Note: This is the third installment of Festival Profiles for the 2005 Twin Cities Hot Summer Jazz Festival, June 12-26.

Photo by Don Berryman

At the 2005 Hot Summer Jazz Festival, there will be no shortage of vocalists. From Mears Park to Peavy Plaza, from the Dakota stage to the Millennium lounge, from national headliner Roseanna Vitro to local legends Lucia Newell, Connie Evingson, and Bruce Henry, you will have your pick of the finest interpreters of the Great American Song Book and more.

Mears Park, St. Paul Lowertown, June 18

Lucia Newll with Departure Point (1:30-2:30 pm). With her tribute to Billy Strayhorn, local diva Lucia Newell joins forces with Pete Whitman’s long-standing sextet, Departure Point. From Los Angeles to Mexico City to Rio de Janeiro, as well as locally at Orchestra Hall, the Artist's Quarter, and the Dakota, Lucia Newell has performed Brazilian samba, French ballads, and bop melodies; she has sung with the great Billy Eckstein, the Rio Jazz Orchestra, and Oscar Castro Neves. On her latest recording, Steeped in Strayhorn, she was accompanied by Departure Point, and this afternoon gig in the Park promises to feature many selections from this acclaimed release. These musicians know each other well, and their simpatico collaboration will make this a must-see set.

This week marks the release of the long-awaited debut recording from the Twin Cities’ popular duo, “Charmin & Shapira.” With Pure Imagination, vocalist Charmin Michelle and guitarist Joel Shapira have finally documented one of the most sublime collaborations in local jazz. On June 8^th, Charmin & Shapira and Friends (Paul Harper on sax and flute, Tom Lewis on bass, and Nathan Norman on drums) will celebrate with a CD Release Party at the Dakota in downtown Minneapolis.

Charmin Michelle sings with “taste and understatement, swing and savoir faire, grace and grooves, intimacy and panache” (TC Music Net). Born in Birmingham, Michelle moved to Minnesota as a young child. Although the Land of 10,000 Lakes has been home ever since, her experiences have taken her around the world. With the promotion of organ legend “Captain” Jack McDuff, Michelle toured Europe with internationally known pianists Mulgrew Miller and Kirk Lightsey in 1997. Since 1998, Michelle has performed in jazz festivals throughout Spain, Portugal and France, and “moonlights” by fronting the jump band, the Senders. Locally, on any given night she can be found on stage at the Dakota, Artists Quarter, Café Luxx, Rossi’s Blue Star, French Press Jazz Café —anywhere that promotes top-flight jazz. In addition to her duo gigs with Joel Shapira, she also performs frequently with Doug Haining and the Twin Cities Seven. On her three earlier recordings—Your Eyes (Zimboy, 1994), Destination Moon (CM, 1998), and Hot (CM, 2001), she covered tunes of Billie Holiday, the Great American Songbook, blues and bossa. Tom Surowicz described Destination Moon as an “an aural charm bracelet filled with swell songs that you haven't heard too often.”

Cafe Accordian Photo by Andrea Canrer

After its first few months of operation, the French Press Jazz Café in St. Paul’s Lowertown has become a leading contender for the Twin Cities “alternative jazz club” crown. It’s small, intimate, smoke-free, and the acoustics are surprisingly mellow. And you can get a great cappuccino (regular or decaf!), glass of wine, pizza, bruchetta, or slice of Muddy Paws Cheesecake to accompany an increasingly fine line-up of area jazz artists. Stop in for live music Monday-Saturday, often no cover and at the most, $5. Highlights for June:

Jazz Studio, Wednesday nights, 8 pm. A weekly jam featuring new talent hosted by guitar wizard Clay Moore For more information, please contact Kevin at This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it or call 651-224-2732.

Dubbed “one of the strongest saxophonists in New York” by the New York Times, Puerto Rico native Miguel Zenón has visited Minneapolis before, with David Sanchez and most recently with the SF Jazz Collective at the Dakota. This will be his first appearance as leader of his own quartet which features Luis Perdomo on piano, Hans Glawischnig on bass, and Henry Cole on drums. Following the Dakota gig, altoist Zenón and his quartet will be in Boston at Sculler’s (June 8^th), at the Triple Door in Seattle (June 13^th), and at Yoshi’s in Oakland (June 14-15).

In his native San Juan, Zenón studied saxophone at the famed Escuela Libre de Musica. Exposed to Charlie Parker and other jazz legends while in high school, he didn’t begin formal jazz studies until he received a scholarship from the Puerto Rico Heineken Jazz Festival to study at the Berklee School of Music in Boston. At Berklee he received the Berklee Best Scholarship Award, the Frederic Cameron Weber Award, and a grant from the Corporation of Musical Arts. Meanwhile, he gained professional experience with drummer Bob Moses' Mozamba and the Either/Orchestra. After graduating from Berklee in 1998, Zenón received a scholarship to the Manhattan School of Music, where he studied with Danilo Perez, Dick Oatts, Dave Liebman, George Garzone, and Bill Pierce; he earned his Masters in Saxophone Performance in 2001.

June offers many bargains for Twin Cities jazzhounds, including the granddaddy of all jazz bargains, the Hot Summer Jazz Festival.

Festival Venues

Nearly every act is free, and often there are two, three or more venues in action at any point in time. The full schedule is available on the festival website at www.hotsummerjazz.com; you will find articles on the Jazz Police website regarding the many exciting musicians who will participate in this annual event. Some highlights, all free:

Sunday, June 12, Staring Lake Park in Eden Prairie: Start off the festival with a day of 6 big bands, including Stan Bann, River City Jazz Orchestra, and Jazz on the Prairie Big Band. (3-6 pm. at the Amphitheater, 14800 Pioneer Trail in Eden Prairie.)

Wednesday, June 15, Wayzata Depot: Enjoy Dave Karr’s tribute band, Mulligan Stew. Last year, Mulligan Stew recorded live during the festival and recently released its first recording! (7-8:30 pm, Wayzata Depot, 402 E. Lake Street, Wayzata)

Saturday, June 18, Mears Park in St. Paul’s Lowertown: From noon until 9 pm, see an incredible line-up, featuring Lucia Newell and Departure Point, Kelly Rossum’s Quartet, Connie Evingson and the Parisota Hot Club, Chill 7, and festival headliner Charles McPherson. (Mears Park, 6^th and Sibley, downtown St. Paul)

Derrick Hodge, Photo by Andea Canter

The Twin Cities is one of the hottest locales for jazz in the nation, and the most combustible event is the annual Hot Summer Jazz Festival, held this year June 12-26, covering both sides of the Mississippi as well as a few suburban venues. In addition to providing a stage for festival artists, the Dakota in downtown Minneapolis will host enough other talent for its own month-long festival, from the blazing saxophone of Miguel Zenon to the live recording of the Terrell Stafford Quintet and the sublime interplay of Adam Rogers and John Patitucci. Throw in some great vocalists, visiting and local sax monsters, “tickets” to Brasil, and some incendiary ensembles—this club will be reverberating well into July!