The Pittsfield City Jazz Festival was formed in 2005 to present mainstream and traditional jazz in a downtown setting. Over its first four years, the festival has presented such headline talent as NEA Jazz Masters Billy Taylor and Phil Woods; up-and-coming artists such as Grace Kelly; individual standouts such as TS Monk, Jr., Claire Daly, Peggy Stern, Winard Harper and Barbara Dennerlein.
An annual highlight of the festival is Jazz In Schools, which features in school performances, demonstrations, and discussions groups featuring both local Jazz musicians and leading guest artists, such as Frank Vignola. Jazz In Schools engages students in multi-disciplinary activities around Jazz, including a poster contest andculminates with Berkshire County students, performing with the festivals headliners, such as the Dave Brubeck Quartet, who will performing with students at the Colonial this fall.
The festival also presents Jazz About Town, featuring local musicians in restaurants across the city of Pittsfield. Throughout the festivals 4 year run, dozens of venues have featured all genres of instrumental and vocal jazz, all at no cover, resulting in increased patronage at participating venues. A fundraising concert, held earlier this summer. alone drew over 350 people to downtown Pittsfield.
In an effort to keep prices at an accessible level, the Pittsfield CityJazz Festival has successfully partnered with several local, regional, and national organizations to underwrite various components. Starting with Legacy Banks in 2005, sponsors have included Greylock Marketing Group, TD Banknorth, The Red Lion Inn, Time Warner Cable, the Crowne Plaza Hotel, MTV/Nickelodeon, the National Endowment for the Arts, and the Pittsfield Cultural Council. Local merchants have provided thousands of dollars in in-kind services such as Lenox Softworks, ReadWebCo, The Berkshire Eagle, Aldam Press and Wood Brothers.
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