The Playboy Jazz Festival Free Community Concert in Warner Center Park | June 6th, 2010

PLAYBOY JAZZ FESTIVAL GETS FANS IN THE SPIRIT WITH FREE COMMUNITY CONCERT FEATURING OLETA ADAMS, SAL MARQUEZ AND LAO TIZER AT WARNER CENTER PARK, SUNDAY, JUNE 6TH, IN WOODLAND HILLS

                  (Oleta Adams)

For Southern California jazz fans, there’s no better way to break through Los Angeles’ annual June gloom than “Playboy Jazz in Warner Park,” which returns to the Lou Bredlow Pavilion in Warner Center Park (located at 5800 Topanga Canyon Boulevard) on Sunday, June 6th from 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. The free concert, sponsored by the Playboy Jazz Festival as part of their annual community event series held in conjunction with the upcoming Playboy Jazz Festival, Saturday and Sunday, June 12th and 13th, at the Hollywood Bowl, is also part of the Valley Cultural Center’s “Concerts on the Green” series.

The popular event, which has grown to attract thousands of fans since it began three years ago, will offer a mix of topflight jazz and entertainment for the whole family, including a children’s play zone (complete with inflatable bouncers, balloon artists, clowns, and face painting), a new fine arts show, and a tasty array of food and beverages from 20 local eateries in addition to the concert, which features three top artists.

Playing a variety of music from R&B to contemporary and straight ahead jazz, “Playboy Jazz
in Warner Park” will present the unique and diverse talents of four-time Grammy-nominated
jazz/R&B vocalist Oleta Adams; multi-talented contemporary jazz keyboardist Lao Tizer, and trumpet great Sal Marquez and his quartet. The Calabasas High School Jazz Band (one of 15 finalists in the Essentially Ellington High School Jazz Band competition in New York City at Jazz at Lincoln Center), under the direction of Joshua Barroll, will open the show.

Adams, a crowd pleasing jazz/R&B vocalist for the past 20 years, embarked on her solo career and became an instant sensation after touring with Tears For Fears and recording “Woman In Chains” with the English duo and Phil Collins. Her 1990 debut album Circle of One went platinum and her impassioned hit single, the Brenda Russell composed “Get Here,” became the unofficial anthem of the 1991 Gulf War. She has toured with Michael Bolton and Luther Vandross, among others, and is deeply rooted in gospel. Her heartfelt sound crosses effortlessly into soul, urban, and pop.

Contemporary keyboardist and recording artist Lao Tizer and his band Tizer captivate audiences of all ages and musical tastes. Proclaimed “an independent artist with all the right moves” and “a torchbearer for the new generation of contemporary jazz”, and a “Best New Jazz Artist” nominee, Tizer’s recordings have sold over 90,000 copies. He has graced the stage at events worldwide alongside such stellar artists as Wayne Shorter, Boney James, Isaac Hayes, George Benson, The Commodores, The Rippingtons, Bruce Hornsby, Jethro Tull, and Spyro Gyra, and is widely acclaimed in the music industry’s most respected publications.

A master on both trumpet and flugelhorn, Sal Marquez has performed and recorded with such jazz greats as Woody Herman, Buddy Rich, Dave Mason, Joe Sample, The Crusaders, Don Grusin, Dave Grusin, Diane Schuur, the Royal Philharmonic, and the Tonight Show Band. Marquez was a regular on the local club scene and played organ behind such folk blues masters as Big Joe Turner and Big Mama Thornton before winning gigs with such dynamic groups as the Beach Boys, Frank Zappa’s Mothers of Invention and former Doors guitarist Robbie Krieger.

This year’s new art fair, produced by Totally Artistic, will feature over 40 vendors offering original works from every aspect of the visual arts, including painting, sculpture, watercolors, and mixed media. Totally Artistic is a membership organization representing over 500 artists, specializing in outdoor showcases.

Admission to Playboy Jazz at Warner Park is free. A variety of food and refreshments will be sold in the food court area. Patrons may bring blankets, beach/lawn chairs, picnic baskets and coolers. Dogs must be on a leash at all times. Parking is available in the parking structures on Califa Street or in parking structures east of Owensmouth Avenue between Califa Street and Oxnard Street for $10.

For information about this event only, call the Valley Cultural Center at (818) 704-1358 or visit www.valleycultural.org. For more information about the Playboy Jazz Festival and its free events, call the Festival Hotline at (310) 450-1173 or visit www.playboyjazzfestival.com.