An eclectic array of performers, from Tony Bennett to Southside Johnny and the Asbury Jukes, will bring the sound of jazz -- and rock, folk and world music -- to Montreal when the 32nd Montreal Jazz Festival gets under way on June 25.
The festival, which attracts about 75,000 music lovers from the U.S. every summer, will run for 11 days and nights, closing on July 4.
To many, the biggest name to appear on the Montreal Jazz Festival stage this summer will be Tony Bennett, the winner of 15 Grammy awards in a singing career that has spanned seven decades (he was born in 1926 and had his first hit record, "Because of You," in 1951). Bennett, who has sold more than 50 million records worldwide, will perform July 1 in the festival's main venue, the Salle Wilfrid-Pelletier, at 7 p.m. (ticket price are not yet available).
Arguably, two of the most interesting evenings on the agenda are June 27 and 28, when a number of high-powered performers will vie for the attention of festival attendees. On June 27, for example, jazz songstress Diana Krall will appear in a solo concert, one of three appearances she will make, at Theatre Maisonneuve; trumpeter Hugh Masekela will go on stage at Club Soda at 7 p.m.; singer K.D. Lang and the Siss Boom Bang is at the Sale Wilfrid-Pelletier at 7 p.m.; and Esperanza Spalding, the jazz bassist and singer who recently won a Grammy Award for Best New Artist, is set for the Theatre Maisonneuve at 9.30 p.m.
The roster for June 28 features the genre-crossing Pink Martini orchestra at the Salle Wilfrid-Pelletier at 7 p.m.; New Jersey rockers Southside Johnny and the Asbury Jukes at Club Soda at 7 p.m.; a double bill of New Orleans favorite Trombone Shorty and former Parliament-Funkadelic bassist Bootsy Collins at Metropolis at 8.30 p.m.; and jazz icon Dave Brubeck at Theatre Maisonneuve at 9.30 p.m.
Other festival highlights include:
- Paco de Lucia, Salle Wilfrid-Pelletier, 7 p.m., June 25
- Madeleine Peyroux, Theatre Maisonneuve, 6 p.m., June 29
- Sade (opening act: John Legend), Bell Centre, 7.30 p.m., June 30
- Wanda Jackson, Club Soda, 7 p.m., July 2
- Don McLean and America (double bill), Salle Wilfrid-Pelletier, 7 p.m., July 3
- Bela Fleck and the Flecktones, Theatre Maisonneuve, 7 p.m., July 3
- Marianne Faithful, Theatre Maisonneuve, 6 p.m., July 4
In all, about 3,000 performers are set to appear at 150 ticketed indoor concerts and 350 free outdoor concerts.
Apart from making Montreal the music capital of the world, if only for a week-and-a-half or so, the jazz festival is the city's "most important tourist event," according to Alain Simard, the founder and president of the festival.
According to an independent impact study, he said, thefestival generates about $105 million a year in spending linked to activities and to tourists who come for the event, contributing more than $84 million to the Canadian gross domestic product and creating 1,374 jobs.
Commissionable packages
As in the past, the Montreal Jazz Festival is offering a commissionable, two-night Getaway accommodations package at select hotels, including the Hyatt Regency Montreal, the festival headquarters and the property where most of the participating musicians stay. Guests can often chat with performers between shows in the Hyatt Regency lobby and get up close and personal, literally, in the hotel's crowded elevators.
Three other properties, Le Westin Montreal, Delta Montreal and L'Appartement Hotel, are also participating.
Included in the plan are two breakfasts; one concert ticket for the Jazz d'Ici La Presse series; priority access to tickets for all indoor concerts and 15% off any ticket (subject to availability); one free entry to the Super Sessions at Maison du Festival Rio Tinto Alcan and to the Montreal Guitar Show; $5.25 off a walking tour of Old Montreal; one official festival T-shirt; a shoulder bag with the festival logo; a souvenir book; and a compilation music CD of the 2010 festival.
The rates for the Getaway package (prices are per person, double, U.S. currency) follows:
- Hyatt Regency Montreal, 1255 Jean-Mance, $310
- Le Westin Montreal, 270 St. Antoine Ouest, $390
- Delta Montreal, 475 Avenue President Kennedy, 295
- L'Appartement Hotel, 455 Sherbrooke Ouest, $210
The package, which can be booked by calling (855) 299-3378, is commissionable to U.S. agents at 10%.