CLEVELAND, Ohio – Moving the Tri-C JazzFest to summer has become a boon both for the festival, now in its 38th year, and for local bands.

The JazzFest on Monday, Feb. 27, put out a call for local acts to apply for one of the 18 slots on the outdoor Strassman Insurance Stage during the course of the festival, set for Friday and Saturday, June 23 and 24, in the Playhouse Square complex.

Last year, more than 100 bands and performers sent applications to the festival to win one of the time slots between 3 p.m. and midnight on the two days of the event. The online application form — forms.tri-c.edu/JazzFestCallsForBands/ — asks for video links to performances as well as background information.

 

The deadline to apply is end of day Friday, April 7. A committee of music industry experts will review the submissions and choose the acts that will perform. Oh, and it doesn’t have to be jazz; the festival is looking for bands and performers in several genres, including jazz, blues, R&B, funk, gospel, jam band and reggae.

The festival has long been a draw in Cleveland, and moving it to summer has bolstered its popularity. The eight ticketed shows in the 2017 installment will feature Boz Scaggs, Chris Botti, Dianne Reeves, Terence Blanchard, Anat Cohen, Norman Brown and others.

Festival passes, $250, are on sale now at 216-640-8800. Tickets to individual performances will go on sale on Monday, March 20, at the Playhouse Square box office, online at playhousesquare.org and by phone at 216-241-6000.

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