The Al Sears Jazz Festival ran from 2002 to 2016. It was named in honor of renowned tenor saxophonist Al Sears, who was born in Macomb on February 22, 1910.
Sears went on to play with Duke Ellington’s Orchestra and with numerous other jazz legends such as Chick Webb and Lionel Hampton.
Later in his career, he ran a music publishing company and recorded with early rock ‘n’ roll and R&B groups, when he was known as Big Al Sears.
He died on March 23, 1990, in New York.
Now, the festival named in his honor is being revived in Macomb as the rebranded Al Sears Music Fest.
Whitney Ashe of the School of Music at Western Illinois University said the festival is being rebranded to better reflect the broad range of Al Sears’ career.
“He wasn’t just a jazz musician. He had that big background as a producer and a composer and all kinds of different things that he did. So we thought music fest would be a little more all-encompassing,” Ashe said.
The festival begins Thursday and runs through Saturday. There will be no cover charges for the three performances, though donations are welcome.
- Western Illinois University Jazz Combo: 5:30 p.m., Thursday, Oct. 3, 5:30 p.m. at The Wine Sellers, 121 S. Randolph St.
- Two sets featuring saxophonist Carlos Vega with the HAT Trio: 5:30 p.m., Friday, Oct. 4, at the Western Illinois Museum, 201 S. Lafayette St.
- Pippi & Daniel, an R&B group from Galesburg: 5:30 p.m., Saturday, Oct. 5, at The Wine Sellers, 121 S. Randolph St.
Ashe said if the Al Sears Music Fest goes well this year, they hope to expand it next year. And he said by rebranding it as a music fest, it allows for a lot of different styles of music to fit under the tent.
“I think that’s what Al would have wanted because that’s so much of his involvement in professional music,” Ashe said.
A brief history of the Al Sears Jazz Festival
Bill Maakestad, the creator and driving force behind the jazz festival, said almost all of the performances were free.
He said some of the headliners through the years included Ellis Marsalis (the Marsalis sons' father), Freddie Cole (Nat King Cole's brother), and Triple Play with Chris Brubeck (Dave’s son).
Other headliners included Kurt Elling, Wycliffe Gordon, Bria Skonberg, Cyrille Aimee, Karrin Allison, Dan Hicks & the Hot Licks, Cornet Chop Suey, and St. Louis Rivermen.
It was a one-day event for the first two years before expanding, with performances held in a variety of locations, including Chandler Park, the COFAC Recital Hall, and the Western Illinois Museum.
Sunday jazz brunches were held some years, also in a variety of locations.
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