Swing, Sway at Patriot Place Jazz Festival June 20-21, 2009

April 27th, 2009 · No Comments

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FOXBORO, Ma. – Cool jazz, hot funk and big band swing music and dancing come to Patriot Place/Gillette Stadium for two days June 20-21 during the inaugural Patriot Place Jazz Festival.

The free, outdoor festival will be centered on Patriot Place Plaza adjacent to the Hall at Patriot Place and will feature a unique blend of music ranging from Dixieland to swing, world jazz, modern jazz, funk and standards from the Great American Songbook.

Four topflight bands from throughout the region will perform onstage from noon-5 each day, including some of the area’s top professional and community talent. A portable dance floor will be available for those who feel the urge to cut a rug.

On Saturday June 20, festival-goers will have the opportunity to dance to the music of the Roy Scott Big Band and listen to the traditional New Orleans jazz and Dixieland of the Dixie Diehards, classic standards from Elm Street Jazz and innovative jazz-funk from the Mike Erickson Band.

Sunday starts off with an appearance by Swing 7, an all-female swing band, followed by world jazz from flautist Steve Tapper and friends, modern jazz and swing from the Little Mahrud Jazz Orchestra and entertaining original jazz music from the Sunyatta Jazz Quartet.

Festival-goers will also have a chance to meet the musicians, purchase CDs and sample the many attractions of Patriot Place located next to Gillette Stadium, home of the New England Patriots and New England Revolution.

The Patriot Place Jazz Festival was created to present accessible jazz that is as enjoyable for a general family audience as for hard-core fans. All of the music will be presented on a “played where it’s made” basis – featuring worthy groups drawn from the Boston and southeastern Massachusetts area.

Host band for this year’s festival will be the Dixie Diehards Jazz Band, a brassy, nine-piece ensemble that performs traditional jazz and Dixieland ranging from Fats Waller to Louis Armstrong. The Diehards (www.dixiediehards.com), whose lineup includes a physician, an investigative reporter and a retired teacher as well as veteran professional entertainers, are based in Foxboro.