New York City's Winter Jazzfest kicks off its 12th edition tonight, launching five days of nearly nonstop music. This year's installment is the biggest yet, featuring more than 120 groups and 600-plus musicians in and around Greenwich Village. What started as a one-night festival to give greater exposure to the city's highly talented yet underrated artists has turned into one of the finest jazz happenings in North America.
How big has it grown? This year, the progressive jazz label ECM Records will showcase 13 different bands on a dedicated stage, and ECM founder Manfred Eicher is making a special trip from Germany for the concerts. This record-company showcase represents a fraction of the festival's signature event: a two-night music marathon across 12 stages happening this Friday and Saturday.
The festival's creator, Brice Rosenbloom, makes a point to showcase new projects to coincide with the Association of Performing Arts Presenters Conference, where the world's premier talent scouts congregate each year. For the rest of us, Winter Jazzfest offers a chance to escape cabin fever and experience an astonishing mix of jazz from far and wide, in its most flexible definition.
Here are five bands to seek out.
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