Herbie Hancock (left) and Ron Carter will make their first appearance together at Monterey in 34 years, and their first as a duo.

Wadenius was instrumental in such bands as Made in Sweden and Solar Plexus and worked with high-profile Swedish artists Cornelis Vreeswijk and Pugh Rogefeldt.

Ava Preston, a 12-time DownBeat Student Music Award winner, is currently pursuing her master’s degree in jazz voice at Juilliard.

The bows at the end of the star-studded event featured a ridiculous collection of jazz artistry including Helen Sung, Herbie Hancock, Robert Glasper, Tiger Okoshi, Dianne Reeves, Kurt Elling, Buddy Guy, James Reedus, John Beasley, Jacob Collier, Lizz Wright and many more.

While writer Ted Panken, right, didn’t play Ella Fitzgerald for the Blindfold Test with Janis Siegel, the vocalist passed with flying colors!

Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania will jointly serve as the partner country for next year’s edition of jazzahead!

Charles Tyler in New York, 1974.

“If you’re creative, then it means that you can approach anything with a creative spirit and just do your best at it,” says Shabaka.

“The secret is to surrender to the music and let it take you where it wants to go,” says Marquis Hill. “Understanding and vulnerability are key. It’s bigger than just you.”

“If we travel to Europe or if we go play gigs around the States, I call it a ‘playcation,’” says guitarist Steve Masakowski, center, of his family band with daughter Sasha, left, and son Martin.