Monterey Jazz Festival on tour at Fairfield University's Quick Center for the Arts February 12 | Press Releases

The Monterey Jazz Festival All-Stars will appear at Fairfield University's Regina A. Quick Center for the Arts at 8:00 p.m. on Friday, Feb. 12 as part of a 36-show, 17-state tour. The concert is a featured event in the Fairfield University 2009-2010 Arts & Minds series.

The group features the nine-time Grammy®-nominated and 2010 NEA Jazz Master Kenny Barron on piano; Grammy-nominated violinist Regina Carter; Grammy-winning guitarist Russell Malone; eight-time Grammy-nominated vocalist Kurt Elling; bassist Kiyoshi Kitagawa; and Grammy-nominated drummer Johnathan Blake. The band made its debut at the 52nd Annual Monterey Jazz Festival Presented by Verizon in September 2009.

Members of the MJF All-Stars have a special relationship with the Monterey Jazz Festival, and have a commitment to the cultivation of jazz audiences worldwide. Pianist Barron made the first of his eight appearances at MJF in the early 1960s with Dizzy Gillespie. Violinist Carter was selected as Artist-In-Residence for MJF/47 in 2004 and has appeared at the Festival four times since 1999. Vocalist Elling was also selected as MJF's Artist-In-Residence for MJF/49 in 2006 and has appeared on the stages of the Festival four times since 2003. Guitarist Malone has appeared five times at MJF since 1997. Both bassist Kitagawa and drummer Blake made their second appearances at MJF/52. All together, the members of the MJF/52 All-Star group have performed at Monterey twenty-five times.

"With the success of our 50th Anniversary Tour in 2008 and the subsequent Grammy win a year later for Terence Blanchard for the live recording at MJF/50, we were anxious to continue the spirit and excitement created by the inaugural event and build an even stronger platform for 2010's 'MJF On Tour,'" said Tim Jackson, General Manager for the Monterey Jazz Festival.

Jackson continued, "With Kenny Barron, Regina Carter, Kurt Elling and Russell Malone as this year's principal artists and with the superb support of Kenny's working trio, Kiyoshi Kitagawa on bass and drummer Johnathan Blake, we have created an ensemble that is both sonically interesting and hard swinging. These artists all embody the history, spirit, and legacy of the Monterey Jazz Festival; each has a past relationship with MJF that includes performance and educational activities, both core components of Monterey's mission statement. It is an amazing band that will embody the past, present, and future of jazz."

Tickets are $40, $35, $30 and are available online at fairfield.edu/quick or by calling the Box Office at (203) 254-4010. The toll free number is 1-877-ARTS-396. Special offers and discounts are available through the Quick Center's e-mail list. Join by contacting boxoffice@quickcenter.com . And become a fan of the Quick Center for the Arts on Facebook! Keep up-to-date with the latest performance news, plus special offers and discounts! Find the Quick Center at www.facebook.com/FairfieldQuickCenter.

Directions: Fairfield University is located off I-95, exit 22 at 1073 North Benson Road, Fairfield, CT 06824.