Thomas Marriott photo by Daniel Sheehan

The annual Bellevue Jazz Festival returns to Downtown Bellevue for its seventh run May 28 through June 1. With more than 40 performances at various venues throughout the city, the festival features both ticketed and free acts by top national and regional jazz artists, including a Student Showcase highlighting local high school jazz programs.

Headlining the event are Poncho Sanchez and His Latin Jazz Band, Bill Frisell’s Beautiful Dreamers, featuring Eyvind Kang and Rudy Royston, East-West Trumpet Summit with Ray Vega and Thomas Marriott featuring George Colligan, and Carlos Cascante Y Su Tumbao. The headliners will be performing at Bellevue’s Theatre at Meydenbauer Center and Bake’s Place; other venues include bars, restaurants, hotels, and cultural establishments throughout the downtown area.

The full festival schedule will be released in May. Tickets are on sale now through Brown Paper Tickets. For more information on the Bellevue Jazz Festival, visit www.bellevuedowntown.com.

East-West Trumpet Summit with Ray Vega & Thomas Marriott, featuring George Colligan
Wednesday, May 28, 8pm
Bake’s Place, $20

An all-star quintet led by the legendary Ray Vega, of New York, and the dynamic Thomas Marriott, of Seattle, the East-West Trumpet Summit brings a fusion of each coast’s jazz scene to Bellevue. Featuring George Colligan on piano, Phil Sparks on bass, and Matt Jorgensen on drums, the Summit will showcase their veteran talents on both jazz standards and original material.

Their self-titled 2010 album released on Seattle’s own Origin Records received plenty of national airtime, spending 21 weeks, including a period at the number one spot, on JazzWeek. It was also featured on NPR’s Morning Edition, and was named Denver jazz radio station KUVO’s top pick for 2010.

In a Jazziz review of the album, Mark Holston wrote, “the emphasis of this warm-blooded session is on mutual respect, not one-upmanship, as they partner in a ‘summit’ format that has been employed over the decades by some of jazzdom’s greatest horn men.”

Carlos Cascante Y Su Tumbao
Thursday, May 29, 8pm
Bake’s Place, $20

Break out your dancing shoes and get ready to move your hips for this performance. Vocalist Carlos Cascante is back after a great run at last year’s Bellevue Jazz Festival. Featuring Thomas Marriott on trumpet, Jeff Busch on drums, Julio Jàuregui on piano, Dean Schmidt on bass, and Pedro Vargas on congas, Tumbao is a six-piece Latin jazz band whose sound and rhythm keeps audiences moving. With artists’ roots spanning Costa Rica, Cuba, Mexico, and more, Tumbao brings the flavor and life of the Caribbean and Latin America to the Pacific Northwest.

The Seattle Times’ Tom Scanlon said, “The nice thing about Tumbao is it’s not just another salsa band playing airy dance music. Anchored by piano player Julio Jàuregui, the band keeps one foot firmly planted in Latin jazz as it roams various dance beats.”

Poncho Sanchez photo by Devin Dehaven

Poncho Sanchez and His Latin Jazz Band
Friday, May 30, 7:30pm
Theatre at Meydenbauer Center, $35/$20 student

Born in Laredo, Texas, and raised in Los Angeles, Grammy-winning conguero Poncho Sanchez was exposed to a variety of genres growing up, including bebop jazz, soul, and Afro-Cuban music. With influences such as Dizzy Gillespie, Miles Davis, Cal Tjader, and Mongo Santamaria, Sanchez brings a cross-section of musical ideas to the table. Though practiced in multiple instruments, including guitar, flute, drums, and timbales, he settled on congas in high school and even performed with Tjader from 1975 until the vibraphonist’s death in 1982.

“To me, Latin jazz is the world’s greatest music,” Sanchez writes on his website. “It has the melodic and harmonic sophistication of jazz and American standards, and the flavor and energy of Latin American music. What I’m most proud of is that this music – while it may sound exotic at times – is from America.”

Eyvind Kang, Bill Frisell and Rudy Royston photo by Monica Frisell

Bill Frisell’s Beautiful Dreamers featuring Eyvind Kang & Rudy Royston
Saturday, May 31, 7:30pm
Theatre at Meydenbauer Center, $35/$20 student

Newly inducted into the Seattle Jazz Hall of Fame at Earshot’s Golden Ear Awards, legendary guitarist Bill Frisell is set to perform his Beautiful Dreamers with violist Eyvind Kang and drummer Rudy Royston. On his website, Frisell writes, “I’ve been playing with Eyvind Kang and Rudy Royston since the early nineties. More recently we’ve begun playing as a trio and I’m so excited by the possibilities. Each time we get together the music feels new….and old. Backwards and forwards. Up and down. Anything is possible. I can’t wait to hear what happens next. I feel very fortunate having the chance to play music with these guys and to have an audience willing to follow along on this latest adventure.”

Released in 2010 on Savoy Jazz, Beautiful Dreamers compiles mostly original compositions with remakes of songs such as Blind Willie Johnson’s “It’s Nobody’s Fault but Mine” and Benny Goodman’s “Benny’s Bugle,” and takes its name from Stephen Foster’s “Beautiful Dreamer,” the cover of which is a simple, beautifully rustic rendition.

The BBC’s John Eyles said, “The time they have spent playing together means they sound easy in each other’s company, and the music reflects their comfort. On much of it, they could be relaxing together on the porch, trading licks and having fun. In particular, the flowing interactions of the guitar and viola echo a range of music from Django Reinhardt with Stèphane Grappelli through to bluegrass.”