Now in its 21st year, the Isthmus Jazz Festival is a two-day celebration of America’s homegrown art form. The free festival kicks off the summer season in one of Madison’s most beautiful outdoor settings, the Memorial Union Terrace, with Lake Mendota as a glittering backdrop. A diverse crowd of students, jazz aficionados and casual fans fill the tables to hear a lineup that reflects a century’s worth of jazz styles. Dixieland, big-band swing, bebop, Latin jazz and free jazz are all part of the mix, along with contemporary derivations like funk and hip-hop. The festival is committed to honoring jazz’s glorious tradition while keeping one eye fixed on the future.
2009 JAZZ FESTIVAL SCHEDULE
Friday, June 5
4 – 5:30 pm: Patrick Breiner Trio
6 – 7:30 pm: Gerri DiMaggio
8 – 9:30 pm: New Breed Quintet
10 – close pm: Madison Jazz Orchestra
Saturday, June 6
12:30 – 1:30 pm: Mama Dig Down’s Brass Band (beginning on Library mall)
2 – 3:30 pm: High School Jazz All-Stars
3:30 – 4:30 pm: Edgewood College Big Band
5 – 6 pm: Jan Wheaton
6:30 – 8 pm: Tim Whalen Nonet
8 – 9:30 pm: Headliner David Sanchez, ticketed event in the Wisconsin Union Theater
8:30 – 10 pm: Get Down, Mr. Cat!
10:30 pm – close: Madisalsa
