The 1st Annual Brooklyn Jazz Festival in Prospect Park | August 8th, 2026
Jason Moran & The Bandwagon. Photo Credit: John Rogers
First Annual Brooklyn Jazz Festival Takes Over Prospect Park’s
LeFrak Center at Lakeside
on August 8, 2026
Spread across two stages, a remarkable lineup of modern-jazz heavyweights:
– Jason Moran & The Bandwagon feat. special guests Bradley & Devon Gates –
– “First Meeting”: Gonzalo Rubalcaba / Chris Potter / Larry Grenadier / Eric Harland –
– Chris Potter Quartet feat. Craig Taborn, Joe Martin & Kendrick Scott –
– Bobby Sanabria’s Ascensión –
– Joel Ross’ Good Vibes
– Linda May Han Oh Quartet –
– Marcus Gilmore’s Journey to the New –
– Brooklyn All-Stars Play “In a Silent Way” feat. Vernon Reid –
– Vinicius Gomes & Bailinho –
Tickets on Sale Monday, July 6, 2026 – Purchase Here
On August 8, 2026 the inaugural Brooklyn Jazz Festival will premiere at the LeFrak Center at Lakeside, located in Brooklyn’s historic Prospect Park.
Produced by Erik Ekstein of Ekstein Development Group, and lovingly curated by guitarist-producer Joel Harrison — a creative force behind this season’s inaugural Brooklyn Guitar Festival and the Alternative Guitar Summit — the lineup boasts, in Harrison’s words, many of the “current artists I consider the very best practitioners of this art form.”
Kicking off at noon with emerging guitarist Vinicius Gomes & Bailinho and wrapping by 10 p.m., the festival will present headliner and pianist Jason Moran and his generation-defining trio, The Bandwagon, with special guests Akili Bradley (trumpet) and Devon Gates (double bass). Prior to Moran, will be the iconoclastic pianist Gonzalo Rubalcaba with First Meeting, a supergroup featuring saxophone colossus Chris Potter, bassist Larry Grenadier and drummer Eric Harland.
Linda May Han Oh. Photo Credit: Shervin Lainez
Also on the main stage, earlier, Potter’s quartet featuring pianist Craig Taborn, bassist Joe Martin and drummer Kendrick Scott will play in addition to bassist Linda May Han Oh Quartet, and Marcus Gilmore’s Journey to the New. Oh, best known for her work with Pat Metheny, Dave Douglas and Vijay Iyer, in addition to her own lauded recordings; and the equally commanding drummer Marcus Gilmore, a veteran of bands led by Iyer, Chick Corea and other masters round out the main stage lineup.
Secondary stage artists include the emergent vibraphonist and Blue Note recording artist Joel Ross’ Good Vibes, Latin-jazz titan and nine-time Grammy-nominated bandleader Bobby Sanabria & Ascención (an octet with a who’s-who of modern day Latin jazz titans).
Joel Ross. Photo Credit: Jati Lindsay
In keeping with the year long celebration of Miles Davis’ centenary a conclave of Brooklyn All-Stars will play the music of In a Silent Way, Davis’ seminal 1969 release, with a seven piece band including guitarist Vernon Reid, bassist Jerome Harris, saxophonist Ingrid Laubrock, pianist Micah Thomas, Harrison on guitar, and others to be announced.
Dedicated jazz fans will instantly recognize the sheer excellence and integrity that define the lineup. “It was simple,” Harrison says. “I wanted two stages to present some of the greatest jazz musicians of our time, with their working bands so that they appear in their best light. I also wanted to make sure it was diverse in terms of what kinds of jazz was played and who was playing. That was important to me — especially since we’ll be in Brooklyn, with all of the borough’s multicultural energy.
Marcus Gilmore. Photo Credit: Ogata
“And I didn’t want to cater only to contemporary taste or favor,” he adds. In other words, Harrison wanted to program a true modern jazz festival, showcasing artists of breathtaking technical skill whose mastery is matched only by their emotional depth. He sought to prove how accessible and exciting jazz’s state of the art can be.
“I wanted more contemplative ‘listening’ jazz as well as some really uplifting groove music,” he says. “Vinicius is an incredible guitarist, and his group is a modern samba outfit that’s going to be very entertaining. Bobby Sanabria is going to bring a party atmosphere as well as a masterclass in Latin jazz and Afro-Cuban rhythm.”
Chris Potter. Photo Credit: Dave Stapleton
In the end, Harrison also strove to create a festival that would be worthy of the Brooklyn moniker, and become an annual tradition for the local community and international jazz fans alike. Astonishingly, considering Brooklyn’s seismic cultural impact, there hasn’t been a recurring Summer festival like this one in the borough — one that holds jazz to the highest possible standards and underscores the idea that the genre is continually progressing.
“It’s a big name, Brooklyn Jazz Festival,” Harrison says with a laugh. “It takes a little bit of nerve to call it that. But so many of the greatest jazz musicians have been part of the Brooklyn scene and lived in the borough, including many of the festival’s performers. The jazz history here is so rich that this first lineup needed to feature the most brilliant improvising musicians, period.”
Gonzalo Rubalcaba Photo Credit: Pachy Lopez
About LeFrak Center at Lakeside
A beautiful multi-use space located in the southeast corner of Prospect Park (171 East Drive, Brooklyn, NY, 11225), the LeFrak Center at Lakeside offers the Brooklyn community a wide variety of entertainment and activities. The LeFrak Center is operated by Ekstein Development Group, whose founder, Erik Ekstein, produced the Brooklyn Guitar Festival and the Brooklyn Jazz Festival. Among Ekstein’s projects is BQE Studios, a series of affordable multimedia facilities for creatives throughout New York.
Tickets go on sale July 1, 2026.
Visit www.bklynjazzfestival.com or to purchase tickets.
Full Schedule
Main Stage
1:00 pm: Linda May Han Oh Quartet
3:00 pm: Marcus Gilmore’s Journey to the New
5:15 pm: Chris Potter Quartet feat. Craig Taborn, Joe Martin, Kendrick Scott
7:30 pm: “First Meeting” Gonzalo Rubalcaba / Chris Potter / Larry Grenadier / Eric Harland
9:00 pm: Jason Moran & The Bandwagon w/ special guests Akili Bradley and Devon Gates
Side Stage
12:00 pm Vinicius Gomes & Bailinho
2:00 pm: Joel Ross’ Good Vibes
4:00 pm: Brooklyn All-Stars Play “In a Silent Way” feat. Vernon Reid
6:15 pm: Bobby Sanabria’s Ascención
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