february, 2020
Event Details
Hudson Jazz Festival
This riverfront town—a home-away-from-home for everything cool—just got even hipper with its very own Jazz Festival.
Photo Courtesy of Hudson Jazz Festival
Eat, Sleep, Jazz. Repeat.
It was only a matter of time before Hudson became even hipper by putting together the Hudson Jazz Festival. After all, the riverfront town has been written up in every major publication as ‘upstate’s Brooklyn’ – a home-away-from-home for everything cool.
Curated by Hudson-based jazz pianist Armen Donelian, the Hudson Jazz Festival treats jazz aficionados and world music fans to a banquet of masterful artists playing music from around the globe.
What to Expect at the Hudson Jazz Fest
This year’s Hudson Jazz Festival will be a doozy. The festival kicks off with some Latin Jazz as seven-time, Grammy-nominated drummer Bobby Sanabria and his Quarteto Ache perform on Friday evening. Don’t miss out Sanabria, one of the most popular Latin drummer/percussionists of his generation.
Saturday includes an afternoon of jazz solo piano immersion with Kirk Nurock, Lynne Arriale and Sullivan Fortner. Then, a free screening of The Modern Jazz Quartet: From Residency to Legacy.
Headlining Saturday evening is David Liebman, one of the top singers in Jazz and a pioneer of the free jazz movement. Liebman will be joined by Jay Anderson, a “flawless section bassist and a fleet full-toned soloist” (Los Angeles Times) as well as Jay Clayton and Jazz Festival curator, Armen Donelian, who has played with both Mongo Santamaria and Sonny Rollins.
In a nod to jazz’s next generation, Sunday at 11 a.m, local students are invited to a multi-generational, hands-on jazz improvisation workshop lead by Armen Donelian and saxophonist Marc Mommaas, co-founders of Hudson Jazzworks.
Finally, Sunday afternoon will feature the traditional sounds of Iraq as Amir Elsaffar, “one of the most promising figures in jazz today,” (Chicago Tribute) to the stage.
Hot Jazz, Spicy Treats and Cool Drinks
James Beard Award-winning chef Zak Pelaccio (of Hudson’s Fish & Game), will return this year adding extra spice to the festival lineup is with his Southeast Asian-inspired Backbar. Jazz lovers can delight in South Asian treats while sipping award-winning cocktails, beer and wine and enjoying world-class performances in an intimate, cabaret-style setting styled by Hudson-based designer Tom Taylor of Hudson Lodge.
“What a line up! Music doesn’t get any hipper than this.”
– NEA Jazz Master, Sheila Jordan
2019 Hudson Jazz Festival Lineup
Friday, February 15, 2019
7 p.m. BOBBY SANABRIA & QUARTETO ACHÉ
Tickets: $25
Led by Bobby Sanabria and his Quarteto Aché. Sanabria’s infectious grooves are grounded in his tenures with such legendary figures as Dizzy Gillespie, Tito Puente, Mongo Santamaria, Paquito D’Rivera, and the Godfather of Afro-Cuban Jazz, Mario Bauzá. Puerto Rican by descent and raised in New York’s South Bronx, Sanabria is hailed as one of the most popular Latin drummer/percussionists of his generation.
Bobby Sanabria, musical director, drums, vocals, percussion
Peter Brainin, tenor and soprano saxophones, flute, percussion
Darwin Noguera, piano, vocals
Andy Eulau, acoustic bass
Saturday, February 16, 2019
1 p.m. PIANO SUMMIT: KIRK NUROCK, LYNNE ARRIALE, SULLIVAN FORTNER
Tickets: $25
A treat for jazz piano devotees, three world-class musicians take to the keys in one afternoon of jazz piano immersion. The “joyously iconoclastic” (Keyboard Magazine) Kirk Nurock, the “poet laureate of her generation” (Jazz Police) Lynne Arriale, and rising star, Sullivan Fortner, an award-winning jazz wunderkind and composer with a bent toward sophisticated post-bop.
3 p.m. FREE FILM SCREENING: THE MODERN JAZZ QUARTET: FROM RESIDENCY TO LEGACY (2018, 65 MINUTES)
Featuring Percy Heath, John Lewis, Dave Brubeck, Gunther Schuller, Stephanie Barber and more, this fascinating collection of remembrances and anecdotes highlights The Modern Jazz Quartet’s role in developing The Music Inn’s iconic School of Jazz.
7 p.m. FEARLESS MASTERS: DAVID LIEBMAN, JAY ANDERSON, JAY CLAYTON, ARMEN DONELIAN
Tickets: $35
Four powerhouse players evening made for jazz lovers: NEA Jazz Master David Liebman, a saxophonist with “the most adventurous singer in jazz” (The Village Voice) and pioneer of the free jazz movement, Jay Clayton; “flawless section bassist and a fleet full-toned soloist” (Los Angeles Times) Jay Anderson, and renowned pianist, 2002 Fulbright Scholar, author and HJF curator, Armen Donelian.
Sunday, Feb. 17, 2018
11 a.m. Hudson Jazz Festival Workshop
Tickets: FREE
Join Hudson Jazz Festival curator and pianist Armen Donelian and his fellow Hudson Jazzworks founder Marc Mommaas for a free, hands-on immersion in jazz improvisation and composition based on the curriculum and methods of the annual Hudson Jazz Workshop.
Armen Donelian and Marc Mommaas
For intermediate-level middle-school age or higher
3 p.m. AMIR ELSAFFAR – TWO RIVERS ENSEMBLE
Tickets: $25
Deeply rooted in the musical traditions of Iraq, Two Rivers blends time-honored Arabic music with advanced jazz harmonies, polyphonic melodies and simmering grooves.
Amir Elsaffar, trumpet, santur, voice
Ole Mathisen, saxophone
George Ziadeh, oud
Francois Moutin, double bass
Ticket Options
HUDSON JAZZ FESTIVAL WEEKEND PASS
Venture down the river with a Hudson Jazz Festival Weekend Pass! For $90, you will receive priority seating and access to every Hudson Jazz Festival performance and event!
HUDSON JAZZ FESTIVAL PERFORMANCE TICKETS
Hudson Jazz Festival tickets vary by performance. Screenings and workshops are free to attend with reservations, and performances range from $25 to $35.
People 25 and under may pre-purchase single tickets for $15 each using the discount code UNDER25.
Take Amtrak to the Hudson Jazz Festival
Experience these jazz performances via Amtrak to Hudson Station in Columbia County of the Hudson Valley. Don’t forget to use the Amtrak See New York and Save 15% discount!
Get picked up from Hudson Station, taken to your reserved NYTRAIN Enterprise Rent-a-Car and drop it off right at the station on your way home! Click here to reserve your car or call the Hudson office today at: 518-828-5492.
Where to Stay in Hudson
Looking for a getaway opportunity? Spend the night and experience all the Hudson area has to offer.
The Inn at 34 has put together a special Jazz Weekend Package including: Amtrak tickets at 15% discount, Hudson Jazz Festival tickets at an exclusive 50% discount, your room at The Inn at 34 with a leisurely award-winning breakfast, concierge service, and complimentary pick up from Hudson Amtrak train station. Come to Hudson and walk to all the venues, no car necessary. Call to reserve: 1-888-279-0365. Must be booked directly with the Inn at 34.
Or, book a room at Wm. Farmer and Sons—just up the street from Hudson Station!
Staying longer than the weekend? Spend your time experiencing rich history, cultural hotspots and amazing views with the New York By Rail itinerary, City of Hudson and Beyond. Read about the itinerary and other great places to visit here.
