2023 Lineup / Homegrown

Bay Area soul singer/songwriter and guitarist Noah exudes a whole lot of soul and blues. He and his tight group of seasoned musicians, known as Noah and the Arkiteks, will take you down memory lane of great soul vocalists Otis Redding, Marvin Gaye, Sam Cooke, Ray Charles, Wilson Pickett and Al Green; and then, switch it up and funk things up with nods to Stevie Wonder, Bob Marley and James Brown.

Longtime record collector & producer Allen Johnson, aka Albert Jenkins, is one of the Bay Areas finest DJ selectors. From deep grooves to classics, his sets provide surprises you may not have heard on vinyl prior. He & his crew, Needle To The Groove, are a growing force for vinyl culture, with new artists releases and well curated events throughout California.

The musical focus of the LGS Big Band is dance, jazz, Latin and vocals in all styles. The classics from Miller, Basie, Brown, and Goodman are among the featured songs as well as more modern works by arrangers such as Nestico, Goodwin, Carter, Hefti, Wolpe and more.

The Monterey Jazz Festival Regional All-Star Vocal ensemble features the top voice students from across Monterey County, who all come together to participate in an advanced choir.

The Serenaders band was originally formed in 1983 and has been active in various forms ever since. Although the band has always highlighted jazz standards from the proverbial Great American Songbook, it has evolved to include big band and swing versions of contemporary jazz and popular music.

The Monterey Jazz Festival Regional All-Star Band features the top music students from across Monterey County, who all come together to participate in middle and high school big bands.

Mitch Woods and His Rocket 88s have been the torchbearers of a great American blues musical heritage for three decades. Taking their inspiration from the great jump n’ boogie outfits of the late 40s and early 50s, they breathe fresh life into the music that gave birth to rock n’roll.

Synchronicity is a classical jazz ensemble of alumni from various Bay Area big bands, in the tradition of Stan Kenton, Count Basie, Miles Davis, Quincy Jones and Oliver Nelson.

Founded in Oakland in 2015, we are an assembly of world class jazz musicians, dedicated to sharing the joy of jazz with children (ages 9-17) through our after school classes and by performing concerts with our students, and sharing jazz through educational concerts with our community at large.

DJ Flow will DJ on the 200 Park Stage both Saturday and Sunday. He’s also onsite to record chats with Summer Fest artists for the Inventions & Dimensions the Podcast at SJZ Summer Fest presented by Topo Chico. We’ll be sharing those episodes after the Fest.

Top Shelf Big Band brings the swinging sounds of live jazz and ballroom dancing to life. Enjoy vintage jazz and standards made famous by groups like Duke Ellington, Count Basie, Glenn Miller and Les Brown with this 17-piece orchestra.

Bloco do Sol is a community ensemble of youth and adult students based in San Jose at the School of Arts and Culture at the Mexican Heritage Plaza. Watch for this special pop-up performance in the Latin Tropical Stage area.

Enjoy a Sunday morning filled with delicious food and uplifting music, 11am–1pm, on the final day of the festival. Just order off the regular restaurant menu; the music is free! This year’s brunch will feature vocalist Joyce Randolph accompanied on keys.

Full Spectrum Big Band Jazz has delighted audiences with traditional and modern big band sounds since 1996. Performance styles range from laid-back Count Basie swing to poly-rhythmic modern Latin. FSJ has a diverse catalog of exceptional music, including original compositions and venerable jazz standards.

Directed by musician/educator “Mr. Clifford” Samoranos, Summer Fest presents the youngest group of gifted young musicians that embody the enduring American legacy of Jazz. The group will perform their interpretations of timeless musical compositions.

Composer, bassist and educator Marcus Shelby formed his namesake orchestra in 1999 to give proper voice to his compositions that modernized the big band idiom. For this set the latest incarnation of the band performs with longtime collaborator Tiffany Austin, of whom DownBeat said: “West Coast vocal jazz simply gets no better than Tiffany Austin.”

The SOJ Big Band was formed almost 20 years ago in the south San Francisco Bay Area to play big band arrangements of gospel and swing, Latin, R&B and jazz tunes.

DJ Flow will DJ on the 200 Park Stage both Saturday and Sunday. He’s also onsite to record chats with Summer Fest artists for the Inventions & Dimensions the Podcast at SJZ Summer Fest presented by Topo Chico. We’ll be sharing those episodes after the Fest.

The Swing Solution is a classic big band specializing in music from the ’40s through the swing revival of the ’90s and beyond.