Join us for the inaugural Occidental Jazz Festival! Enjoy indoor and outdoor stages and great contemporary Jazz music at Occidental Center for the Arts. Delight in the sounds of amazing music, the sights of our tranquil setting and the feeling of a warm and welcoming community.

Lineup:

Friday September 18th

7-930 PM Glass Brick Boulevard (indoors)

Saturday September 19th

1:00 - 2 :40 PM Paul Hanson, Michael Manring and Scott Amendola (outdoors)

2:00 - 3:40 PM Ken Cook Trio (indoors)

4:00 -4:40 PM Junior Jazz All-Stars (outdoors)

5:00 - 6:40PM Jaycie Grady 4Tet (outdoors)

7:00 - 9:00 PM Jose Neto and Netoband (indoors)

Choose your adventure! Separate tickets are available for Friday night, Saturday afternoon (1-6:40 PM) or Saturday day & night (1-9 PM). Discounts for OCA members.

Wine, beer, refreshments and food available on-site or in downtown Occidental (2 blocks away).

Kids 12 and under free. Free parking, no dogs allowed. Accessible to people with disabilities. Bring your own seat cushion or low-backed chair for the amphitheater.

Ticket prices:

Friday night Glass Brick Boulevard $35

Saturday afternoon only 1-6:40 PM $40

Saturday afternoon & evening (with Netoband) $70

Please note: To attend Friday and Saturday you will need to make two ticket purchases - one for each date.

Doors open at 6PM Friday September 18 and 12:00 PM Saturday September 19th.

Doors open at 6PM Friday September 18 and 12:00 PM Saturday September 19th.

About the musicians:

Jose Neto and Netoband

World-class guitarist José Neto and his band, the Netoband, have been performing together for over 25 years. For the last 18 years, Neto has also been touring internationally as Steve Winwood’s guitarist, collaborating on numerous songs and projects together. Neto’s life and diverse musical journey from Brazil to the United States and England was the subject of the award-winning documentary, The Man Behind the White Guitar, which was released to international film festivals in 2019.

The Netoband features Frank Martin – piano, Celso Alberti – drums, José Neto – guitar, Gary Brown – bass.

Glass Brick Boulevard

Created in 1991, Greg Johnson and Glass Brick Boulevard rose to acclaim in the Bay Area in the late ‘90s. Now reunited after a hiatus, they’re making soul-soothing music once again and inspiring audiences the world over. Led by their composer-pianist Johnson, the band draws on a diverse array of influences, including gospel, Beethoven, The Who, and Motown, to name just a few. Says Johnson, “If Beethoven came back as Seal, we'd be his band.” Glass Brick Boulevard is Greg Johnson on Piano, Paul Hanson on Bassoon, Rob Fordyce on Bass and Celso Alberti on Drums.

Ken Cook Trio

Ken Cook- Pianist, educator, composer

Californian native Ken Cook spent close to twenty-five years on the east coast free lancing, touring, recording and teaching. He has performed in Europe, Latin and South America and much of the Eastern United states with various groups including the great New Orleans singer Johnny Adams. Currently based in the SF Bay Area, he performs often with his Jazz trio and can be found backing many other west coast musicians. His music is a blend of Modern Jazz, Soul, Blues, Latin and Brazilian music. He has performed with Brazilian guitarist Ricardo Peixoto, Blues singer Terrie Odabi, cellist Mark Summer (Turtle Island String Quartet). He holds a Masters degree in Jazz Performance from the New England Conservatory in Boston and is an alum of The Berklee College of Music in Boston. He is an active clinician and educator and currently holds the Jazz piano chair in the Jazz Studies Department at Sonoma State University in Rohnert Park, CA.

The Ken Cook Trio includes Michael Pinkham on bass and Kendrick Freeman on drums.

Jaycie Grady 4Tet

The Jaycie Grady 4Tet is a San Francisco-based jazz ensemble led by drummer Jaycie (JC) Grady. Primarily playing contemporary jazz, their style is rooted in traditional jazz fundamentals but incorporates modern elements and diverse instrumentation, such as the violin. JC was featured recently in the San Francisco Women in Jazz event.

Hanson, Manring & Amendola

Bass virtuoso Michael Manring is joined by fellow master Scott Amendola and Paul Hanson on electric bassoon. Get ready for an ensemble like you've never heard before!

Paul Hanson has recorded and/or performed with Grammy winners Bela Fleck and the Flecktones, Jon Batiste, Wayne Shorter and Taylor Eigsti. He has also recorded/ toured with Billy Cobham’s Crosswinds Ensemble, Peter Erskine, Billy Childs, Harmonica virtuoso Gregorie Maret, Billy Higgins, David Binney, Ray Charles, Charlie Hunter, Patrice Rushen, Alex Acuna, Dennis Chambers, Abraham Laboriel, Medeski Martin & Wood, Bob Weir’s RATDOG, T. Lavitz from Dixie Dregs, Jeff Coffin, Jeff Sipe, Jonas Hellborg, Afro/Cuban pianist Omar Sosa, Bob Moses, Kai Eckhardt, Peter Apfelbaum and the Hieroglyphics Ensemble, 60string bassist Ariane Cap in the group OoN, The Paul Dresher Ensemble, DAVKA, St. Joseph Ballet Company, The Klezmorim, as jazz soloist with the Oakland Eastbay Symphony Orchestra, as classical soloist with the Napa Symphony Orchestra (non-improvising) and many more.

Michael Manring is anacclaimed American fretless bass virtuoso renowned for revolutionizing solo bass playing through innovative techniques, alternate tunings, and his signature Zon Hyperbass. A protégé of Jaco Pastorius, Manring has released multiple solo albums, including Soliloquy and Small Moments, and was named 1994 Bassist of the Year by Bass Player Magazine.

For Scott Amendola, the drum kit isn’t so much an instrument as a musical portal. As an ambitious composer, savvy bandleader, electronics explorer, first-call accompanist and capaciously creative foil for some of the world’s most inventive musicians, Amendola applies his wide-ranging rhythmic virtuosity to a vast array of settings. His closest musical associates include guitarists Charlie Hunter, Nels Cline, and Jeff Parker, Hammond B-3 organist Wil Blades, violinist Jenny Scheinman, saxophonist Phillip Greenlief, clarinetist Ben Goldberg, bassists Trevor Dunn, and Todd Sickafoose, players who have each forged a singular path within and beyond the realm of jazz.

While rooted in the San Francisco Bay Area scene, Amendola has woven a dense and far-reaching web of bandstand relationships that tie him to influential artists in jazz, blues, rock and new music. A potent creative catalyst, the Berkeley-based drummer is the nexus for a disparate community of musicians stretching from Los Angeles and Seattle to Chicago and New York. Whatever the context, Amendola possesses a gift for twisting musical genres in unexpected directions.

Over a career spanning more than three decades, Amendola has forged deep ties across the country, and throughout the world. As an ambitious composer, savvy bandleader, electronics explorer, first-call accompanist, and capaciously creative foil for some of the world’s most inventive musicians, Amendola applies his wide-ranging rhythmic virtuosity to a vast array of settings.

Junior Jazz All-Stars

Featuring Julian Nelson on guitar, more details to come!