Photo courtesy of Old Webster Jazz & Blues Festival
September 19, 2015 marks the 15th annual Old Webster Jazz & Blues Festival, a free two-day concert featuring local jazz and blues bands in the Webster Groves neighborhood. While the festival was originally a traditional jazz fest, focused on ragtime and early jazz music, the name was changed to include “Blues” 8 years ago, as the festival expanded to include a broader variety of genres.
Since its founding, the festival has been a free event, focused on bringing the community together – and musical director Terry Perkins says he plans to keep it that way. It has always been sponsored in part by the Webster-Kirkwood Times, Webster University and the City of Webster, but this year, the addition of a new sponsor will take the fest to a new level.
Perkins says, “The stage that used to just be the Allen Avenue stage is now going to be called the Autumn Hill Records Stage. We’re so happy to have Autumn Hill Records on board this year – it’s a record label founded in St. Louis by Michael and Rob Silverman. Not only is it great to have additional budget when you’re putting on a free concert, but it’s also great to have a musically oriented sponsor.”
The Silverman brothers also have their own musical group, Bach to the Future, which has performed previously at the Old Webster Jazz & Blues Festival and will be performing at this year’s fest as well.
The 2015 lineup was recently released and includes a mix of the festival’s regular performers, including the Webster Groves High School Jazz Band and the Webster University Jazz Ensemble, and new headliners, such as Matt Rowland and Dreaming in Colour. It will also be featuring performances from the top four groups selected through the Webster’s Got Talent contest, with the number 1 group opening for the Autumn Hill Records Stage.
Photo courtesy of Old Webster Jazz & Blues Festival
While Perkins aims for a mix of old and new performers when working on the lineup each year, the focus is always on St. Louis talent.
Perkins says, “Because of the history of the festival as a community event for Webster Groves, we try to stick to musical artists and groups from the area. We get lots of younger talent, but also provide opportunities for older artists to perform - those who may have missed the chance earlier in life.”
Perkins has been involved in many facets of the St. Louis music scene for over 30 years, previously working for Street Side Records and also writing about music for the Post-Dispatch. He speaks highly of the festival as an opportunity for people of all ages and musical tastes to explore jazz and blues music in a family-friendly environment.
“The Webster Groves neighborhood lends itself well to two stages," Perkins says. "Gore Street sort of floats down to the train tracks, creating a natural amphitheater perfect for acoustics and seating arrangements. And, the stages are close enough to easily walk between, but far enough that there’s no sound overlap.”
Photo courtesy of Old Webster Jazz & Blues Festival
For those experiencing the festival for the first time, Perkins suggests watching performances at the Autumn Hill Records Stage for those who want to hear jazz music and the Gore Stage for the big blues music fans.
This year’s anticipated attendance is around 15,000, a few thousand more than in previous years. Perkins says they’re working on getting more food vendors involved in order to keep everyone comfortable and avoid causing guests to wait in long lines. C.J. Muggs will have an outside booth, Straub’s will provide BBQ and Jamba Juice is also on board this year to offer guests free samples of fruit smoothies.
Regarding this year's lineup, Perkins recommends not to miss Autumn Hill Records Stage headliner Eric Marienthal, award-winning saxophonist with nine songs in the top 10 of the National Contemporary Jazz Radio Charts.
Here’s the full 2015 lineup:
WEBSTER UNIVERSITY STAGE
12:00 – 1:30 p.m.: Scot Air Force Base Starlifters
2 – 3:30 p.m.: Gene Dobbs Bradford & The Blues Experience
4 – 5:30 p.m.: Miss Jubilee and the Humdingers
6 –7:30 pm: Webster University Jazz Ensemble
8 – 11 p.m.: Marquise Knox Blues Revue
AUTUMN HILL RECORDS STAGE
11:30 a.m. – 12:30 p.m.: Old Webster’s Got Talent Winner
1:00 – 2:00 p.m.: Jesse Gannon
2:30 – 3:30 p.m.: Matt Rowland
4:00 – 5:00 p.m.: Webster Groves High School Jazz Band
5:30 - 6:30 p.m.: Kevin Ward & The St. Louis Jazz All-Stars
7:00 - 8:00 p.m.: Dreaming in Colour
8:30 – 10 p.m.: Bach to the Future with Eric Marienthal
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