The Jazz Aspen Snowmass (JAS) Experience | June 20th-23rd, 2024

JAS ANNOUNCES 2024 JUNE EXPERIENCE LINE-UP

Jazz, Soul, Blues, Funk, World Music, NOLA, Gospel & More at Multiple Venues Across the Downtown Core

Jazz Aspen Snowmass (JAS) has just announced the full artist and venue line-up for the JAS June Experience, taking place June 20-23 in downtown Aspen. The Experience will consist of multiple staggered shows daily, taking place at twelve different venues, allowing attendees the opportunity to stroll around town and enjoy a full night of diverse music genres and settings. With all (12) venues within a short walk in Aspen’s downtown core, and artists performing multiple shows throughout the weekend, the JAS June Experience offers a premium on intimate gatherings, spontaneous listening choices, movement and discovery. From Grammy winners and Nominees to International artists who are infrequently heard in the USA, there will truly be something for everyone.

“The variety of genres of world-class music and artists provide a fantastic window for attendees to see and imagine what will happen year-round at JAS’ future permanent, intimate home for performance, education, events & recording, the JAS Center, above the historic Red Onion,” said JAS President/CEO Jim Horowitz. “Every Artist featured at June JAS will have a home, not just at June JAS, but at the JAS Center, throughout the year!”

Passes for the event go on-sale Thursday, February 8 at 10am mst and will include the choice of 1, 2 or 3-day general admission passes or 3-day VIP passes. General Admission Passes include entrance into all venues each night, including a new opportunity this year to enjoy the late performance at the VIP tent which will be moving to a new location in Rio Grande Park. Weekend VIP passes include three nights of dinner and drinks at the VIP tent, stellar music performances at the tent, and entrance into all other venues.

In addition to the VIP Tent, JAS plans to host performances at the Belly Up, Wheeler Opera House and the Wheeler Lobby, Rooftop at the Aspen Art Museum, Limelight Hotel, W Hotel’s 39 Degrees, Unravel Coffee + Bar, The Sterling, and Hotel Jerome’s Felix Roasting Co., Wheeler Room and Bad Harriet.

Similar to 2023, the event will kick-off on Thursday, June 20 with a smaller group of venues and artists performing, while Friday and Saturday evenings, June 21-22, will feature performances at all venues. Single day Thursday passes are just $75 with single day Friday and Saturday passes at $135/each. A three day general admission pass will be $270 and a 2-Day (Fri/Sat) pass will be $200. Three (3) Night VIP passes are $1250/each ($500 tax deduction).

Performing artists include:

Big Bad Voodoo Daddy at Belly Up (Thurs): Together for over 30 years, Big Bad Voodoo Daddy continues their mission to celebrate and revitalize jazz and swing music and bring joy to audiences around the world.

The New Mastersounds 25th Anniversary Celebration at Belly Up (Fri): British four-piece jazz fusion and blues/funk band from Leeds, England who have cultivated a rare balance of consistency, yet commitment to constantly evolving their sound.

Jon Cleary & The Absolute Monster Gentlemen w/special guest Nigel Hall at Belly Up (Sat): A longtime JAS audience favorite, Jon Cleary’s work pays homage to the classic New Orleans keyboard repertoire, while incorporating soul, R&B, gospel, funk and many other resources. Cleary & his band will be joined by GRAMMY-winning soul keyboard/vocalist Nigel Hall.

Tribute to Aretha Franklin feat. Ms. Lisa Fischer w/the JAS Academy Big Band arranged & conducted by Christian McBride at the Rio Grande VIP Tent (Thurs) and the Wheeler Opera House (Fri): McBride, JAS’ longtime Artistic Director for the all-scholarship JAS Academy summer residency, wrote all the arrangements and will conduct the Academy Big Band in an explosive, high energy tribute to the “Queen of Soul” Aretha Franklin, featuring longtime Rolling Stones backup vocalist Ms. Lisa Fischer.

The Headhunters 50th Anniversary at the Wheeler Opera House (Sat): Originating in 1973 under the leadership of Herbie Hancock, The Headhunters blended jazz, funk, and rock, to create a sound that resonated with audiences worldwide. The band re-united in Aspen with Herbie Hancock for a 25th Anniversary show in 1997 and continue to tour world-wide.

Tommy Emmanuel at the Aspen Art Museum (Fri): Legendary Australian guitarist Tommy Emmanuel’s unique style – which he calls “finger style” – is akin to playing guitar the way a pianist play piano, using all ten fingers.

