Chilling at the Lake George Jazz Festival

By Bill Milkowski I Sep. 23, 2025

Trumpeter Jeremy Pelt performed new music from his latest album, *Woven*, with vibraphonist Jalen Baker, drummer Jared Spears, bassist Leighton Harrell and guitarist Misha Mendelenko.
(Photo: Mike Grosso)

It’s hard to imagine a more beautiful setting for an outdoor jazz festival than what Lake George, located in the scenic Adirondacks of upstate New York, has offered for over 40 years. The bandstand, situated at the bottom of a natural amphitheater overlooking the lake in Shepard Park, has no back wall, so audiences see right past the performers to a backdrop of swimmers, kayakers and boaters, all cavorting on the crystal clear waters of Lake George. And while they may be digging the music on stage, they can also zone out on the hypnotic rays of sunlight dancing on the calming blue waters behind the performers, or follow the occasional billowing parasail wafting overhead. It’s easy to see why so many artists appearing at this year’s Jazz at the Lake festival, held Sept. 12–14, commented from the stage about the serene scene, calling it everything from “gorgeous” to “inspiring” to “healing.”

The festivities kicked off on Friday with a riveting set from world-class violinist Sara Caswell, an in-demand figure on the New York scene who has been on over 100 recordings for the likes of Brad Mehldau, Esperanza Spalding, David Byrne, Dave Stryker, Henry Threadgill, Linda May Han Oh and Franco Ambrosetti. Celebrated for her lyricism and technical facility, Caswell presented an eclectic set that ranged from a swinging rendition of Kenny Barron’s “Voyage” to an impressionistic take on the standard “Bye Bye Blackbird” to a moving rendition of Jobim’s darkly beautiful ballad “O Que Tinha De Ser” that she performed on a rare five-string Norwegian Hardanger folk fiddle. Caswell’s “Spinning” was cast in an uplifting Pat Metheny/Lyle Mays mode while her affecting waltz “Warren’s Way” was a heartfelt nod to her drummer Michael W. Davis (she announced their recent engagement during the set). Bassist Ike Sturm showcased his sensitivity on his restful ballad “Stillness,” a kind of lullaby that featured a relaxed, lyrical solo from guitarist Jesse Lewis. Caswell further showcased her elegant touch and deep lyricism on trumpeter Nadje Noordhuis’ “South Shore.” They closed on an upbeat note with Egberto Gismonti’s ebullient choro “7 Rings,” with sparkling solos from the leader, guitarist Lewis and drummer Davis.

The late set on Friday, which took place in the Caldwell-Lake George Library, featured guitarist Chad McLoughlin accompanied by veterans Rich Syracuse on bass and Jeff Siegel on drums. Swinging on a solidbody electric like the Adirondacks’ answer to Ed Bickert, McLoughlin showcased his warm tone and masterful sweep-picking chops on originals like the angular “Loon’s Tune,” the uptempo waltz “On The Fly” and the slow “Requiem Blues.” McLoughlin also showcased some ingenious MIDI guitar synth triggering for orchestral effect on his ballad “Janet’s Lament.” And his romp through the standard “Time And Again” was pure burn.

Saturday featured some peak moments and real surprises. Matt Wilson’s Honey & Salt provided idiosyncratic thrills with music set to Carl Sandburg’s poetry (the drummer is from Galesburg, Illinois, one town over from Wilson’s hometown of Knoxville). Though Wilson began workshopping this material in the early 2000s, it didn’t come to fruition until his acclaimed 2017 recording Honey & Salt: Music Inspired By The Poetry Of Carl Sandburg (Palmetto). Backed by a potent crew of longtime collaborators in cornetist Kirk Knuffke, saxophonist Jeff Lederer, pianist Dawn Clement and Martin Wind on acoustic bass guitar, Wilson read Sandburg’s free verse that was by turns whimsical, philosophical and contemplative. The surprise came when he shanghaied me to recite “Paper 2” on stage with the band. Wilson ended his set with “Choose,” a profound yet playful plea for peace set to a military march beat. While he, Knuffke and Lederer recited Sandburg’s words (“The single clenched fist lifted and ready/ Or the open asking hand held out and waiting./ Choose! For we meet by one or the other”), the leader leaped out into the audience like an evangelist preacher, extending his hand to those in the front row.

