By Staff

Monterey Jazz Festival, world-renowned for its artistic excellence, sophisticated informality, and longstanding mission to create and support year-round jazz education and performance programs in local, regional, national, and international venues, continues this commitment in 2013 with its third North American Tour, featuring critically-acclaimed, GRAMMY®-winning jazz artists.

The Monterey Jazz Festival on Tour 55^th Anniversary Celebration features vocalist Dee Dee Bridgewater,

bassist and musical director Christian McBride, pianist Benny Green, drummer Lewis Nash, saxophonist Chris Potter, and trumpeter Ambrose Akinmusire. They will perform for the Celebrity Series of Boston at the Berklee Performance Center on Thursday, January 31, 2013 at 8:00 p.m.  This show, which will treat audience members to an assortment of classic jazz repertoire and original compositions by band members, is the group’s only appearance in the New England region; tickets ($30-$58) are on sale now by calling (617) 482-6661 or visiting celebrityseries.org.

Members of the 55^th Anniversary on Tour Band have deep relationships with Monterey Jazz Festival and have a commitment to the cultivation of jazz audiences worldwide. Vocalist Dee Dee Bridgewater made her first appearance at the Monterey Jazz in Festival in 1973 with the Thad Jones/Mel Lewis Orchestra, bassist Christian McBride has appeared at the Festival eight times since 1994, including acting as the Festival’s Artist-In-Residence in 2008, pianist Benny Green made the first of his eight performances at the Festival (as a 15-year-old in 1978) as the pianist in the Next Generation Jazz Orchestra, drummer Lewis Nash has appeared at the Festival twice since 2001, saxophonist Chris Potter made the first of his eight Festival appearances in 1997 and was a featured member of  Dave Holland’s Monterey Quartet, which performed and recorded at the Monterey Jazz Festival’s 50th Anniversary in 2007, and trumpeter Ambrose Akinmusire, a two-time member of the  Next Generation Jazz Orchestra, has made four appearances at the Festival since the 1990s and as Artist-In-Residence in 2012.

“Our 55^th Anniversary Celebration is shaping up to be our best tour yet,” said Tim Jackson, artistic director of Monterey Jazz Festival. “The band’s debut at the 2012 Monterey Jazz Festival was an overwhelming success and the chemistry between the artists is amazing. The music swings with ferocity and fun!”

Monterey Jazz Festival All-Star groups have embarked on three North American tours in the last five years. The Monterey Jazz Festival 50th Anniversary All-Stars, featuring Terence Blanchard, James Moody, Benny Green, Nnenna Freelon, Derrick Hodge, and Kendrick Scott, toured for 10 weeks across the United States, performing for 44,000 fans in 52 cities in 22 states in 2008.
In 2010, the Monterey Jazz Festival on Tour group played for more than  26,000 fans on a six-week, 34-date tour through 17 states and featured NEA Jazz Master Kenny Barron on piano with violinist Regina Carter, guitarist Russell Malone, vocalist Kurt Elling, bassist Kiyoshi Kitagawa, and drummer Johnathan Blake.

 More information is available at www.montereyjazzfestival.org.

Photos courtesy of  www.montereyjazzfestival.org