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Latin Jazz musician headlines the 2011 Hoop City Festival |
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Percussionist Poncho Sanchez brings his Latin jazz band to Springfield July 10 as part of the Hoop City Jazz & Art Festival.
Photo courtesy of Hoop City Jazz & Art Festival
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July 4, 2011
By Mike Briotta
Prime Editor
The 2011 Hoop City Jazz & Art Festival will play host to a luminary of Afro-Cuban music with internationally acclaimed percussionist Poncho Sanchez and his Latin jazz band.
For the uninitiated, Sanchez is to playing the congas what Tito Puente was to the timbales, or Ravi Shankar represents with the sitar — he’s a preeminent player of his chosen instrument on the North American stage. Sanchez has toured with Carlos Santana, among other notable names.
The master of Afro-Cuban music will be performing in Springfield the evening of July 10 with his eight-piece Latin jazz band. Sanchez and his group will close out the three-day festival that Sunday evening.
“[Sanchez] is one of the biggest living legends,” said John Osborn, a former mayoral aid and founder of the festival. “We try to present the diverse spectrum of jazz. Latin jazz is a huge part of the genre and we feel honored to have him. He’s an old-school Latin jazz original. We’re extremely proud that he will be performing in Springfield.”
The conga player is also a Grammy Award winning musician whose ensemble won the award for Best Latin Jazz Album in 2000. Sanchez, who turns 60 in October, has performed with funk band Tower of Power, and had a longtime collaboration with vibraphonist Cal Tjader. Sanchez was named the 2006 Percussionist of the Year by a Downbeat Magazine readers’ poll.
Of course, Sanchez is certainly not the only big draw at the 2011 festival.
The festival opens with a bang Friday evening with a special Louisiana treat: a New Orleans celebration. According to organizers, it will offer “foot stompin’, hand clappin’ and street dancing” in the true Mardi Gras tradition. The kickoff event is scheduled for July 8. Other performers that evening include Glen David Andrews at 6:30 p.m. and The Soul Rebels at 8:30 p.m.
“The New Orleans opening is exciting,” Osborn said. “There’s still that raging debate over the origin of jazz — was it invented in New Orleans? Whatever the case, that city is firmly entrenched in the jazz tradition. They’ve taken it and made it into a straight-out party.”
A Springfield area jazz festival was first conceived in 2000 when a group of dedicated individuals and jazz lovers, led by Osborn, made the decision to produce an annual jazz and art festival in Springfield. The goal was to give jazz music a home here, and to ensure that all of its citizens would have access to at least one significant cultural event.
The group formed the Mason Square Jazz Festival Committee. Six years later they expanded their geography, embracing the entire city, as well as the city’s legacy as the birthplace of basketball, becoming Hoop City Jazz, Inc. This summer, the event celebrates its fifth year with that moniker.
The musical performances are enhanced by community events including artists and crafters from Springfield and a “bazaar” featuring vendors offering unique merchandise that cannot be found in local malls.
The 2011 event will take place in downtown Springfield at Court Square. This year’s festival will be staged on the esplanade of City Hall, where many of the city’s businesses and most significant cultural attractions are within the sightlines and walking distance. Court Square Park, at the heart of the city, will serve as a seating and staging area.
“People like downtown, it certainly has generated our largest crowds,” Osborn said of the venue.
The festival had previously been staged in other Springfield area locales including the riverfront and also at Springfield Technical Community College.
“We have a single site, the esplanade at City Hall, with a sitting area in Court Square,” Osborn said. “The mayor likes that we put a little shine on downtown. People come out to have a good time, forget their troubles and enjoy themselves.”
According to event organizers, the true spirit of the jazz festival is to not only bring greater cultural enrichment to the region, but also to unify the diverse populations of the greater Springfield area.
“One of the great characteristics of jazz music is its ability to appeal to people of all ages, races and diverse, ethnic backgrounds,” the group stated. “This year’s festival lineup is intended to reflect the cornucopia of colors, textures and flavors that comprise the genre.”
For a full listing of 2011 Hoop City Jazz & Art Festival events, please visit the Web site: www.hoopcityjazz.org. All listed performances are free to attend.
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