The 2012 Creekside Jazz and Blues Festival is stacked with great live jazz and blues entertainment from top to bottom. This year’s lineup features a number of top jazz and blues performers from Columbus as well as national acts including 2010 American Smooth Jazz Awards “Best New Artist,” jazz trumpeter Cindy Bradley performing with Columbus-based Urban Jazz Coalition.
The Creekside Blues & Jazz Festival is a three day cultural celebration featuring hundreds of musicians, delicious cuisine, artisans from the region, amusement rides and engaging family activities. The event started over ten years ago as a one day dedication of Gahanna’s new Creekside Park area and the beginning of Olde Gahanna’s revitalization. The Creekside Blues & Jazz Festival has experienced unprecedented growth in attendance and has truly become more than the celebration of music, food and fun; it has become a premiere family summer event.
This year’s jazz performances include:
Friday, June 15th
Lisa Clark’s Colossal Joy Project – 5:30pm
Vernon Hairston – 6:45pm
The Ken Weaver Quartet– 7:30pm
The Tony Monaco Trio – 9:30pm
Saturday, June 16th
Minan-Dya – 12pm
Colin Lazarski Duo – 12pm
The Mark Flugge Trio – 2:15pm
Deep Blue Groove – 2:15pm
In Full Swing – 3:30pm
Flippo – 4:30pm
Eileen Howard – 5pm
Christian Howes, featuring Gahanna resident Charles Gleason and Camille Howes, – 6:15pm
Swing’s the Thing – 6:15pm
Carl Sally and Friends – 6:45pm
Cindy Bradley with the Urban Jazz Coalition – 9pm
Sunday, June 17th
Sunday Jazz Brunch at Mezzo Italian – 11:30am
Tony Janflone Jr. Quartet – 12:30pm
Columbus Youth Jazz Orchestra – 2:30pm
Eileen Howard – 2:30pm
Columbus Jazz Orchestra with special Father’s Day guests including Bobbi Floyd Townes on vocals – 4pm
More about the Live Jazz Performers at Creekside Jazz and Blues 2012
The Tony Monaco Trio will take the stage on Friday, June 15. Monaco, a celebrated Hammond B-3 jazz organist, was something of a keyboard prodigy, starting out on the accordion at age 8. By the time he was 12, Monaco had decided on his career as a jazz organist. During his teen years, he played in Columbus jazz clubs, and he continued his rise to prominence under the tutelage of famed local organ artists Hank Marr and Don Patterson. Today he tours the globe as an internationally renowned organist accomplished in a variety of genres, including blues, funk, jazz and gospel.
Plan on grooving with New York City jazz trumpeter Cindy Bradley and Columbus’ jazz septet, the Urban Jazz Coalition on Saturday, June 16. From her NYC base, Bradley has performed internationally while releasing two CDs in the past three years, Bloom in 2009, a collaboration with Grammy winning producer Michael Broening, and most recently Unscripted, a collection that showcases her stylistic diversity. A virtuoso on the trumpet and flugelhorn, she has won a variety of awards, including beingnamed “Debut Artist of the Year” at the Catalina Island Jazz Trax Festival and by Smooth Jazz News.
On Sunday, June 17, the CBJF jazz theme will feature a variety of father/son and father/daughter performances, in a tip of the hat to Father’s Day. Headlining the Sunday celebration of “Dads,” the Columbus Jazz Orchestra (CJO) will take the stage as they feature premier pianist Bobby Floyd, along with his daughter, Bobbi Floyd Townes, on vocals. The CJO will also invite the children of some of the orchestra’s musicians to perform. The members of the Columbus Youth Jazz Orchestra will also join in the festivities when they turn the spotlight on some of the band members’ fathers.
Hailing from the Pittsburgh jazz scene and performing as a father/son team, Tony Janflone Sr and the Tony Janflone Jr Quartet will celebrate the day as part of Gahanna’s jazzy salute to Dad. Janflone Sr is well known in Pittsburgh for a variety of musical talents. In addition to his own reputation as an accomplished guitarist, he encourages aspiring musicians through his years of experience as a top instructor of guitar. Janflone’s star pupil is Tony Janflone Jr. He has been playing since the age of 9, with Dad’s guidance and influence in all facets of music. Tony now enjoys the success he’s achieved and plays with his own group, the Tony Janflone Jr Quartet.
Louis Tsamous, musician services coordinator for the Jazz Arts Group and member of the CBJF planning committee, is committed to the Father’s Day theme: “Since Sunday’s performances fall on Father’s Day, I feel that the festival should embrace the occasion. All of the jazz acts that day will feature either father/son or father/daughter combinations,” Tsamous said.
Find even more great music and full information about the Creekside Jazz & Blues Festival on their website: http://creeksidebluesandjazz.com/