Over 3,800 students to perform in Lionel Hampton Jaz Festival April 17-20

MOSCOW, Idaho — More than 3,800 students — along with educators, parents and jazz lovers — will descend into Moscow on Wednesday through Saturday, April 17-20, for the 57th Lionel Hampton Jazz Festival at University of Idaho.

Students will participate in three days of adjudicated performances, culminating in evening concerts with some of today’s top jazz performers. Schools from Idaho, Washington, Oregon, Montana, Utah, Ohio and British Columbia, Canada, will attend.

“We are thrilled for the upcoming 57th Lionel Hampton Jazz Festival, just around the corner,” Lionel Hampton Jazz Festival Manager Navin Chettri said. “This year marks Lionel Hampton's 116th birthday on April 20, and we can't wait to celebrate with all our visiting schools, directors, musicians and community.”

The student performance schedule features elementary, junior and college students on April 18, senior vocalists on April 19 and senior instrumentalists on April 20 at venues all over campus, from around 8 a.m. through the afternoon.

The workshops begin on April 18 and are free, open to the public and cover a range of topics from hip-hop, tap and jazz disco, to yoga for musicians and the physics of making waves with music.

Tickets are still available for the evening concerts, which will feature Grammy-award winning performers, critic and fan-favorite musicians, and the top student soloists competing for a scholarship to U of I courtesy of Avista.

Evening concert schedule:

Hamp’s Gala: 7 p.m., Wednesday, April 17, Administration Building Auditorium

• The traditional evening kick-off concert features student ensembles from the Lionel Hampton School of Music.

World Music Celebration: 7 p.m. Thursday, April 18, ICCU Arena

• Jovino Santos Neto, Brazilian pianist and composer
• Samir LanGus, Moroccan gimbri player and singer
• UI Jazz Band I, under the direction of Vern Sielert
• UI Jazz Choir I, under the direction of Dan Bukvich
• World Music Ensember, under the direction of Navin Chettri

Veronica Swift: 7 p.m. Friday, April 19, ICCU Arena

• Veronica Swift
• UI Jazz Choir II, under the direction of Dan Bukvich
• UI Jazz Band I, under the direction of Vern Sielert
• Hamp’s Jazz Ambassadors

Lionel Hampton’s 116th Birthday Celebration: 7 p.m. Saturday, April 20, ICCU Arena

• Kenny Garrett and Sounds From the Ancestors
• Lionel Hampton Big Band, featuring Joe Doubleday
• Hamp’s Jazz Ambassadors

Tickets to April 17’s Hamp’s Gala are free. All other ticket events range from $20-$50 and are available from the Bruce Pitman Center Box Office, at uitickets.com or at the door while supplies last (credit card only). A clear bag policy is in effect for all events in the ICCU Arena.

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Media Contact:

Navin Chettri
Lionel Hampton Jazz Festival Manager
208-885-0112
nchettri@uidaho.edu