The Detroit Jazz Festival 2012 Kicks Off At The End Of August

Sonny Rollins

The 33rd Annual Detroit Jazz Festival is set to kick off on August 31st and will run through September 3rd. The festival will feature a top-notch lineup of more than 100 acts. The free four-day festival is scheduled to take place over several city blocks in downtown Detroit, from Hart Plaza to Campus Martius Park on five stages. The event will also offer educational activities for adults and children, including fireworks, late-night jam sessions and rare opportunities to meet the artists and much more.

Some of the high-caliber talent scheduled to take the stage at the festival include Sonny Rollins; Wynton Marsalis Quintet; Terence Blanchard Quartet; Pat Metheny Unity Band with Chris Potter, Antonio Sanchez and Ben Williams; Chick Corea, Gary Burton with the Harlem String Quartet; Wayne Shorter Quartet featuring Danilo Perez, John Patitucci, and Brian Blade; among many others. The festival will also have an Art Blakey Tribute, featuring Terence Blanchard as the musical director.

The Detroit Jazz Festival is managed and produced by the Detroit International Jazz Festival Foundation, a non-profit organization formed in 2006. For more info about the festival, visit their website.