Lionel Hampton International Jazz Festival celebrates the essence of music
Jazz isn’t just about the music, according to Chloe Rambo, spokeswoman for the Lionel Hampton International Jazz Festival — it’s about the relationship between the artist and what they are creating.
Amelia C. Warden
The Kenworthy Performing Arts Centre will host workshops for the Lionel Hampton Jazz Festival throughout the week.
It’s the reason why this year’s Jazz Fest follows the theme, “The Spirit of Harmony,” Rambo said.
“Our theme changes every year,” Rambo said. “This year’s theme is meant to illustrate how important it is to have harmony between the artists and their music, as well as harmony within the community.”
Jazz Fest, which runs from Wednesday through Saturday, features nearly 20 artists over the course of four nights of concerts.
Rambo said the Moscow community is essential to Jazz Fest, which is made possible by the work of more than 400 volunteers. She said Jazz Fest staff and volunteers spend nearly an entire year preparing for the big event.
“We start planning for the next year right after the festival ends,” Rambo said. “We take a couple of weeks in March to wrap up sponsorship items and send thank you letters, and then it starts all over again so we can hit the ground running.”
Rambo said attending Jazz Fest at UI first attracted her to the university. Knowing from experience how valuable exposure to Jazz Fest can be to recruit students, Rambo said the Jazz Fest staff coordinates many events to encourage high school students to explore campus.
“We try to give high school students the opportunity to come to campus and really experience life at the university,” Rambo said. “It’s a time to celebrate music, but also to celebrate this great school.”
A number of high schools across the Northwest visit Jazz Fest each year. Rambo said the visiting schools differ from festival to festival, but students can be found from Washington, Oregon, Idaho and even Canada.
“About 4,000 students come to visit every year,” Rambo said. “Many come from Montana, Idaho, or the Northwest … We try to make it as much of an experience for them as possible.”
Rambo said Jazz Fest operates under two different systems, with most activities being free and open to the public, while others require a commemorative festival button.
“Young artist concerts, band choirs and combinations are open to the public and will be playing in the Kibbie Dome,” Rambo said. “Most workshops are also free and open to the public, other events just need our commemorative button.”
The button, which features the signature design of this year’s Jazz Fest theme, is $3 and serves to support the event’s future success, Rambo said.
Jazz Fest has a variety of events — from workshops to smaller shows in the day to the larger concerts held at night.
“We have four incredible nights of concerts that encompass a variety of different kinds of jazz,” Rambo said. “If you look at the artists biographies on the schedule, some of these performers are really amazing.”
Among the performers is five-time Grammy winner Dianne Reeves, Tia Fuller, a saxophonist who toured with Beyoncé, Wycliffe Gordon and Ken Peplowski.
“There are so many exciting things going on at this year’s festival,” Rambo said. “We’ll have a featured vibraphonist, a big finale, a lot of workshops to attend … It’s a great opportunity for students to get involved.”
Rambo said an additional goal of Jazz Fest is to encourage student involvement and provide students with the opportunity to explore jazz, as well as other avenues of entertainment.
“The workshops that will be held feature a number of different departments,” Rambo said. “We want to show students how music intertwines with everything.”
The workshops, hosted primarily by university staff, vary from physics demonstrations about the ways in which music creates sound waves to the College of Natural Resources showcasing the types of wood used to make various instruments.
Corrin Bond can be reached at [email protected]