Both fun and educational, Family Matinees provide a window into the exciting world of live jazz. Each one-hour matinee features live performance, audience participation, Q&A and amazing music. Although designed for elementary school students, our Family Matinees are open to music fans of all ages.
This fall, the Marcus Shelby Trio hosts our Matinee series, highlighting the music of the great jazz masters – two of whom will appear at this year’s Festival: Sonny Rollins, Thelonious Monk and Ornette Coleman. Enjoyed individually or as a series, these Family Matinees will change the way you hear jazz.
Saturday, September 29, 11:00AM • Herbst Theatre
Tenor saxophonist Sonny Rollins is considered as one of the most important and influential jazz musicians. Throughout his prolific career he performed and recorded with many of the greats, inspiring generations of musicians with his signature style, as well as pioneering the sound of the “pianoless” trio.
Saturday, October 20, 11:00AM • Herbst Theatre
Pianist and composer Thelonious Sphere Monk is unique among the jazz giants, developing a singular sound on his instrument while creating some of the most compelling compositions in modern music. Together with Dizzy Gillespie and Charles Mingus, Monk propelled the bebop movement and developed a distinct improvisational style.
Saturday, Novemeber 17, 11:00AM • Herbst Theatre
Saxophonist and multi-instrumentalist Ornette Coleman is one of the major innovators of the “free jazz” movement of the 1960s. In his early career he began playing a plastic saxophone, and later explored electronic and other experimental textures, evolving his sound into what is generally considered the “avant-garde” side of jazz.
Compelling, spontaneous conversations with select artists. Free to all ticket holders of the evening's show.
This dynamic program offers music appreciation classes for adults, providing entertaining and informative insights into jazz music, history and culture through live performance in addition to multimedia presentation and audience Q&A.
