Everything’s Coming Up Jazz
Music in the Air is a listing of free and affordable (under $20) outdoor cultural events taking place in Westchester County between July and September. Click here for more Music in the Air offerings.
Guitar strings will reverberate and vocals will soar in the summer air once more. It’s been a long road toward providing in-person live music for Jazz Forum Arts (JFA), but finally everything is coming up jazz. In June, the organization reopened its Jazz Forum Club in Tarrytown after an extended closure due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Now JFA is offering 32 free outdoor summer concerts for the 36th year.
Executive Director Mark Morganelli notes that JFA presented five free concerts last year in Sleepy Hollow, allowing them to keep intact a 35-year run: “It’s exhilarating to be able to present our full palate of free outdoor summer concerts along the Hudson River again this year.”
The concerts will be held at five different sites. Dobbs Ferry’s Waterfront Park will host eight weeks of concerts every Wednesday beginning on July 7, when jazz singer Marion Cowings shows off her scatting techniques with her quartet. New this year is the addition of JFA’s Jitterbugs program for children ten years and younger, which will be offered before each Dobbs Ferry performance.
According to Jitterbugs Program Manager Isak Edblad, the Jitterbugs program was planned a year and a half ago and sold out, but went virtual because of the pandemic: “We are proud to have connected with so many families online over the past year, but we are ready to invite families to join [us] for a live, fun and in-person experience.” While a full season will begin again in the fall, registration is not needed to participate in these summer classes led by Matt Buttermann.
Guests can catch Butterman in action once his Jitterbugs hat is removed and his guitarist hat is worn proudly in its place. His quartet will play on July 30 at Tarrytown’s Pierson Park with Ceren Yasaroglu. Also at Pierson Park will be eight Friday evenings of concerts, including Brazilian jazz master Nanny Assis, (August 20) and the hard-bop jazz quintet Austin Day & B-Side Five (August 27).
Eight nights at Lyndhurst form a lineup that includes Miami-based Cuban percussionist Mayra Casales (July 29), New Orleans vocalist Alicia Renee (August 5) and the premiere of a work commissioned for the 20-piece Anita Brown Orchestra by New York State Council for the Arts (July 26). Meanwhile, Henry Gourdine Park in Ossining boasts jazz pianist Hiroshi Yamazaki’s quartet (July 12) and the soulful tunes of the Natalie Forteza Trio (August 23) as part of its four-show lineup.
Rounding up the summer is four evenings at Horan’s Landing in Sleepy Hollow, at which Mark Morganelli & The Jazz Forum All-Stars will celebrate Brasil with Eddie Monteiro & Nanny Assis (Tuesdays beginning August 3).
A version of this article first appeared in the July-August issue of ArtsNews, ArtsWestchester’s monthly publication. ArtsNews is distributed throughout Westchester County. A digital copy is also available at artsw.org/artsnews.
About ArtsWestchester
For more than 50 years, ArtsWestchester has been the community’s connection to the arts. Founded in 1965, it is the largest, private, not-for-profit arts council in New York State. Its mission is to provide leadership, vision, and support, to ensure the availability, accessibility, and diversity of the arts. ArtsWestchester provides programs and services that enrich the lives of everyone in Westchester County. ArtsWestchester helps fund concerts, exhibitions and plays through grants; brings artists into schools and community centers; advocates for the arts; and builds audiences through diverse marketing initiatives. In 1998, ArtsWestchester purchased the nine-story neo-classical bank building at 31 Mamaroneck Avenue which has since been transformed into a multi-use resource for artists, cultural organizations, and the community. A two-story gallery is located on the first floor of ArtsWestchester’s historic building on Mamaroneck Avenue.
For more than 50 years, ArtsWestchester has been the community’s connection to the arts. Founded in 1965, it is the largest, private, not-for-profit arts council in New York State. Its mission is to provide leadership, vision, and support, to ensure the availability, accessibility, and diversity of the arts. ArtsWestchester provides programs and services that enrich the lives of everyone in Westchester County. ArtsWestchester helps fund concerts, exhibitions and plays through grants; brings artists into schools and community centers; advocates for the arts; and builds audiences through diverse marketing initiatives. In 1998, ArtsWestchester purchased the nine-story neo-classical bank building at 31 Mamaroneck Avenue which has since been transformed into a multi-use resource for artists, cultural organizations, and the community. A two-story gallery is located on the first floor of ArtsWestchester’s historic building on Mamaroneck Avenue.
