Fashion and Jazz Artists on The Greens

Families are welcome and fashion will be in focus next weekend as the fine fashion designs of three local creatives will be on display at the 19th annual Jazz Artists on The Greens (JAOTG) festival.

Scheduled for March 16 at "The Greens" – WASA Sports Club Grounds, Farm Road, St Joseph, JAOTG has been a mainstay on the event calendar for almost two decades.

Prindela Fashions, Diane Carlton, and Lisa Faye have all been highlighted on the JAOTG social media pages in recent weeks after agreeing to discount items to JAOTG ticket-holders, who have been securing them since the first batch of early-bird tickets went on sale at Christmas time.

"We made a concerted effort to start promoting the event earlier this time around and we have a dynamic, dedicated and diligent marketing team that has been fully engaged in all the aspects of the promotion since October last year," said event organiser Production One's director Rolf Doyle in a media release from Overtime Media.

"Coming out of the pandemic, with so many businesses and events unstable and unsure, we really wanted to re-establish the brand and remind folks about the experience, while informing those who may not have had the pleasure of attending previously that it's only growing bigger and better in 2024."

Doyle and his Production One Ltd team are offering non-stop action from the time gates open at 3.30 pm, to the first act appearing onstage at 5 pm, and until the final musical note around midnight.

With three stages on site for performances, patrons will see the return of Canadian contemporary jazz sextet Kalabash, along with its founding member Trinidad and Tobago pannist Darren Sheppard. Kalabash performs alongside acclaimed St Lucian guitarist Boo Hinkson, paired with his countryman vocalist Irvin “Ace” Loctar and St Lucian brothers Anton and Zane Charles of The Charles Project, featuring singer Renee Lawrence.

Trinidad and Tobago bassist Rodney Alexander and his Bay-C Experience, featuring singer Nisa (Genisa St Hillaire) and Tobago powerhouse vocalists Kay Alleyne and Stephanie Joseph with the EFX (The Emilie Fortune Xperiment) band are also set to thrill patrons.

JAOTG will spread out the three separate stages across the venue. Apart from the main festival stage, there will be the Songbirds stage for new vocal talent and a third platform stage for pan. These innovations are all in keeping with the festival’s overarching goals to create platforms for jazz, world fusion, Caribbean jazz and pan jazz acts across the region, the release said.

“When we first started JAOTG, it was to give the local jazz practitioners a stage to showcase their work. The first act we ever had was (the late) Ken “Professor” Philmore. I remember it well; he came straight off a flight from Baltimore and came straight to the stage.

“Over the years we continued and expanded to people from the Caribbean and those with Caribbean roots like (US-born pannist) Andy Narell. In fact, once you were doing Caribbean jazz, we were interested in featuring you.”

Creating a dedicated stage for pan is JAOTG reaffirmation of its commitment to the national instrument, Doyle added.

"They say we don’t respect pan, but we have had pan every single year in our show. We decided this year we will give the steelpan its own stage."

Come for the lime; discover the music is the tagline and the ethos for this event that has been growing and building for almost 20 years.

For more info: 620-6920.