What started out as an event where Jazz and Blues artist came to Chestertown for a one day event in Wilmer Park the Chestertown Jazz Festival has this year become a six day event beginning on September 5th and offers fun entertainment at various locations throughout Kent County.
The Chestertown Jazz Festival has become a collaboration between Rock Hall’s Mainstay Theater, Chestertown’s Garfield Center for the Arts and other key local supporters.
The festival opens with a free concert by the Conservatory Classic Jazz Band beginning at 8pm at the Garfield Center for the Arts in Chestertown. The concert also known as the People’s Dance Party is brought to area by The People’s Bank.
On Thursday at the Mainstay in Rock Hall the Josh Espinoza Trio will perform. Joshua Espinoza is a Baltimore based pianist who blends and bends genres into original compositions and arrangements that are immediately relatable, yet hard to define. He is joined by Mikel Combs (bass), and Jaron Lamar Davis (drums). More information and to get tickets on this performance at the Mainstay’s Web site – MainStayRockHall.com
Friday September 7th the festival moves back to the Garfield Center for the Arts for the Blues Concert, “Fade to Black}, an electriying blues-based band conceived by bassist Brian Eubanks and is comprised of musicians in the Hampton Roads area of Virginia. The show begins at 8pm with tickets at $20. Contact the Garfield Center for the Arts for tickets at www.garfieldcenter.org
On the morning of Saturday, September 8th at 10am there will be a performance at Sumner Hall, 206 South Queen Street in Chestertown, Capital Focus performs ‘Roots of Music of New Orleans’ This events is Free and is sponsored by ‘Arts in Motion’
The main event of the Festival, “Jazz in the Park” begins at noon running until 4:30pm in Wilmer Park. One can enjoy food, wine bee and Jazz under the tent. Advanced Tickets: $25; At the Gate: $30; Students:$15; Children: FREE
Day’s Schedule: (Subject to change)
12:00 Gospel Opening featuring Karen Somerville
12:30 Capital Focus
1:45 Ajoyo
3:00 Sharon Clarke
4:30 Sean Jones Quartet (sponsored by a grant from The Hedgelawn Foundation)
On Sunday September 9th is the ANNUAL CrowFest at Crow Vineyard in Kennedyville, Maryland running from 11:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m. CrowFest is a Farm & Vineyard Festival featuring live music, vendors, wine, food, tours, grape stomping, games and hayrides. Tickets are Adults: $16; Under 21: $10; Under 5: FREE
The weekend that began nearly a week previous is extended one more day to Monday, September 10 with MainStay Monday, which is a weekly concert with Joe Holt. This Mainstay Monday Joe welcomes Tom Baldwin and Aggie Brown III. Mainstay Monday tickets are $10 with the show beginning at 7pm. Tickets at Mainstay’s Web site – MainStayRockHall.com
Kent County is a beautiful county on the Eastern Shore of Maryland, less than an hour North of the Chesapeake Bay Bridge and a great place to experience Jazz and Blues music.
More about the Chestertown Jazz Festival can be seen at their Web site www.chestertownjazzfestival.org