artisan fair and 21-plus beer pavilion. The two-day concert is free.

The festival is a nonprofit, volunteer-run organization that produces free concerts and raises money for music education causes on the North Shore.

Check salemjazzsoul.org for more information. Photos provided upon request.

The Frotations will perform at SJSF/Berklee Summer Series on July 12 in Derby Square

The Frotations
The Frotations

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

The Frotations, a band made up of students from the Berklee College of Music, will play the third SJSF/Berklee Summer Series concert of 2014 in Derby Square, Salem, on Saturday, July 12.

The free show will take place from 5 to 7 p.m. and will feature an educational interview about music and the Berklee experience.

Creative Salem and Social Palates will sponsor the performance.

Forged in 2011 by singer-songwriter Chris Kazarian and bass player Pedro Ribiero (Pedro Zappa), the Frotations were originally called K.A.Z. — A musical experiment centered around the up-and-coming singer songwriter aimed at bringing all of the world’s people together under one sound. Today the Frotations are a concrete blend of Neo-Soul and Rock ’n’ Roll with a little drop of Hip-Hop.  Check out this video from The Frotations.

One more SJSF/Berklee Summer Series concerts will take place this year: Sarah McKenzie on Aug. 9.

The eighth-annual Salem Jazz and Soul Festival will follow during the weekend of Aug. 16-17, featuring 10 bands, a kids’ tent, music-education tent, artisan fair and 21-plus beer pavilion. The two-day concert is free.

The festival is a nonprofit, volunteer-run organization that produces free concerts and raises money for music education causes on the North Shore.

Check salemjazzsoul.org for more information. Photos provided upon request.

Contact: Judy Parisella
Phone: ***-***-7444
Email: jparisella@salemjazzsoul.com

Salem Jazz and Soul Festival kicks off monthly concert series with Latimbop

5/1/14 The Salem Jazz and Soul Festival will begin its 2014 SJSF/Berklee Summer Series in Derby Square, Salem, on Saturday, May 10, with a concert featuring Latimbop, a band made up of current Berklee College of Music students and recent graduates

The free show will take place from 5 to 7 p.m. and will feature an educational interview about music and the Berklee experience.

The Lobster Shanty restaurant will sponsor the performance.

LatimbopLatimbop is an explosive contemporary Cuban dance group led by talented young Cuban pianist, Issac Delgado Jr., (son of famous Cuban musician Issac Delgado) and Colombian bassist Esther Rojas. Latimbop is made up of Berklee students with lots of experience in various genres of Latin American and Cuban music. Its roots come from timba mixed with jazz, funk, and Latin music.

Three more SJSF/Berklee Summer Series concerts will take place this year: Bobby Wesley on June 14; The Frotations on July 12; and Sarah McKenzie on Aug. 9.

The eighth-annual Salem Jazz and Soul Festival will follow during the weekend of Aug. 16-17, featuring 10 bands, a kids’ tent, music-education tent, artisan fair and 21-plus beer pavilion. The two-day concert is free.

The festival is a nonprofit, volunteer-run organization that produces free concerts and raises money for music education causes on the North Shore.

Check salemjazzsoul.org for more information. Photos provided upon request…

Press Release: Funky, Latin dance party planned for Salem Jazz and Soul Festival’s Spring Fundraiser at refurbished Ames Hall

The Salem Jazz and Soul Festival will throw a dance party in April featuring the band Combo Sabroso, a Latin band with reggae influences out of Boston. All proceeds will benefit the festival, a volunteer-run nonprofit celebrating its eighth season.

The fundraiser will take place at the recently refurbished Ames Hall — in the Salem YMCA — on Saturday, April 26 from 8 to 10:30 p.m. (doors open at 7:30 p.m.). It’s sponsored by Howling Wolf Taqueria, Ruby Wines and Salem Cycle.

The night will feature auctions and raffles featuring items donated by generous North Shore businesses and Combo Sabrosoartists.

Tickets (available at salemjazzsoul.org, and Pamplemousse, In a Pig’s Eye, both in Salem) are $25 and proceeds will fund the Salem Jazz and Soul Festival’s non-profit mission of producing free concerts and supporting music education causes on the North Shore. This is SJSF’s only ticketed show of the year.

About Combo Sabroso: Combo Sabroso (tasty combo) presents soul cleansing Latin dance music and reggae. Lead by pianist Matt Jenson, the group is committed to the hard hitting “salsa dura” sound of the 1970s, playing hits from the likes of Tito Puente, Eddie Palmieri, Oscar D’leon and Sonora Poncena. The band also does salsa arrangements of American R&B hits from the likes of Marvin Gaye, Bill Withers and Santana. The group can turn on a dime and hit you with reggae versions of massive pop hits by artists such as Elton John, Steve Miller and The Police. The band’s members are from Puerto Rico, Ecuador, Saint Maarten, Venezuela and the United States.

In the coming months, the Salem Jazz and Soul Festival, a volunteer-run nonprofit, will put on:

    The SJSF/Berklee Summer Series at Derby Square, Salem, with Berklee College of Music student bands, on May 10, June 14, July 12 and Aug. 9
    The Salem Jazz and Soul Festival, a two-day concert at the Salem Willows, with 10 bands, a music-education tent, kids tent, 21-plus beer garden and artisans selling hand-made goods, Aug. 16-17

Please go to salemjazzsoul.org for more information. Photos available upon request.

Press Release: Salem Jazz and Soul Festival, city, to put on 5th-annual Jazz Appreciation Day concert

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Salem Jazz and Soul Festival, city, to put on 5th-annual Jazz Appreciation Day concert

The Salem Jazz and Soul Festival will produce its 5th-annual City of Salem Jazz Appreciation Day concert in early April in downtown Salem.

The event kicks off Jazz Appreciation month, April, and is put on in partnership with the City of Salem. Salem Five, a major festival sponsor, has donated the room and the concert is free to the public.

The free show will take place in the Salem Five Community Room on the Essex Street Walking Mall, on Saturday, April 5, from 2 to 4 p.m.

Performing this year will be the North Shore Jazz Project All Stars, a big band made up of the North Shore’s premier high-school jazz musicians, directed by professional saxophonist Mike Tucker..

“The NSJP All Stars play our main festival each year, and the crowd is always blown away by their talent, so we thought we’d invite them to perform at Jazz Appreciation Day,” said Larry Claflin Jr., the festival’s executive director. “Having these young musicians on-stage is represent a part of what we’re trying to do – providing students with an opportunity to perform at no cost to the public.”

This show will open the festival’s eighth season of producing free concerts and supporting music-education causes on the North Shore.

In the coming months, the Salem Jazz and Soul Festival, a volunteer-run nonprofit, will put on:

    A fundraiser at the recently refurbished Ames Hall inside the Salem YMCA, featuring Boston-based Combo Sabroso, a Latin band with reggae influences, on April 26
    The SJSF/Berklee Summer Series at Derby Square, Salem, with Berklee College of Music student bands, on May 10, June 14, July 12 and Aug. 9
    The Salem Jazz and Soul Festival, a two-day concert at the Salem Willows, with 10 bands, a music-education tent, kids tent, 21-plus beer garden and artisans selling hand-made goods, Aug. 16-17

Please go to salemjazzsoul.org for more information.

Contact: Judy Parisella
Phone: ***-***-7444
Email: jparisella@salemjazzsoul.com