The Pensacola JazzFest, now in its 25th year, is a FREE all-jazz festival held in downtown, historic Seville Square. The Jazz Society of Pensacola (JSOP) produces the event with able assistance from a variety of corporate sponsors and community organizations. The 2-day festival, held in early spring each year, celebrates America's unique musical art form-Jazz. JSOP works all year to present this festival as its annual gift to the community, and we sincerely thank our individual and corporate donors as well as the Arts Council of Northwest Florida and the Florida Arts Council for their essential support.

With its beautiful live oaks and historic surroundings, Seville Square Park offers a perfect springtime setting for the Pensacola JazzFest. A state-of-the-art sound system brings the music to wherever you are in the park. In addition to the great music lineup, food, drinks and jazz merchandise will be offered for sale at reasonable prices. JSOP will have tents and volunteers set up for purchase of JazzFest posters (some of which will be signed and numbered by the artist, Carol Ferony), a variety of jazzy shirts and memorabilia, plus beer and wine and soft drinks (please note that the JSOP merchandise sales help support the festival). In addition, local area venders will offer some tasty food options for the hungry jazz listeners. Young people are always welcome to enjoy themselves at the play area and special offerings on the Youth Stage. Some seating is provided, but your favorite reclining lawn chair will make it just right. Please do not bring your pet dog, however, since Pensacola city ordnance prohibits dogs in the park. In addition, for those who wish a shorter walk to the park, valet parking for a nominal fee will be available in front of Dharma Blue restaurant. JSOP invites you come and enjoy two afternoons of great jazz in a beautiful place.

The 25th Annual Pensacola JazzFest  will feature:
Printable one-page PDF of the information below...

Butch Thompson’s Big Three.
Thompson, an acclaimed pianist and Jelly Roll Morton scholar heard regularly as part of the Prairie Home Companion broadcasts, will be joined by vocalist/banjoist Jimmy Mazzy of Boston and trumpeter Duke Heitger of New Orleans. This trio has recorded and toured nationally and internationally. From Scott Joplin’s “Maple Leaf Rag” to W. C. Handy’s “St. Louis Blues” and Fats Waller’s “Ain’t Misbehavin,” this unique jazz trio led by pianist Butch Thompson plays an exciting program of American classics—jazz from the beginning. Trumpeter Duke Heitger and banjoist/vocalist Jimmy Mazzy join Butch in a show that ranges from Dixieland to lowdown blues—or as New Orleans pianist Jelly Roll Morton put it, “everything from blues to opera.”
 

Shelly Berg Trio.
Shelly Berg is an accomplished pianist who plays jazz styles from ragtime to modern. He is frequently requested as accompanist for Monica Mancini, Patti Austin and other vocalists and jazz legends including trombonist Bill Watrous. He was previously Professor of Jazz Studies at University of Southern California Thornton School of Music. In April 2007, he was named Dean of the Frost School of Music at the University of Miami. Berg has served previously as President of the International Association for Jazz Education (IAJE).
 

The Jazz Guardians,
an 18-member big band stationed at Army Ft. McPherson, GA, can perform in the style of big bands of yesteryear paying tribute to Duke Ellington, Woody Herman and Count Basie as well as contemporary big band jazz.
 

Saxophonist Dayve Stewart.
Known as “Soul Man,” Dayve will entertain with the smooth sounds of contemporary jazz. He has a Caribbean background with a Cuban mother and Jamaican father. At the young age of 12, he performed with trumpeter Sonny LaRosa’s “Youngest Jazz Band.” Stewart’s latest CD is entitled “Feel Me.” Stewart attended FSU with a major in Commercial Music and a minor in Business and is now touring worldwide.

Pensacola’s clarinetist/saxophonist Bob Maksymkow.
Bob will perform with backing from the Shelly Berg Trio. As a teenager, he took clarinet lessons at Juilliard School of Music from Augustin Duques, who was also musical coach for Benny Goodman. Bob has degrees from Juilliard and the University of West Florida (UWF) and is a member of UWF’s adjunct music faculty.

Headliners above will perform both days at the Pensacola JazzFest. Additionally, the winner of the UWF/Phillips Jazz Piano Competition will perform on Sunday. JazzFest pianists Butch Thompson and Shelly Berg will be judges for the UWF/Phillips Jazz Piano Competition held at the UWF Theater Main Stage on Saturday night.

Platinum recording artist Alan Hewitt will present a clinic titled "Making Music for Movies" on the Youth Stage in Fountain Park on Sunday, April 6 at 2:00 pm.

Verve recording artist Alan Hewitt has made a name for himself as a writer, producer and musician. A two-time platinum artist, Hewitt has contributed to soundtracks for multiple movies, including "Ocean's 13" and "Bridget Jones," and for television shows like "Oprah," "Entertainment Tonight," "MTV" and "Survivor." Hewitt's expertise in writing, producing, performing and recording with artists such as Jonathan Butler, Donnie Osmond and Earth, Wind and Fire have enabled him to fuse the boundaries between pop, urban, jazz and rock. In addition to composing new songs for his upcoming tenth solo album, Hewitt can be found performing across the nation with his own band in support of his latest release, Metropolis. Alan will use music he has scored for Film & TV to illustrate how each project is completed from beginning to end, providing the audience an understanding of the ins & outs of composing for film & television.

The festival's Youth Stage will feature local area middle school and high school jazz bands plus some special treats on both days.

Those who wish to get an early start are welcomed to attend the JazzFest Kickoff Open Jam with the Guffman Trio on Friday evening, April 4, at 600 South, Wine and Martini Bar (located at 600 South Palafox St. in the New World Landing complex. Music starts at 7:30 p.m., admission is free, and 600 South will provide complimentary appetizers. Local and JazzFest musicians are invited to bring their instruments and join in the jazz fun. Open Jam also on Saturday night, April 5, same time.

The finals of the Fourth Annual Kathleen T. and Philip B. Phillips, M.D. Jazz Piano Competition will be held as a free public performance on Saturday, April 5, 2008 beginning at 7:30 p.m. in the Mainstage Theater on the campus of the University of West Florida in Pensacola, Florida. Prestigious JazzFest headliner pianists Butch Thompson and Shelly Berg will be among the judges for the Jazz Piano Competition. Berg was named chair of the Department of Music at the University of Miami last year. The winner of the competition will perform in the Pensacola JazzFest on Sunday, April 6, 2008, from 12:15 to 12:45 p.m. See more info at http://uwf.edu/music/phillipsjazz/.

Pensacola JazzFest 2008 Schedule (PDF) (posted 3-27-08)
 

Click the thumbnail image to the left for an enlargement of the JazzFest 2008 collage put together by Kat Villenes.