- Julie Enfield
Founded by retired professor and former Music Department Chair Charles M. Frank, the Lakeland Community College Jazz Festival aspires to “instill the excitement and magic of jazz education to the younger generation of musicians.”
More than 30,000 middle and high school musicians from throughout the state have participated in the annual event. The 48th iteration of the festival comes to Lakeland Community College on March 20 and 21.
The event commences at 9 a.m. on March 20 with a Middle and High School Performances & Adjudication. That event is free. At 8 that same night, there will be a Big Band Evening Extravaganza featuring the Lakeland Civic Jazz Orchestra under the direction of Dave Sterner and the Cleveland State University Jazz Ensemble under the direction of John Perrine. Those tickets cost $10, or $7 for students.
At 8 p.m. on March 21, the Carol Welsman Trio performs, and a pre-concert discussion with Welsman precedes the concert. Welsman is an international artist who has toured the world performing in multiple languages. Her trio features Brandi Disterheft, a highly acclaimed acoustic bass player and vocalist, and Anne Drummond, a talented flute player.
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