Another surprise on Saturday came with the set by Mexican-born singer Lucía (Lucía Gutiérrez Rebolloso), who charmed the crowd with her smoldering intensity on a balladic take on “What A Difference A Day Makes,” her passionate reading of the bolero “Besame Mucho” and her dramatic rendition of “Alfonsia y el Mar” by Argentine pianist-composer Ariel Ramírez. Their swinging version of the standard “Exactly Like You” morphed into a tumbao groove near the end that had her scatting like Tanya Maria. A footnote on this set was the appearance of pianist Fabian Almazan, who filled in at the last minute for Lucía’s regular pianist, Gabriel Chakarji. It was his first time playing with Lucía and he sounded like he had been on the gig for years.

Trumpeter Jeremy Pelt performed new music from his latest album, Woven, with a superb group of young rising stars in vibraphonist Jalen Baker, drummer Jared Spears, bassist Leighton Harrell and the sensational Kyiv-born, New York-based guitarist Misha Mendelenko. Highlights of their outstanding set included the uptempo swinger “13/14,” which had the leader soloing brilliantly on muted trumpet, the gorgeous waltz-time ballad “Michelle” and a faithful reading of Kenny Dorham’s moody “Fair Weather” that had the crowd swooning. They closed on a scintillating note with the fusiony “Black Conscience,” a showcase for Mendelenko’s blazing distortion-laced licks.

Cuban pianist Alfred Rodríguez closed Saturday night’s festivities with an energized set that included a clever reworking of The Eagles’ “Hotel California,” shifting from bolero to dub to mambo, and Stevie Wonder’s “I Wish,” which peaked with a descarga blowout. Numerous members of the audience got up to dance on his closer, a mambo rendition of Michael Jackson’s “Thriller.”

The festival concluded on Sunday with three sets of brilliant music from three very distinctive bands. Colombian harpist Edmar Castañeda stunned first-timers (those who hadn’t seen his stellar performance at 2016’s Jazz on the Lake) with uncanny virtuosity on the instrument, showcasing deep bass lines, intricate chords and supple single note lines, all played simultaneously, like a Joe Pass of the harp. Backed by drummer Julian Miltenberger, versatile saxophonist Birsa Chatterjee and with Edmar’s wife, Andrea Tierra, contributing exquisite vocals on a few songs, they performed material from the harpist’s most recent album, Family. Highlights of the set included the uplifting “Battle Of Faith,” the intimate ballad “Canción con Todos,” sung with rare sensitivity and passion by Tierra, and the densely textured, ebullient “Agua Fresca.” Castañeda’s unaccompanied intro to “For Jaco,” his tribute to bassist-composer Jaco Pastorius, may have been the most viscerally stunning moment of the set. They closed on a spellbinding note with a re-imagining of “My Favorite Things” sung by Tierra en Español.

Sunday also saw a sizzling set from Trio Grande, featuring alto saxophonist Will Vinson, who doubled on keyboard, guitar star Gilad Hekselman and drummer Nate Wood, who amazingly doubled on electric bass — simultaneously! Performing material from Urban Myth, they segued from Hekselman’s introspective ballad “Navanad,” with Vinson carrying to mournful melody on alto, to the more groove-oriented Vinson original “Ministry Of Love,” which had Wood hammering-on bass notes with his left hand while slamming backbeats with his right hand. A highlight of their set was their kinetic reworking of Roy Hargrove’s signature tune “Strasbourg St. Denis,” which had Hekselman unleashing his fluid, clean-toned chops. The slamming, rock-fueled “Urban Myth” had Vinson playing his sax through an envelope filter and Hekselman wailing on wah-wah pedal. And Vinson’s moving ballad “Olive Tree” had the lovely, ethereal quality of Thelonious Monk’s “Monk’s Mood.”

The festival closed with a strong set from the David Gilmore Quartet performing music that he had recorded in 2019 (From Here To Here on Criss Cross) but was never able to play live due to the COVID shutdown. With the guitarist fronting an all-star band featuring the incredible Luis Perdomo on piano, Brad Jones on upright bass and E.J. Strickland on drums, they wowed the crowd on the supercharged modal number “Focus Pocus,” the swinging, Pat Martino-influenced “The Long Game,” with its intricate head doubled by Perdomo and Gilmore, and the post-boppish original “Free Radicals.” A real surprise came when this high-octane outfit delivered a calming rendition of Bill Evans’ gently swinging “Interplay,” title track of the pianist’s 1963 collaboration with guitarist Jim Hall. DB