Sisters Jazz Festival takes on a new look

Some big changes will bring a new look to the 16th annual Sisters Jazz Festival this fall, according to Stephen Mills, chairman of the festival’s board of directors. The festival is scheduled for September 15-17 at three venues in Sisters.

“This year we are adding something new, a special Friday evening concert,” Mills said. “That evening pianist Tom Grant and Dan Balmer on guitar will play a Sisters High School jazz band benefit at the Village Green from 7 to 9 p.m.”

The two Portland area musicians performed together in the past and are being reunited for the festival, he added.

Besides Grant and Balmer, 10 bands will be performing this year, Mills said. Returning favorites include Chicago 6, Black Swan and Michael Kaeshammer.

“Because it is a benefit, concert tickets will be an extra cost, $15 more when purchased with most festival badges, or $25 for adults and $15 for youth if purchased separately,” Mills said.

The festival also will transform Bronco Billy’s Ranch Grill & Saloon into a cabaret featuring contemporary smooth jazz, Mills added. Coyote Creek Café returns this year as the third venue replacing the former Mountain Shadow RV Park venue.

Tickets can be purchased by calling toll-free 1-800-549-1332 or by going online to sistersjazzfestival.com/tickets and printing an order form. Prices range from a one-day badge costing $25 to $35 for adults to $60 for a three-day badge ($75 to include the Friday concert) if purchased before September 1. Three-day prices increase to $70 and $85 after that date.

The festival was organized in 1990 as the High Mountains Jazz at Sisters Festival. Five local individuals wanted to bring to Central Oregon the music and good times that they had experienced at other festivals in the west. The first festival was held in 1991 and it was a successful event. Since then, it has always been held the second weekend after Labor Day.

Originally a festival of traditional Dixieland jazz bands, the roster of bands has broadened to include swing bands, big bands and zydeco bands. As the music styles performed changed, so did the festival’s name to become the Sisters Jazz Festival.

A volunteer board of directors directs the festival, Mills said. More than 200 volunteers support the festival each year by accepting up to 300 shift assignments in various festival jobs.