The Blue Note Jazz Festival will be bigger in its third season, and a glance at its schedule suggests it will be better. Held in June at nine locations around New York, it will feature a range of jazz and pop artists, including the saxophonist Wayne Shorter, the flamenco star Buika and the blues singer Buddy Guy.
The inaugural Blue Note Jazz Festival, in 2011, arrived at a time of transition for the summer jazz festival landscape in New York. From the start it seemed to be rushing to fill a void left by the JVC Jazz Festival (which had changed sponsors, becoming the CareFusion Jazz Festival, in its final year). The first two Blue Note festivals were strongly club-centered â€" its organizers own the Blue Note jazz club, the Highline Ballroom and the B.B. King Blues Club and Grill â€" and the occasional larger concert was generally cast in the JVC mold.
That’s gradually changing. This year’s festival has a few reflexive bookings: the Manhattan Transfer will appear for a third consecutive year, as will the pianist McCoy Tyner. And a lot of the action is still at the Blue Note, which will present the guitarist John McLaughlin with his band the 4th Dimension (June 18-20); and the B.B. King Blues Club, which offers Latin-jazz groups led by the pianist Eddie Palmieri (June 6) and the percussionist Poncho Sanchez (June 10).
But some other concerts indicate a greater programmatic ambition. Among them is a Wayne Shorter 80th birthday celebration at Town Hall on Aug. 28. Birthday concerts were once a JVC cliché, but this one, which continues a busy year of activity for Mr. Shorter, will feature his longtime quartet along with two astute ensembles paying their respects: Sound Prints, led by the trumpeter Dave Douglas and the saxophonist Joe Lovano; and the Esperanza Spalding Trio, led by its namesake bassist and vocalist.
Another prominent saxophonist, Joshua Redman, will perform at Town Hall on June 4, offering a preview of “Walking Shadows,†his forthcoming album on Nonesuch. As on the album, he’ll perform with a string orchestra as well as a blue-chip rhythm section: Brad Mehldau on piano, Larry Grenadier on bass and Brian Blade on drums.
Also appearing at Town Hall are the keyboardist Bob James with the alto saxophonist David Sanborn, crossover-jazz veterans with a lot of history together (June 6); and the eminent Cuban pianist Chucho Valdés, leading his quintet (June 21) and possibly paying tribute to his father, Bebo Valdés, who died last week. For a full festival schedule, visit bluenotejazzfestival.com.
