Jazz fest guide: Lettuce performs Friday, Trombone Shorty will close out festival Saturday
Jesus Molina performs at Parcel 5 (WHEC file photo)
UPDATE: Due to thunderstorms Friday night, Sam Greenfield will perform between 7:30-8:30 p.m., Lettuce as close to 9 p.m. as possible and Bruce Katz Band at around 8-9 p.m. for their first set and 9-10 p.m. for their second set.
ROCHESTER, N.Y. — It’s the final days of the 22nd annual Rochester International Jazz Festival. Two highly anticipated acts are coming to the big, outdoor stage at Parcel 5 to close out the free headliner series.
Both shows at Parcel 5 start at 9 p.m. and lawn chairs are welcome. Lettuce, a six-member group that plays multiple genres, will take the stage on Friday. Their music mashes up jazz chords, psychedelic passages, big horns, hip-hop elements, and improvisation.
After that, Trombone Shorty and Orleans Avenue will close out the festival on Saturday. His last performance at the festival two years ago drew an estimated 15,000 people to Parcel 5. This year’s show comes after his performance in the Super Bowl in February.
New Orleans native Trombone Shorty has five chart-topping studio albums. He has collaborated with music legends including Pharrell, Bruno Mars, Mark Ronson, Foo Fighters, ZHU, Zac Brown, Normani, and Ringo Starr.
In total, there will be over 285 shows at 18 different venues throughout the nine-day festival. You can see the complete list of performances and get tickets here and see the list of venues here.
Photos from free headliner series
The free headliner series kicked off last Saturday with a performance from modern country artist Chris Lane at East & Alexander Stage. That was the first time that location hosted a stage in 10 years. Chris Lane’s music includes hits like “Big, Big Plans”, “Take Back Home Girl”, and “Mistake”.
The series continued on Wednesday at Parcel 5 as thousands came to see Jesus Molina, an acclaimed jazz pianist, vocalist, and multi-instrumentalist. He’s also an online piano tutor.
After that, Los Lonely Boys, three brothers who have toured the world with their Texas blend of rock and roll, took the stage on Thursday night.
In their nearly 30-year career, they’ve sold 2.5 million records, won a Grammy, and received five Grammy nominations. Los Lonely Boys were supposed to perform last year at the festival but had to cancel after their father suffered a heart attack and stroke. The band later announced in August that their father had died, calling him “the inspiration behind all we do.”
There are also plenty of free, outdoor shows at other stages, including the Jazz Street Stage on Gibbs Street in downtown. Soul Stew, a band from Toronto that has played a mix of jazz, blues, R&B, funk, and reggae since the 1990s, held two shows on Thursday.
The band has played with well-known artists including Gorillaz and Nelly Furtado. News10NBC spoke with them what keeps them returning to the jazz festival for years.
“We’re from Toronto and we envy the festival that you have here. The fact that the city becomes part of the whole thing there,” said Roberto Occhipinti, bassist for Soul Stew. “It’s become a major destination, not just for us Canadians coming down here but for the rest of the world. It’s an incredible festival and we’re honored that we get to come down here every year.”
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