Following performances by the top three finalist bands at Swing Central Jazz vying for the Jean Elizabeth Faircloth Award, this original production showcases how the blues has served as the foundation of jazz since its inception in New Orleans over 100 years ago. Featuring a stirring collection of great blues compositions by W.C. Handy, Jelly Roll Morton, Fats Waller, Duke Ellington, Count Basie, Miles Davis and John Coltrane, this concert will illuminate how everything comes out in blues music: joy, pain, struggle and affirmation with absolute elegance. The concert will be led by SMF Associate Artistic Director Marcus Roberts and features a cast of more than 15 musicians including Wycliffe Gordon, Rodney Whitaker, Terell Stafford and
Jason Marsalis.