Michigan Jazz Festival Celebrates 30
The Michigan Jazz Festival celebrates its 30th anniversary this summer with its biggest event yet.
The one-day Festival began on a stage in Freedom Hill in 1995. Since 1999 the festival has been hosted by the Livonia campus of Schoolcraft College and now features eight simultaneous stages. The 34 performers, selected from among more than 160 applicants from all over the state, include annual crowd favorites and 15 first-timers appearing on six stages, with an additional stage of student performers and the Jazz Talks! room. Admission, as always, is free.
Among this summer’s special features are an open guitar clinic by Chuck Newsome, the MJF All-Star H.S. Jazz Band under the direction of Joshua James, and the Jazz Talks! room featuring interviews, videos and jazz history presentations.
Ellen Rowe will be leading the festival’s popular "Playing with the Pros," dedicated this year to the session’s late founder Dennis Tini.
The Festival will be commemorating its anniversary with a souvenir poster featuring artwork by local painter Lawrence Gary. The poster will be available for sale at the Festival’s merchandise table.
The 2025 Michigan Jazz Festival takes place Sunday, July 20, noon to 9:00 p.m. Schoolcraft College is located on Haggerty Rd. between Six and Seven Mile Rd. See the Festival website for more information.
| NANCY SALDEN | MEYER P. LEVEN FOUNDATION | |||
| Big Band Stage | Open Air Stage | |||
| 12:15 | Holland Concert Jazz Orchestra | 12:00 | Russ Macklem Detroit Quintet | |
| 2:00 | MJF All-Star H.S. Jazz Band | 1:30 | Adam Meckler Quintet | |
| 3:30 | Elliot McConnell Ensemble | 3:00 | Sean Dobbins Ensemble | |
| 5:15 | CSO | 4:30 | Jeff Haas Quintet | |
| 7:15 | Jeff Trudell Jazz Orchestra | 6:00 | Dave Bennett Quartet | |
| 7:30 | Jeff Canady & the SoulNyce Band | |||
| BILL BOLLE | Detroit Federation of Musicians | |||
| Presentation Stage | Rathskeller Stage | |||
| 12:30 | Isis Damil | 12:15 | Chris Buzzelli Trio | |
| 2:00 | Philip Buchman Trio with Josie Ala | 1:45 | Kongruent | |
| 3:30 | Sunny Wilkinson Quartet | 3:15 | Third Coast Swing featuring Dave Bennett and Grant Flick | |
| 5:00 | Terry Lower Trio with vocalist Eyde Evans Hyde |
4:45 | Evidence Jazz Group | |
| 6:30 | Alex Harding and Organ Nation | 6:15 | Michael J. Reed & the Revelation | |
| 8:00 | Ryan DeHues & the Jeff Kressler Trio | 7:45 | Planet D Nonet | |
| Livonia Community Foundation | ||||
| Solo Piano Room | Cabaret Stage | |||
| 12:30 | Aya Sekine | 12:15 | Colton Weatherston & Jeff Pedraz | |
| 1:45 | Lisa Sung | 1:30 | Emma Aboukasm & Scott Gwinnell | |
| 3:00 | Michael Jellick with Claudia Rhardjanoto | 2:45 | Barbara Ware & Cliff Monear | |
| 4:15 | Ellen Rowe | 4:00 | Robert McCarther & Sven Anderson | |
| 5:45 | Mike Harrison | 5:15 | Ellie Martin & Duncan McMillan | |
| 7:00 | Chris Codish | 6:30 | Ramona Collins & Cliff Monear | |
| Southeastern Michigan Jazz Association | DAVID SHARPE | |||
| Future of Jazz Stage | Jazz Talks! | |||
| 12:00 | InFusion | 12:00 | George Sinnott interviews Jeff Trudell | |
| 1:30 | Andrew Brown Quintet | 1:00 | Jim Gallert: Before Motown | |
| 3:00 | Dennis Tini's Playing with the Pros | 2:45 | Rod Arroyo: Rhythms of Resilience and Change |
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| 4:30 | Lotus Collective | 3:45 | George Sinnott interviews RJ Spangler | |
| 6:00 | Brynn Hilliker Quartet | 5:15 | Video: History of the Michigan Jazz Festival |
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