‘Next Generation’ Invades Monterey March 22–25

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The third annual Next Generation Festival, part of the Monterey Jazz Festival, will take place March 22–25 in downtown Monterey, Calif.

The event, devoted to the future of jazz, includes the Festival’s 37th annual National High School Jazz Competition, with big bands, combos, vocal ensembles and individual musicians competing for a spot on the stages of this summer’s 50th annual Monterey Jazz Festival.

More than 40 groups from 10 states across the country will participate in the Next Generation Festival, which represents the largest gathering of young jazz talent on the Monterey Peninsula outside of the Monterey Jazz Festival itself.

A kick-off concert will be held at Monterey’s Golden State Theatre featuring the judges from the National High School Jazz Competition and 2007 Monterey Jazz Festival artist-in-residence Terence Blanchard.

For more information, visit: www.montereyjazzfestival.org



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    Wilson’s ability to connect to audiences helped her to win two Grammy awards and multiple other accolades. She was named an NEA Jazz Master in 2022.

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    Bertoncini was a specialist and advocate for the nylon-string acoustic guitar, turning down high-profile opportunities that were unsuited to the sound and techniques that he used with that instrument.

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    “It was just that suddenly … I could hear it,” Ravi Coltrane said of an epiphany he experienced during his late teens regarding his father’s music. “And it was almost like a calling, like something saying, ‘Hey, man, come on. It’s time to get serious.’ And the first time you really tune in and dial in and focus like that, it can be very life-changing.”

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