Sisters jazz festival offers toe-tapping fun

Over 3,000 people will converge on Sisters this weekend to attend the 10th annual High Mountains Jazz at Sisters festival.

The event kicks off Thursday, September 14, at 7 p.m. with an "early bird" concert at the Mountain Shadow RV Park. The main festival starts Friday at 1 p.m. at the Village Green Park and Coyote Creek Restaurant and at 2:30 p.m. at Mountain Shadow RV Park and the Hotel Sisters, according to Festival Director Ray Buselli.

First-time visitors to the festival will include the Hot Jazz Syncopators from Vienna, Austria and the Diamond B. Wranglers, five members of the popular musical Booher family from Central Oregon. The Michael Kaeshammer Trio from Victoria, British Columbia also will make their first appearance here.

For three days, music fans will hear Dixieland, swing, big band and other fun music, Buselli said.

Eight other jazz bands and a special performance by a young jazz pianist are scheduled for the festival.

Performances run until 10:45 p.m. Friday, from 10 a.m. to 10:45 p.m. Saturday and from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Sunday. Free gospel concerts will be held at 9 a.m. on Sunday at the Village Green and RV Park.

Special blues performances and a jazz vocalists' concert also are scheduled. David Hull, a 14-year-old jazz pianist from Fresno, California, will be a special guest artist at the festival, offering four performances with different bands.

Hull has been performing publicly at jazz festivals throughout the U. S. for over six years. He appeared with the Hull's Angels Youth Band at the High Mountains Jazz at Sisters festival in 1997 and 1998 and brought down the house with his enthusiastic playing.

Bands returning from last year include Black Swan Jazz Band with Marilyn Keller from Portland; Chicago Six with Yve Evans from Cardiff, California; Gator Beat from Sonoma, California; Grand Dominion Jazz Band from Vancouver, British Columbia and northern Washington; and the Wall Street Jazz Band, from Bend.

Bill Allred's Classic Jazz Band from Florida returns after a one-year absence, as does the Blue Street Jazz Band from Fresno, California.

The Thursday evening "warm-up" party will be held at the Mountain Shadow RV Park from 7 to 10:30 p.m. The Hot Jazz Syncopators, Bill Allred's Classic Jazz Band and Chicago Six will be playing.

Cost is $5 for those with a three-day badge and $10 for others.

An invitation-only sponsor appreciation party will be held Thursday evening with the Sisters High School Jazz Band performing.

Both three-day badges and daily badges are offered with children under 12 admitted free with paying adults. Badge prices range from $15 to $25 for one-day performances to $55 for three-day admissions.

Special three-day youth badges are available for $10 for those 12 to 18. Badge vouchers may be redeemed and badge purchases made with check, VISA or MasterCard during festival week at the Sisters Rodeo office from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday noon.

Badges also maybe purchased by check and cash only at the Sisters Area Chamber of Commerce from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday noon.

Contact the festival hotline at 549-1332 or at http://www.informat.com/bz/jazz.