We’d like to thank everyone who joined us at the Remai Arts Centre to enjoy the John Pizzarelli Quartet on a crisp Thursday evening. John and the band impressed and amused us, with what seemed to be limitless musical talent, and a fondness for witty stage banter. Pizzarelli also seemed pretty fond of Saskachewan — stepping into the airport on his way out of town, John’s departing words were “Go Riders!”

Be sure to check out the photos from John Pizzarelli show on Flickr.

If you didn’t get enough Pizzarelli last night, you can always find him online at JohnPizzarelli.com.

And if you’d like to hear about our next concert, it’s easy to stay in the loop. Just sign up for our email newsletter, and we’ll let you know about our off-season concerts, other events happening in town, and the lineup for the 24th SaskTel Saskatchewan Jazz Festival!

Thanks to all of you who made the 2009 SaskTel Saskatchewan Jazz Festival a tremendous success. From sold out shows to packed free stages the 2009 Festival will go down as one of the best.

We would like to thank the all the musicians, sponsors, volunteers, venues, and of course the tens of thousands of music fans who made this year’s Festival the biggest and best yet!

Be sure to join our newsletter and be the first to hear who’ll be playing at the 24th annual SaskTel Saskatchewan Festival, June 25 to July 4, 2010. Have a great summer!

Friday, July 3 – 10:30pm
Amigos Cantina
$10 cover / 19+

Presented by
Escape Sports
Starlab Recording Studio
CFCR

Blue King Brown’s urban roots sound mixes high energy funk with social awareness. It’s a style Carlos Santana, who they backed on his Australian tour, calls “the voice of the street.” BKB is led by Natalie Pa’apa’a (lead vocals, guitar, percussion), Carlo Santone (bass), Salvador Persico (percussion), Sam Cope (keyboards), Peter Wilkins (drums), Emily G (trombone), Cesar Rodriguez (guitar), Hailey Cramer (vocals), Jess Harlen (vocals) and Nadee (vocals).

Percussion Syndicate

Emotional, powerful, purifying & exciting! This is how audiences describe Saskatoon’s Percussion Syndicate. From the heat of Western Africa to the dark nights of Persia to the sultry moods of Cuba, the Syndicate will take you on a rhythmic journey. With no traditional melodic instruments, Brad King and Graham Templeman create a tonally complex groove.

Planet S announced the winners of this year’s Best of Saskatoon poll yesterday, and we were named Best City Festival for 2009!

We’d like to send a huge thanks to all of our friends, fans and volunteers who sent in their ballots and helped us claim this honour for the second straight year.

And while we’re at it, we’d like to congratulate our lovely sponsors CFCR, CTV and 2nd Ave. Grill, as well as Festival venue Amigos, for scooping up awards in their respective categories.

Be sure to pick up a copy of Planet S to see the complete list of this year’s winners.

One of Canada’s finest musicians, pianist Oliver Jones will perform in Saskatoon on April 11 at the Broadway Theatre. The concert is produced by the SaskTel Saskatchewan Jazz Festival and is presented by Elwood Flynn Ltd.

We’re always looking to host world class jazz artists throughout the year, and Oliver Jones is without a doubt a world class artist. Because of the incredible support the Festival has had from music lovers in recent years, we’re able to put on a show such as Oliver Jones outside of the summer Festival dates.

As for Oliver, his six-decade musical career has been rich and varied, and intertwines with the proud history of jazz in his native Montreal. Oliver’s unmistakable finesse, lightning-fast technique, powerful lyricism and rollicking rhythms skyrocketed him to the top of the Canadian jazz scene. After a brief but much-publicized retirement, Oliver chose to name his new opus One More Time. It’s one of his best recordings to date, and we’re thrilled to have him bring his inexhaustible talent to Saskatoon this spring.

Reserved seating tickets are $32 in advance or $37 on the day of the event (plus service charge) and are available at the Broadway Theatre box office at 715 Broadway Ave., Saskatoon or by phone at 306-652-6556.

We’d like to thank those of you who took the time to visit us on Facebook and show your support of the SaskTel Saskatchewan Jazz Festival. We now have 140 fans and counting. Thank you!

And if you haven’t already, here are five reasons to visit our Facebook page:

1. Watch videos of performances by icons like Sonny Rollins.
2. Tell us who you’d like to see perform at this year’s festival in the discussion forum.
3. RSVP for upcoming shows such as Oliver Jones.
4. Listen to songs by artists in the 2009 Festival lineup.
5. View and comment on photos from last year’s festival.

Thanks, and see you on Facebook!

Please note: the deadline for musician applications has now passed.

If you have a band, a project, or are a solo artist then the SaskTel Saskatchewan Jazz Festival wants to hear from you!

The Jazz Festival is now accepting applications from musicians who are interested in performing at the 23rd SaskTel Saskatchewan Jazz Festival, June 26 to July 5, 2009. We encourage musicians working in all styles of music to apply.

The Festival especially supports creative projects from all Saskatchewan musicians, who make up approximately 75% of all artists performing at the Jazz Festival. This reflects the abundance of talent in our province, as well as our commitment to showcase local artists.

You can download an application from our website or you can pick one up at our office at 601 Spadina Crescent East, Suite 701.

The application deadline is Friday, February 6, so be sure to get yours in soon! If you have any questions about the application process, send them over to sask.jazz@sasktel.net.