Mar 2, 2026 9:58 PM
In Memoriam: John Hammond Jr., 1942–2026
John P. Hammond (aka John Hammond Jr.), a blues guitarist and singer who was one of the first white American…
This year’s Syracuse Jazz Festival, which will be held from June 23 to 25 at Onondaga Community College in Syracuse, N.Y., will salute three American cities.
On Friday, June 23, the festival will start with a “Salute To Detroit,” with headliners David “Fathead” Newman’s Tribute To Ray Charles (featuring Howard Johnson and Detroit’s Marcus Belgrave) and The Funk Brothers of Motown Records fame. Saturday’s concerts will pay tribute to New Orleans with C.J. Chenier & the Red Hot Louisiana Band, Marcia Ball and Dr. John. Cornell Dupree and Les McCann will close out the festival on Sunday with an homage to Memphis.
“By creating dedicated theme nights at the 2006 festival that celebrate and salute three of America’s most renowned musical hubs, we were able to put together a diverse musical lineup that doubles as a history lesson in American popular culture,” said Syracuse Jazz Fest founder and artistic director Frank Malfitano.
For more information go to
Hammond came to the blues through the folk boom of the late 1950s and early 1960s, which he experienced firsthand in New York’s Greenwich Village. Mar 2, 2026 9:58 PM John P. Hammond (aka John Hammond Jr.), a blues guitarist and singer who was one of the first white American… “Cerebral and academic thought is a different way to approach music,” Flea says of his continuing dive into jazz. “I’ve always relied on emotion and intuition and physicality.” Mar 30, 2026 10:30 PM In the relatively small pantheon of certifiable rock stars venturing into the intersection of pop music and jazz, the… Vocalist Dee Dee Bridgewater will be among the headliners at this year’s DC JazzFest. Mar 2, 2026 9:48 PM The first wave of artists scheduled to perform at the 2026 DC JazzFest have been announced. This year’s headliners… Blindfold Test proctor Ted Panken, left, with the Grammy-winning Nicole Zuraitis. Feb 24, 2026 12:00 PM After earning the 2024 Best Jazz Vocal Album Grammy for her seventh album, How Love Begins (La Reserve), comprising 12… “These days, with curated news, where people only get half the story, people can’t even speak to family members anymore,” Schneider laments. Mar 10, 2026 1:43 PM Maria Schneider is doing her part to try to fix what ails America. Which got her thinking about crows, specifically,…
In other news... DownBeat's Most Read Stories
In Memoriam: John Hammond Jr., 1942–2026
Flea Finds His Jazz Thing
DC JazzFest Releases Initial Slate of 2026 Headliners
Blindfold Test: Nicole Zuraitis
Maria Schneider Asks Us to Listen to Each Other
