UI to host 47th-annual Lionel Hampton Jazz Festival
Smooth tones echo in the hallways of the Lionel Hampton School of Music building as students hone their craft.
These students have less than a month to prepare for the opening concert of the nationally renowned Lionel Hampton Jazz Festival. The festival is in its 47th year and is a staple at the University of Idaho. It will take place Feb. 25-28.
Brenda Ely | Argonaut
The Lionel Hampton School of Music
The festival features concerts and performances throughout the weekend and includes all levels of jazz, from professional musicians to high school students. Ticket prices vary depending on the concert, but college students can count on prices from $12 to $50 and regularly priced tickets will range from $25 to $50.
According to festival spokeswoman Chloe Rambo, many widely popular jazz artists are scheduled to perform this year. Jeff Coffin, saxophonist for the Dave Matthews Band, is slated to perform along with Grace Kelly, Stefon Harris and the All-Star Quartet, among others.
“Seeing these high caliber artists perform in Moscow, Idaho, is an incredible thing,” Rambo said.
Thursday night’s show will be entertaining, Rambo said. The Airmen of Note, a jazz ensemble of the U.S. Air Force Band, will perform in the Pitman Center International Ballroom. The band’s style of music is the kind people can really dance to, Rambo said.
Saturday night’s show will close out the festival. Grammy-winner Dianne Reeves will perform with the Special Big Band Extravaganza. The last night of the festival is one of the best concerts, Rambo said.
“Saturday night is our most dynamic show,” Rambo said. “We try to blow the roof off.”
Vern Sielert, director of jazz studies at the School of Music, said people who are not big fans of jazz should come to the festival anyway, simply because of the valuable opportunity to watch a jazz performance live.
“It is something that needs to be experienced live,” he said. “It is one thing to hear a recording, it is another to see it live and be a part of it.”
Sielert said he enjoys jazz concerts because he likes to see how the audience reacts with the various performers.
“The energy of the audience feeds the energy on stage,” Sielert said.
The jazz festival is more than just a week of concerts, it is also a learning opportunity for music students throughout the area. Over 4,000 high school, middle school, elementary school and college students come to the festival to perform and attend music workshops, Rambo said.
“(Coming to the festival) is something a lot of area schools do,” Rambo said. “(Students) working one on one with professionals and getting great feedback.”
The festival relies on volunteers to operate, Rambo said. Over 400 volunteers are needed to help set up concert locations, drive the artists around town and manage the performances. Volunteers will receive free pizza, and for every four hours of volunteering, a free ticket to any of the evening concerts.
“That is probably one of the biggest drivers to getting volunteers,” Rambo said.
Jazz is an art form and style of music that was developed in this country, Sielert said. It was born out of hard times and a mix of music that was popular during the early 20th century and he said it was something people at the time could dance to and enjoy.
“It is a uniquely American art form,” he said. “It has been called America’s classical music.”
Jazz is no longer just an American form of music, people enjoy it around the world as well, Sielert said.
There are so many different styles of jazz it makes it hard to define, Sielert said. It all comes down to the level of improvisation within the music.
The Lionel Hampton Jazz Festival is one of the largest educational jazz festivals in the country, Sielert said. It is a great opportunity for students to get to work with professional jazz musicians and to practice the art form.
“(The festival will) hopefully be installing a lifelong love and appreciation of the art form (onto students),” Sielert said.
Graham Perednia can be reached at [email protected]