Victor Garcia returns to Galesburg this week for the Knox-Rootabaga Jazz Festival.
And the Grammy-nominated trumpeter will keep busy, with school visits and a total of six performances with various ensembles throughout the week.
Garcia has performed alongside the likes of Aretha Franklin and Wynton Marsalis. His organ quintet has played Rootabaga before and he’s also played at Knox College’s winter jazz series.
For this year’s festival, Garcia will perform with the Cherry Street Combo along with his Latin Sextet and his Organ Quintet.
Andy Crawford, managing director of Knox College’s music performance program, said Garcia is not only a fantastic performer, but also a great educator.
“That’s one reason why I wanted to bring him here to do a lot of our educational outreach,” Crawford said. “He’s also a really versatile musician. It’s perfect, because he could bring three different groups so that every night it’s something different.”
Garcia is headed to six area elementary, middle, and high schools this week for school assemblies and performances. Crawford said it’s the tenth year of Rootabaga’s School Tour, supported by the Galesburg Community Foundation.
“The education is just as important as the performances, because we need to cultivate an interest in jazz to keep it thriving in the community,” Crawford said.
The Knox-Rootabaga Jazz Festival began over four decades ago as a unique collaboration between Knox College, Galesburg, and surrounding schools and businesses. It serves as the culmination of the Knox Jazz Year, a year-long series of concerts and educational experiences encompassing dozens of live events.
“Every night of the festival is going to be very different musically,” Crawford said. “Many times, people will be like, I’m going to go on Wednesday night or I’m going to go on Friday night. I’ve structured it in such a way that you could go every night, and not hear the same thing.”
This year, the jazz program at Knox got an ArtsTour grant from the Illinois Arts Council for the first time. The funding will help pay for the educational programs and the performances.
Here’s a rundown of events:
Tuesday, May 14: Victor Garcia Quartet School Tour group at United High School, 7 p.m. Free and open to the public.
Wednesday, May 15: Galesburg Junior High Jazz Band, Canton, Knoxville, and ROWVA high school jazz bands, and the Cherry Street Combo featuring Victor Garcia at the Galesburg Community Arts Center, 6 to 10 p.m. Admission $3, Knox College students free with ID.
Thursday, May 16: Faculty and Friends Combo at the Galesburg Community Arts Center, 7 to 10 p.m. Admission $5, Knox College students free with ID.
Friday, May 17: Performances by Galesburg High School Big Bands, Knox Alumni Big Band, and Victor Garcia Latin Sextet at the Galesburg Community Arts Center, 6 to 11 p.m. Admission $10, Knox College students free with ID.
Saturday, May 18: Rootabaga Kids: Victor Garcia Latin Sextet at the Galesburg Public Library, 10 a.m. Free and open to the public.
Saturday, May 18: The Victor Garcia Organ Quintet featuring vocalist Jill Katona, Knox Jazz Ensemble, and high school honor band Rootabaga Jazz All-Stars at the Orpheum Theatre, 6:30 p.m. Tickets available at galesburgorpheum.org/events
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