EAST LANSING, Mich. — The Summer Solstice Jazz Festival (SSJF) will be returning to downtown East Lansing June 17-18 with an amazing lineup of jazz musicians scheduled to perform on two outdoor stages.
The festival is free and festival hours will be 3:30-11 p.m. on Friday, June 17 and 2-11 p.m. on Saturday, June 18. The SSJF is a rain-or-shine event.
The Al & Beth Cafagna Founders’ Stage will be located in the Albert EL Fresco pedestrian space, near the Albert-Grove intersection, and the MSU Outreach and Engagement Education Stage will be located in Ann Street Plaza, near the Albert-M.A.C. intersection. View this year’s SSJF performer lineup and schedule for both stages below:
FRIDAY, JUNE 17
Al & Beth Cafagna Founders' Stage
5:30-6:30 p.m. Dwight Adams Quartet
7-8 p.m. The Larry Fuller Trio
8:30-9:30 p.m. Lewis Nash Quartet (A Tribute to Barbara Sawyer-Koch)
10-11 p.m. Orquesta Ritmo
MSU Outreach & Engagement Education Stage
3:30-4:30 p.m. Koji Cassetta Quartet
5-6 p.m. Brandon Rose & Soul Therapy
6:30-7:30 p.m. Max Colley III Quintet
8-9 p.m. Kevin Bujo Jones & Tenth World
9:30-10:30 p.m. Deon Yates Quartet
SATURDAY, JUNE 18
Al & Beth Cafagna Founders' Stage
4-5 p.m. Sean Dobbins Organ Quartet
5:30-6:30 p.m. Rockelle Fortin Quartet
7-8 p.m. Tiffany Gridiron
8:30-9:30 p.m. Randy Gelispie Quartet (A Tribute to Bob Banks)
10-11 p.m. Aguankó
MSU Outreach & Engagement Education Stage
2-3 p.m. Jazz Alliance of Mid-Michigan (JAMM) Scholarship Band
3:30-4:30 p.m. Sofia Rabiela & Friends
5-6 p.m. Jonathan Gerwitz Quartet
6:30-7:30 p.m. Ben Turner Quartet
8-9 p.m. Ralphe Armstrong
9:30-10:30 p.m. Kimmie Horne
In addition to the live music, the East Lansing Public Library’s Library on the Go mobile pop-up library will be onsite from 3:30-7:30 p.m. both days of the festival with a children’s activity, and festival goers can enjoy take-out food and non-alcoholic drinks from downtown restaurants in the adjacent Albert EL Fresco space. While open alcohol is not permitted in the Albert EL Fresco space, it is permitted in the approved outdoor dining areas operated by adjacent restaurants.
Festival goers can find downtown East Lansing parking information at www.cityofeastlansing.com/parkingdowntown. Reserved accessible parking is available in all downtown gated facilities. Additional information about the SSJF is available at www.eljazzfest.com.
Volunteers Needed
Community volunteers are currently needed to help with a variety of roles during this year’s SSJF. To learn more about the volunteer opportunities and sign up to volunteer, visit https://eljazzfest.com/158/Volunteer. Volunteers will get a behind-the-scenes look at the festival and a free SSJF t-shirt!
The SSJF is hosted by the City of East Lansing in partnership with the MSU College of Music. Major sponsors of the festival include the MSU Office of the Provost, MSU Federal Credit Union, greghilljazz.com and Clare Banks.