Star-studded lineup announced
Boney James, McCoy Tyner, Phoebe Snow, Derek Trucks among many headliners for the 10-day fest

Click here for the complete lineup and schedule
Click here for the printable PDF copy of brochure
Click here for ticket info; tickets on sale Dec. 6

The 19th annual VF Outlet Berks Jazz Fest, presented by the Berks Arts Council, will bring to fans a wide array of musical styles, including contemporary and traditional jazz, soul, blues, big band and one-of-a-kind ensemble shows.

Shows will be held at major venues as well as intimate club and restaurant settings, making it a rather unique 10-day festival on March 27-April 5, 2009.

Featured artists at this year's festival include veteran stars Peter White and Mindi Abair; the world premiere concert of Bela Fleck: The Africa Project; superstar saxman Boney James; festival favorite Brian Culbertson; the Sax for Stax duo of Gerald Albright and Kirk Whalum; urban pop/jazz ensembles Average White Band and Pieces of a Dream; world-renowned bassist Victor Wooten; powerful and moving vocalist Phoebe Snow; the Sax Pack of Jeff Kashiwa, Steve Cole and Kim Waters; piano legend McCoy Tyner Quartet; festival veterans Joe McBride and Kenny Blake; guitarist extraordinaire Chieli Minucci & Special EFX.

Fans also can enjoy the soulful sounds of Take 6 plus Wayman Tisdale; pianist David Benoit and saxman Warren Hill; renowned saxophonist and clarinetist Anat Cohen; the acclaimed Tierney Sutton Band; the Brian Bromberg Quartet; steel pan master Andy Narell and the Cantonsville High Steel Drum Band; Tim Price, Rachel Z and the Department of Good and Evil; and Nelson Rangell with the Reading Pops Orchestra performing My American Songbook.

The festival finale features Jazz Attack with the always-entertaining Rick Braun, Richard Elliot and Jonathan Butler.

Blues is back in abundance at the 2009 Berks Jazz Fest, with two Severn Soul & Blues Revues, featuring Steve Guyger, Big Joe Maher, Tad Robinson, Roy Tyler and New Directions, and the Severn Records All-Star Band in the first show; and Clarence Spady, Darrell Nulisch, Lou Pride and the Severn Records All-Star Band rounding out the second show.

Blues fans can also enjoy guitar virtuoso Joe Bonamassa, The Billy Price Band featuring special guest Fred Chapellier; and The Derek Trucks Band.

Fusion fans will get their fill with all-stars Steve Smith & Vital Information; and veteran-led Metro, featuring festival favorite Chuck Loeb, Mitch Forman, Dave Weckl, Randy Brecker, Gerald Veasley and Bobby Franceschini.

Great ensemble and tribute shows offer unique musical experiences to all fans this year.

Soul Summit II, presented by Jason Miles, featues soul-drenched music and an all-star lineup with Maysa, Simone, Richard Elliot, Jeff Golub, Eric Darius, Bob Babbitt, Reggie Young, and Steve Ferrone, plus the original Soul Survivors.

East Bay Soul brings the funk and R&B with Greg Adams, Phil Perry, Michael Paulo, Lee Thornburg plus the Joyce Cooling Band.

Artists paying tribute to some of music's greats include the Gerald Veasley Band celebrating the Music of Stevie Wonder, with Najee, Nnenna Freelon, Joe McBride and the Berks Jazz Fest Horns in a fourth show televised live by WFMZ-TV Channel 69.

There is also the return of the very popular Rick Braun's Tribute to Chet Baker; and Bobby Lyle & Paul Jackson Jr. will have a tribute to Jimmy Smith & Wes Montgomery.

This year's festival has something for everyone, with smooth and straight-ahead jazz, smokin' blues, soulful singing, unique ensembles, rousing tributes and much, much more.

David Benoit, Pops present "A Charlie Brown Christmas"

• Sunday, December 14, 2008
• 3:00 p.m.
• Miller Center for the Arts
• Tickets $40 (limited seats remain)

David Benoit is no stranger to Berks music fans. The legendary jazz pianist has performed several times at the Berks Jazz Fest, including a performance with Ramsey Lewis and the Reading Pops Orchestra in 2006. Benoit, his band, and the Reading Pops will bring life to Vince Guaraldi’s magical music from the Peanuts Christmas specials.

