SUMMER MOMENTS WITH MCG JAZZ
MCG JAZZ ANNOUNCES ITS SUMMER 2023 PARTNERSHIPS AND CONCERTS
PITTSBURGH - MCG Jazz may be a September through May subscription series, but that does not mean that the program does not present music in late May, June, July, August and through September. MCG Jazz’ active summer schedule includes partnerships with Allegheny County Parks, CitiParks, Fallingwater, N-Motion Jazz, Pittsburgh Downtown Partnership, Pittsburgh Playhouse and Steel Mill Saloon.
MCG Jazz is producing five performances by National touring artists for the Pittsburgh Playhouse’s Inside/Outside Summer Concert Series beginning Thursday, June 15, through Thursday, July 13. All shows are Thursdays from 4:30-6:30pm in the Pittsburgh Playhouse’s Highmark Theater that opens into a courtyard on Forbes Avenue. The lineup is:
June 15 – Ray Angry, a pianist with the musical group The Roots who will be visiting Pittsburgh as a featured speaker at the League of American Orchestras conference. Mr. Angry will be joined by Pittsburgh musicians Jeff Grubbs (b) and James Johnson III (d).
June 22 – Frank Vignola’s Birdland Guitar Trio with special guest Jimmie Highsmith, Jr. on saxophone. Mr. Vignola holds residency every Wednesday night at the world-famous Birdland Jazz Club Theatre in New York City. “Frank Vignola’s Guitar Night” has featured some of the finest talent on the planet. Over the last 20 years, Mr. Highsmith has recorded 11 top selling smooth jazz CD’s that have sold thousands worldwide.
June 29 – Jeff Kashiwa, co-presented with N-Motion Jazz, is one of the most compelling saxophonists in contemporary jazz. Mr. Kashiwa spent a decade with the group The Rippingtons and founded a trio of saxophonists called the Sax Pack.
July 6 – Grace Kelly, saxophonist, singer/songwriter, and protégé of the legendary Phil Woods is rapidly making her way up in the jazz music world.
July 13 – Badi Assad Trio. Based in São Paulo, Brazil, virtuoso guitar player, singer, and songwriter, Badi Assad has emerged as one of the most versatile artists of her generation.
MCG Jazz once again is helping to bring jazz to the Allegheny County Parks Summer Concert series. This year, the featured artist at South Park will be Richie Goods and Chien Chien “Connections” on Friday, August 4. Opening for “Connections” is the Emmet Goods ensemble – and yes Richie and Emmett are brothers. John Scofield, legendary jazz fusion, funk, soul, rock, guitarist and composer will perform at Hartwood Acres on Sunday, August 27. Opening for Mr. Scofield is the Jason Kush Quartet playing music from their new album, “Finally Friday” [MCG Jazz]. Both shows are free and start at 7:30pm.
There will be three MCG Jazz Presents nights for the Pittsburgh Downtown Partnership’s Night Markets in Market Square. Saturdays July 29, August 26, and September 16, from 5:00-10:00pm.
Fallingwater’s annual Soirée is Saturday, August 12, from 6:00-9:00pm and will include self-guided tours of the house and grounds with live music by MCG Jazz throughout.
MCG Jazz will also have concerts at the MCG Music Hall on the North Side this summer including harpist, Brandee Younger on Wednesday, May 24, former Journey drummer Steve Smith and Vital Information on Sunday, June 25, and Danilo Perez’s Global Messengers on Saturday, July 8.
To find out more about the concerts at MCG Jazz, please visit https://www.mcgjazz.org/.
MCG Jazz partner websites are:
https://www.alleghenycounty.us/special-events/summer-concerts.aspx
https://pittsburghpa.gov/events/reservoir-jazz
https://fallingwater.org/soiree/
https://www.nmofoundation.com/
https://downtownpittsburgh.com/programs-activities/night-markets/
https://playhouse.pointpark.edu/index
About MCG Jazz
MCG Jazz is a social enterprise of Manchester Craftsmen’s Guild, a subsidiary of Manchester Bidwell Corporation, a non-profit arts and learning center in Pittsburgh, PA.
Through our guiding principles: environment shapes behavior, people are assets and creativity fuels enterprise, and our mission to preserve, present and promote jazz, we aim to strengthen the Pittsburgh jazz community and contribute to the overall cultural and artistic diversity of the region.
The MCG Jazz concert series – one of the longest running subscription-based jazz performance series in the country – has been a safe place for artists to share their art and discuss relevant issues of the time. Our recording label produces distinctive albums from a wide variety of artists, our educational programs serve elementary, middle and high school aged students in urban and rural communities, and our archives of audio/video recordings, photographs, interviews and individual artist collections exists as a model for learning for future generations to help grow the audience for jazz and enhance the artform and its creators.