Newport Jazz Festival Adds Third Day

To celebrate its 60th anniversary, the Newport Jazz Festival will add a third day of performances, featuring emerging artists.

The additional concert, funded in part by $40,000 in grants from the Rhode Island Foundation, is set for Friday, Aug. 1, beginning at 11:30 a.m. 

Tickets for Friday will be priced at $40.00 for Adults, $20.00 for Students and $15.00 for Children ages 3 - 15.  All seating will be general admission.

“We are proud to be able to present an entire day of musicians who may represent the future of jazz,” said George Wein, Producer of the Newport Jazz Festival and Chairman of the Newport Festivals Foundation.

The Rhode Island Foundation awarded $30,000 through its Emerging Issues Fund and $10,000 through the Susan F. Gonsalves Charitable Fund. 

Artists confirmed for the Friday line-up include Miguel Zenón and Darcy James Argue’s Secret Society, as well as John Zorn. Zenón’s performance will be inspired by the Puerto Rican experience in the United States and will feature video and audio clips accompanying the music.  Argue’s Secret Society will be performing the US debut of a new piece commissioned by the Hard Rubber Orchestra in Vancouver. 

While John Zorn has been around for a while, he has emerged in the past few years as an icon and he’ll be bringing his “Masada Marathon” to Newport.  The marathon, which encompasses his broad tastes as a composer and bandleader, will feature eight groups, from instrumental duos, to string trios, to klezmer music. 

"Adding the third day will increase the opportunity for the Newport Jazz Festival to present young artists that should become known to jazz fans,” said Wein, 

The complete line-up for the Newport Jazz Festival presented by Natixis Global Asset Management will be announced in January.   

For more information on the 60th anniversary of the historic Newport Jazz Festival® presented by Natixis Global Asset Management, log on to www.newportjazzfest.org or www.newportfestivalsfoundation.org.