“Christmastime Is Here,” “Linus & Lucy’s Theme,” and other favorites will sparkle under David’s masterful touch. An accomplished musician, arranger, composer, conductor, and five-time Grammy Award nominee, David Benoit’s career successfully spans both jazz and classical worlds.

Benoit's latest CD project "Heroes" pays homage to some of his favorite recording artists that have had a distinct influence on his creativity throughout the years -- Dave Grusin, Elton John, The Doors, Horace Silver, Miles Davis, The Beatles and Dave Brubeck.

This heart-warming concert featuring Benoit and the Pops also will feature young voices of a local children's choir, which is sure to get you in the holiday spirit and bring out the 'kid' in all of us.

Baby Boomer! New York Voices

• Sunday, March 8, 2009
• 3:00 p.m.
• Miller Center for the Arts
• Tickets $40

The New York Voices is the Grammy Award-winning vocal ensemble renowned for their excellence in jazz and the art of group singing.

Darmon Meador, Peter Eldridge, Kim Nazarian and Lauren Kinhan have learned from the best and have taken the art form to new levels. Their interests are rooted in jazz, but often Brazilian, R&B, classical, and pop influences are included with equal creativity and authenticity.

For this special concert, the New York Voices and the Reading Pops will showcase classic music that all "Baby Boomers" will recognize -- Bill Withers' "Ain't No Sunshine When She's Gone," Mamas & Papas' "California Dreamin'/Monday, Monday," Joni Mitchell's "Free Man in Paris," Stevie Wonder's "Don't You Worry," Paul Simon's "Mother & Child Reunion," and Earth, Wind & Fire's "That's The Way of the World," and many others.

The New York Voices with the Pops makes this VF Outlet Berks Jazz Fest preview concert the perfect finale for the series.

How To Get Tickets
   CD Exchange, located in Mohnton (PA), is the official box office for Gerald Veasley's Jazz Base. To get your tickets, you can:
   1: Call CD Exchange at 610-777-2310 to order by phone.
   2: Stop by the CD Exchange, 360 E. Wyomissing Avenue, Mohnton, Pa., during regular business hours Tuesday through Saturday.
   3: Tickets will be available Thursday night at Gerald Veasley’s Jazz Base at the Sheraton Reading Hotel.
   4: Order online: CLICK HERE to order online.

Nicholas Payton joins Tim Warfield's 'A Jazzy Christmas' show at Jazz Base

• Thursday, Dec. 18
• 7:00 p.m.
• Gerald Veasley's Jazz Base at the Sheraton Reading Hotel
• Tickets $15 at door

Tim Warfield and friends -- trumpeter Nicholas Payton and vocalist Joanna Pascale -- are coming to Gerald Veasley's Jazz Base to present their "A Jazzy Christmas" concert.

Saxophonist Tim Warfield announced recently that Nicholas Payton (photo) will replace Terell Stafford for the mini-holiday tour that includes the Jazz Base date. A late scheduling conflict forced the switch from Stafford to Payton.

This is a must-see concert -- and a great way to end the 2008 schedule at the Jazz Base. The club will be closed for two weeks during the holiday season.

Warfield is no stranger to the Jazz Base. He has performed at the popular club on numerous occasions with various groups as a leader and a special guest.

Warfield has appeared on several Grammy-nominated CDs -– Stefon Harris’ The Grand Unification Theory and Nicholas Payton’s Sonic Trance, as well as on Terell Stafford’s New Beginnings.

Warfield's latest CD, One for Shirley, an homage to organist Shirley Scott, his late Philly mentor, conjures a variety of resonating moods: spiritual, swinging, smokin' and especially soulful. The CD has been getting great reviews around the country and internationally.

Since 1994 when Nicholas Payton made his recording debut as a leader with From This Moment, the trumpeter has been lauded as a significant, top-tier voice in jazz.

Even though he started out as a “young lion of jazz,” heralded as one of the new-generation guardians of the hard bop flame, Payton consistently committed himself to discovering his voice outside of the strict confines of that rearview mirror approach to the music.

Since emerging onto Philadelphia's jazz scene, vocalist Joanna Pascale has established herself as a compelling and skilled vocalist.