Jazz in the Berkshires

Bousquet Jazz Festival

By: Jazz - Aug 01, 2023

 

A series of august jazz programming, is the upcoming month. With our friends at the Boston University Tanglewood Institute paying increased attention to jazz, two local dates by itinerant pianist Peggy Stern, and the second annual Bousquet Jazz Festival, there’s plenty to choose from.

In terms of ticketed events, BUTI has both a master class and a performance from the Ted Rosenthal Trio. Although the master class has already occurred, you can join the trio (with Noriko Ueda - Bass and Conor Meehan – Drums) as they perform jazz arrangements of the Great American Songbook (Gershwin, Rodgers) and jazz standards. The program will also include Ted's original compositions (including from his jazz opera, "Dear Erich"), and his arrangements of classical themes (Tchaikovsky, Chopin) "reimagined" for jazz trio.

This concert will take place on the BUTI campus (45 West Street, Lenox MA) in the West Street Theater at 7:30pm on August 11, 2023. Tickets are $20 at the door. You can find additional information at the BUTI Facebook events page.

The concert is a highlight of a busy August for Berkshires fans of jazz. On the two Saturdays on either side of Ted’s BUTI concert, pianist Peggy Stern will be performing at the Gateways Inn in Lenox. She will be appearing on August 5 with bassist Lew Scott, and August 12 with trumpet/ flugelhornist Ron Horton. 6-9pm, no cover, but reservations are recommended. Details at www.gatewaysinn.com

And, as mentioned separately, the other ticketed event is the second annual Bousquet Jazz Festival, on Saturday, Aug. 19, with performances by The Lucky 5, Claire Daly, Dominique Eade, and Benny “Fingers” Kohn. Details at www.BerkshiresJazz.org