Cory Henry at the Aspen Art Museum (Sat): GRAMMY Award winning artist, composer, producer, multi-instrumentalist, and all around keyboard master, Cory Henry is the “future of music,” and one of the leading players of Funk music anywhere. His previous performances at JAS with “The Funk Apostles” were sell-outs and big hits.

Bobby Rush at the Rio Grande VIP Tent (Fri): Three-time GRAMMY winning legend, Blues Hall of Famer, and 14-time Blues Music Award winner, Rush is an American blues musician, composer and vocalist. At the astonishing age of (90) yrs. young, this Mississippi native just won a 2024 Grammy for Best Traditional Blues Performance, Rush’s vigor and on-stage energy will leave Blues fans in awe.

Orquesta Akokan at the Rio Grande VIP Tent (Sat): Direct from Havana, this carefully curated selection of Havana’s most extraordinary musicians have polished Cuban mambo’s golden sound to a luminous, contemporary sheen. Considered the premier touring Mambo big band out of Havana today, since forming in 2018 they have toured world-wide to great critical success.

Ben Paterson Organ Trio at the Limelight (Fri): Combining a joyful swing feel with an impeccable touch, Ben Paterson has established himself as one of the most exciting pianists on the jazz scene today, garnering international acclaim for his superb musicianship and engaging performances. Ben’s hard swinging band, featuring guitarist Dan Wilson, brings a soulful sound to the B-3 Organ.

Remembering Ray Brown w/Christian McBride, Benny Green & Gregory Hutchinson at the Limelight (Sat): Eight-time GRAMMY winning bassist alongside Benny Green on piano and Gregory Hutchinson on drums, celebrate the dynamic and soulful architect of the double bass, and Christian’s mentor Ray Brown, a longtime performer and educator at JAS.

JAS Academy Bands at The Jerome (Sat): Jam session celebrating the future of jazz music with the JAS Academy students in the four ensembles they will have created during their residency.

Cedric Burnside at W Hotel (Fri & Sat): Mississippi Hill Country blues guitarist and singer/songwriter who contains within him the legacy and future of the region’s prescient sound stories. His unique sound, straight from the Mississippi Delta, will grab your heart.

Katie Thiroux Trio at The Wheeler Lobby (Fri & Sat): Thiroux’s unique gift of simultaneously balancing sultry vocals and virtuosic bass playing has established her as one of the most exciting and in demand musicians today.

The Rumble ft. Chief Joseph Boudreaux Jr. at Sterling (Thurs, Fri, Sat): The Rumble continues the legacy of Mardi Gras Indian funk, which was pioneered in part by Boudreaux’s father Big Chief Monk Boudreaux with the Wild Magnolias. After the 2023 breakout shows at June JAS of Big Sam’s Funky Nation (returning for JAS After Dark 2024 Mar. 29-30), The Rumble will keep the deep groove and street party vibe of New Orleans’ best brass bands alive during JAS June 2024.

Stephane Wrembel Gypsy Jazz Trio at Felix Roasting Co. (Thurs, Fri, Sat): “Perhaps the most creative improviser in Gypsy jazz today, Mr. Wrembel plays the guitar with a rich and colorful lyricism.” – The New York Times. This virtuoso guitarist and his band have toured world-wide for over twenty years.

Mokoomba at Unravel Coffee + Bar (Thurs, Fri, Sat): Zimbabwe’s most celebrated music export, the six musicians from Victoria Falls are refining their unique sound: infectious Afro grooves deeply connected to Zimbabwe’s cultural DNA.

Acute Inflections at Bad Harriet (Thurs, Fri, Sat): New York’s Jazzy R&B Duo of a former Broadway singer and her 007 on bass. Somewhere between Erykah Badu and Billie Holiday, Acute Inflections returns after a stunning JAS Café debut in 2023.

The June Experience will close on Sunday, June 23 with a Gospel Brunch taking place at the Rio Grande Park VIP tent featuring legendary Blind Boys of Alabama, just off their 2024 GRAMMY win for Best Roots Gospel Album. Tickets include a brunch, bottomless mimosas and a Bloody Mary Bar.

“The JAS June Experience has found its footing in the last few years and now is marked by huge anticipation. The multi-venue format really has become as much the star as any individual Artist. So much to choose from in such a small area, the downtown Core of Aspen,” continued Horowitz. “With our planning heating up for our future home at The JAS Center, it’s exciting to imagine the future of this event when JAS can add the JAS Center to its collection of concert venues at the June Experience.”

The full JAS June Experience daily schedule, ticket information and more can be found at jazzaspensnowmass.org.

DL Media