The Rosslyn Jazz Festival

A trio of superstars headlines the 15^th annual Rosslyn Jazz Festival, to be held Saturday, September 10^th, from 1-7 pm at Gateway Park (at North Lynn Street and Lee Highway in Arlington, VA). Co-sponsored by Arlington Cultural Affairs, Rosslyn Renaissance, and the Rosslyn Business Improvement District, the festival will be broadcast live on WPFW Radio (89.3 FM). Local restaurants and vendors will offer a wide range of gourmet concessions. Public transportation is easy as the Rosslyn Metro Station is just two blocks from the festival stage. The line-up of free music includes local jazz star Robert Jospe and Inner Rhythm, along with James Moody, Ahmad Jamal and Nnenna Freelon.

Robert Jospé and Inner Rhythm (1-2 pm). An active player on the New York jazz and rock scene before relocating to Virginia, drummer, percussionist, and composer Robert Jospé is well known throughout the mid-Atlantic for performances at festivals, clubs, and concert halls. A member of the University of Virginia's music department's performance faculty since 1989, Jospé teaches jazz drumming and is a member of UVA's faculty jazz ensemble, The Free Bridge Quintet. Since 1992 he has held a touring grant from the Virginia Commission for the Arts for Inner Rhythm —his high energy, world beat ensemble, and his educational lecture/demonstration, The World Beat Workshop Of his recent release, Hands On, the August 2004 issue of Modern Drummer noted, “Robert Jospé and his Inner Rhythm showcase a polished, jubilant mix of straight-ahead, Latin, and funk on Hands On. Jospé’s crisp, tight grooves seamlessly merge styles. Hot!"

Photo by Howard A. Gittelson

Nnenna Freelon (4-5:20 pm). Acclaimed vocalist Nnenna Freelon was a late bloomer—her professional music career got underway after raising a family and working in healthcare. From playing local gigs and festivals, she was recording for Columbia in the 90s, and later for Concord. With five Grammy nominations, Freelon recently won the Billie Holiday Award from the Academie du Jazz, the Eubie Blake Award, and made her feature film debut in Mel Gibson's What Women Want. With her latest recording released just a few weeks ago (Blueprint of a Lady, a tribute to Billie Holiday), Freelon is poised for yet another Grammy. Wrote Robert Daniels in Variety, “Nnenna Freelon possesses that rarest of qualities... she makes (standards) sound freshly minted, refreshingly new... her phrasing is original, surprising... she mines the (melodies) for new and hidden meaning... and imaginative spirit that reaches out and bubbles over..."

Photo by Howard A. Gittelson

Ahmad Jamal (5:40-7 pm). Of the living legends of jazz piano, perhaps none has exerted such wide influence on the genre as Ahmad Jamal. Now in his 70s, Jamal has been cited as a key muse by pianists as diverse as McCoy Tyner, Herbie Hancock, Keith Jarrett, Kenny Barron, Cedar Walton and Mulgrew Miller; echoes of Jamal can be found in the playing of a younger generation including Eric Reed and Jacky Terrasson; and trumpet legend Miles Davis was impressed with Jamal’s approach and repeatedly sought pianists who could incorporate that sound in his early bands. Although he has primarily concentrated on the trio format over the years, Ahmad Jamal was heavily influenced himself by the big bands, and particularly Ellington, Basie, Strayhorn, and Mandel, as well as the orchestrations of Ravel. Today, listening to Ahmad Jamal and his trio (bassist James Cammack and drummer Idris Muhammad) is like listening to a full orchestra; he covers a large sonic palette of complex harmonies and widespread dynamics. Noted fellow pianist Harold Mabern, “Every time I hear Ahmad, I leave inspired. He plays a three-chord masterpiece before he even sits down on the stool… It’s his sound, his knowledge of chords, the way he orchestrates from the bottom of the piano to the top.”

For more information about the Rosslyn Jazz Festival, visit www.rosslynva.org.