# The Monterey Jazz Festival 2022 on tour features Joshua Redman, Kurt Elling, Dee Dee Bridgewater … Video, Photos

- Link: https://jazzblues.eu/2022/10/07/the-monterey-jazz-festival-2022-on-tour-features-joshua-redman-kurt-elling-dee-dee-bridgewater-video-photos/
- Published: 2022-10-07T00:02:10+01:00
- Author: https://JazzBlues.EU

**The Monterey Jazz Festival, which bills itself as the longest running jazz festival
in the world, returned to the storied Monterey Fairgrounds last week for 3 days 
of special performances and premieres.**

Celebrating its 65th anniversary, the festival, which has a daily capacity of 20,000
people, had large crowds all weekend, with Saturday being sold-out. “I felt a real
sense of both intention and purpose from both the audience and the particularly 
the artists,” Tim Jackson, the festival’s artistic director. “The musicians seemed
very happy to be at Monterey and brought their ‘A-Game.’ The vibe was great!”

![Monterey Jazz Festival on Tour](https://npr.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/ef6ffae/
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Real bands, rather than headliners with backing bands, seem to have been a theme
during this year’s festival, with groups like Artemis, The Cookers, SuperBlue, The
Bad Plus, Kinfolk, Nicholas Payton’s New World Order, Butcher Brown and others holding
forth at the five venues on-site. When asked about acts that were crowd-pleasers,
Jackson had a little difficulty choosing. “There were so many great performances
it is hard to single out just a few,” he explained. “However, Veronica Swift, Butcher
Brown, Samara Joy, Las Cafeteras, Moodswing Reunion (with Joshua Redman, Brad Mehldau,
Christian McBride & Brian Blade), Gregory Porter, and the Reunion Trio (with Bruce
Forman, John Clayton & Jeff Hamilton) really resonated with audiences.”

![Joshua Redman](https://npr.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/b1d9a94/2147483647/
strip/true/crop/1500x924+0+38/resize/880x542!/quality/90/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fnpr-brightspot.
s3.amazonaws.com%2Fde%2F45%2F956877b943caba546ea2e9098dd4%2Fredman-mehldau-mcbride-
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The festival also premiered its own all-star ensemble that will be touring the U.
S. in 2023. The Monterey Jazz Festival on Tour features Kurt Elling, Dee Dee Bridgewater,
Lakecia Benjamin, Christian Sands, Yashushi Nakamura and Clarence Penn. Noted Cuban
pianist and composer Chucho Valdés presented his major piece, La Creación (The Creation),
a three-movement suite for small ensemble, voices, and big band that tells the history
of creation according to the Regla De Ocha, the Afro-Cuban religion commonly known
as Santería. That suite, with musical direction by keyboardists Hilario Duran and
John Beasley, was also featured at the Detroit Jazz Festival, SFJAZZ, Berklee Performance
Center and Jazz at Lincoln Center.

![Chucho Valdes](https://npr.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/77d1045/2147483647/
strip/true/crop/1800x1109+0+46/resize/880x542!/quality/90/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fnpr-
brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2F26%2Fc0%2Ffb0041be41abace7d890c6014375%2Fchucho-valdes-
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In addition, the festival has a long history of commissioning pieces to specifically
premier at the event. This year, they asked keyboardist and composer Kris Bowers(
known for his scores for films and TV series such as Green Book, Bridgerton and 
Dear White People) to create a suite to be performed at the festival. “Our commission
this year with Kris was amazing, Jackson said. “He wrote a 35-minute, multi-movement
suite, featuring himself on two grand pianos, a guitarist, bassist and a 12-piece
string section that commemorated the 30th anniversary of the Monterey Bay Marine
Sanctuary. Entitled ASYLO , a Greek word meaning ‘safe place,’ the work chronicled
the birth, life, death and rebirth of a mother whale and her calf. It was a multimedia
feast with music and video that was truly inspiring.”

Next year’s festival will take place September 22-24, 2023.

![Kurt Elling and Charlie Hunter](https://npr.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/c4f4431/
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