Music festival is an annual retreat for many
By David N. Young
Fans from around the country and the world trekked to Catalina Island for the opening weekend of the 35th JazzTrax Music Festival, leaving promoter Art Good excited and exhausted.
Speaking from Two Harbors on Wednesday, Good said he was “taking a break” between the two-weekend jazz festival.
Each year, Good sends a barge full of equipment to Avalon to stage the festival. “This year,” he chuckled, “I brought a jeep, so we crossed the rugged interior terrain to have lunch at Two Harbors before going into the final weekend of the festival.”
“It’s going good this year,” he said. “People tell me they enjoyed the concert as much as they ever enjoyed the opening weekend concert,” said Good.
The popular music festival has developed a deep legion of fans in its more than three-decade history.
Since the late 1980s, the Jazztrax Festival has been a large part of the island’s story and, indeed, has nearly become part of its folklore. Like the swallows of Capistrano, his fans, or many of them, return to Catalina year after year, said Good.
Fans in Avalon for this year’s festival, such as San Francisco tech executives Lori Spence and Michelle Matli say once you attend Jazztrax, you’re hooked.
“Some long-time friends of ours had been coming for years,” said Matli, “and they told us about it [Jazztrax].”
“So, we came last year,” she said, “and fell in love with the island, the music, and the people.”
For Spence, it is the majesty of the 1929 Casino that makes it a magical experience.
“What’s so wonderful about the Casino ballroom,” she said, “it’s so beautiful and there’s not a bad seat in the building.”
Archie Hinchen, of Lancaster, CA, said, “the first time I was here, I was so fascinated, like I said to myself, this is the perfect environment, you can relax the whole weekend and enjoy the show.”
His sister from Cleveland, OH flew in to join him for the show, he said.
Before cruise ships started mooring off its coast, islanders say the fall jazz festival provided a much-needed economic shot in the arm for local businesses after the summer vacationers had left.
This year, said Good, the festival will attract approximately 10,000 people overall for the two-week series of events, which he said is a boon for local hotels and restaurants.
A couple of guitarists opened the festival Thursday at the Descanso Beach “Unplugged under the Stars” event, including Daniel Ho, who opened for the renowned Peter White, playing from the sands of Descanso as fans enjoyed the music flanked only by the Pacific and a starlit night.
Getting the festival kicked off Friday night in the Casino, however, was a bit more difficult, said Good.
“We had a few logistical challenges,” Good acknowledged, “but it smoothed out and turned out great.”
On Friday, one of the new artists, “The Peet Project,” opened the show in the Avalon Casino, followed by sax sensation Jasmin Ghent.
On Saturday, festivalgoers warmed up with saxophonist Randal Clark, vocalist Lindsey Webster and guitarists Adam Hawley, and Chris Standring.
The headline act featured two of the more famous and accomplished jazz musicians working today, including composer/keyboardist Dave Grusin.
“It is such an honor to have Dave Grusin finally play this festival,” said Good while on stage Saturday.
Grusin, a composer with a long list of Hollywood movie and television music credits, tours with legendary jazz guitarist Lee Ritenour, considered one of the best session and performing guitarists in the world.
In fact, Herman Schmidt, a Swiss music arranger, said he came to the island and was attending the festival specifically to see Ritenour play in the Casino.
“I have always been a fan of Ritenour,” said Schmidt, a native of Zurich, “and I’ve always wanted to be inside this [Casino] ballroom.”
Ritenour and Grusin were accompanied by Wesley Ritenour on drums and Melvin Lee Davis on a seven-string bass guitar.
The near-capacity audience cheered as Ritenour and Grusin played hit after hit, and Grusin even played a tune he wrote for a Harrison Ford movie that he joked “opened on a Friday and closed on Sunday.”
Before playing his classic, “Westbound,” Ritenour told the audience that he learned to love jazz at 12 years old when his dad first started taking him to “The Lighthouse,” a well-known Hermosa Beach jazz club.
A few years later, when he got his driver’s license, Ritenour said he kept going to the club, listening to the late and legendary jazz guitarist Wes Montgomery, for whom he dedicated the album “Westbound” before launching into songs from the album.
Sunday’s lineup ended with Damian Escobar, a rising star violinist.
The opening weekend was so good, said Good, that ticket demand is surging for this weekend’s closing acts.
“We are completely sold out for Dave Koz on Saturday,” he said, but there “are a few tickets” available for the other shows.
On Friday, Good said a double bill of female saxophonists will fill the Casino with the sax-y sounds of saxophone solos as another rising star, Jessy J will open Friday followed by Mindy Abair, always a crowd-pleasing act.
On Saturday, Tower of Power alum Gregg Adams and East Bay Soul will continue a weekend of horns, said Good, including small orchestras that will be reminiscent of the early days of the Avalon Casino.
Before the days of amplification, the sounds of jazz greats like Dizzy Gillespie and his orchestra would delight audiences who danced on the ballroom’s special oak dancefloor.
Koz, a superstar saxophonist, will be the headliner for Saturday night, said Good, emphasizing the venue is sold out for Saturday.
On Sunday, Jeff Ryan, Justin Lee Schultz, and David Benoit and his orchestra will provide more horns while Norman Brown (with his horn section) will close out the festival.
Good said festival goers must remember they will be required to show proof of COVID vaccination to enter the Casino.
“So far, it’s been an amazing festival,” said Good on Wednesday. “Heck,” he said, “I’m already booking acts and selling tickets for next year.”
