Burlington Discover Jazz Festival is back for it's 42nd year. This year's festival, produced by the Flynn and presented by Vermont Tire And Service Inc. with Nokian Tyres, takes place across Downtown Burlington The Flynn is also thrilled to announce that Anthony Tidd, an international jazz artist, multi-instrumentalist and Guggenheim Fellow, will serve as the curator for the 2025 Burlington Discover Jazz Festival. Tidd will present an exclusive World Premiere of Origins: Sounds and Stories of the African Diaspora, a collaborative performance showcasing seven jazz musicians and seven special guests.

Schedule of Events:

Waterfront Park

5:00 PM - Sabouyouma

Free

Sabouyouma is a high energy 7-piece polyrhythmic groove machine that formed through ongoing musical relationships in Burlington, Vermont's vibrant West-African dance and drumming scene. Sabouyouma is led by Guinean-born Ousmane Camara: the band's front man, composer, and master Balafonist (the Balafon is a West-African marimba).

In 2017 Sabouyouma opened for nationally touring acts like Xenia Rubinos (Brooklyn), Polyrhythmics (Seattle), Ikebe Shakedown (Brooklyn), and Jonathan Scales Fourchestra (Asheville, North Carolina), and has performed at music festivals that have become staples of the Vermont music scene: Burlington Discover Jazz Fest, Waking Windows, and The Manifestivus.

Ousmane Camara is a 6th generation Griot: Historically, in West Africa, Griots passed messages from the king throughout the kingdom before pen and paper. Griots continue to play an important role in Africa today as poets, musicians, singers, and historians, preserving their ancient traditions through song. At the age of seven, Ousmane left his family's home to go live with his teacher, Djeli Sana Camara. He would study and play balafon with his teacher for the next fifteen years. Ousmane continued to play throughout Guinea and traveled through nine other African countries. He has subsequently taught students from around the world.

Location: Waterfront Park 20 Lake St, Burlington, VT 05401

6:00pm - DJ Taka

Free

From Osaka, Japan. Started dj in the early 90s in Japan.

Based in Burlington, VT

Resident DJ at the light club lamp shop since 2015.

Location: Waterfront Park 20 Lake St, Burlington, VT 05401

6:20 PM - Anthony Tidd's Quite Sane

Free

Quite Sane, an innovative experimental band that originated in London, is renowned for its unique fusion of hip-hop, jazz, and thought-provoking political themes. Their debut album, "The Child of Troubled Times," released in 2002, continues to captivate audiences even after two decades. Despite the challenges of maintaining a band across two continents, the band's leader, Anthony Tidd, has heeded the global call of fans by reuniting the octet two decades later to create a worthy sequel, "To Kill a Child of Troubled Times.

Location: Waterfront Park 20 Lake St, Burlington, VT 05401

7:40 PM - Butcher Brown

Free

"So, what kind of music do you make?" This question is the bane of every musician's existence because it requires that they shrink down the wide expanse of their creativity to an easily (mis)understood genre description.

No matter how vivid or elaborate the description, "show" will always be more powerful than "tell." The words we use to describe music don't encapsulate what the listener's experiences as much as give context clues.

That's why Butcher Brown – the multifaceted band from Richmond, Virginia – call their sound and their follow up to 2020's #KingButch and their second release on Concord Jazz, Solar Music.

"Solar music" is not simply a description; it's an invitation to listen and an invitation to feel.

Friends and bandmates Corey Fonville (drums), Andrew Randazzo, (bass), Morgan Burrs (guitar), Marcus "Tennishu" Tenney, (trumpet, saxophone, vocals) and Devonne "DJ Harrison" Harris (multi-instrumentalist) make music that is as diverse as their own varied tastes and backgrounds. It's a seamlessly blended amalgam of sounds including jazz, hip-hop, rock, funk, RAndB, alternative, soul, country, house, bossa nova, pop, and more. "We are the melting pot. We are the mix," says Devonne. "I feel like that's what we represent and that's what this album represents."

But Butcher Brown's eclecticism isn't for the sake of musical masturbation or to impress chin-stroking critics. Theirs is music of, and for, the people. "It's music for everybody," says Tennishu reflecting on how well-received they've been on stages across the globe. "You can see it on all kinds of different faces, young, old, big, small, short, tall, they all start dancing eventually. It's literally music for the whole solar system."

So how did this band of brothers make the sun come out on this new album? They challenged themselves to break from routine and old formulas. "[In the past] we'd make a record, like [2014's] All Purpose Music and put constraints on what we do in the studio with the thought of the live show, thinking ‘let's make this something that we can recreate at the show,'" explains Andrew. "We did that for a few records but then #KingButch was the one where we kind of departed from that idea and took more of a Sgt. Pepper … approach of, let's just explore what we can present in the studio, even if it's not something that we can pull off live."

Realizing that listening to their albums and their live show are two distinct experiences unlocked a new level of creativity for the band. Now Butcher Brown could allow themselves to explore new sounds and approaches to songwriting and production. This new unbridled creativity informed their approach to making Solar Music over the course of many sessions in 2021 and 2022 at go-to studios Montrose Recording, Minimum Wage Studios, and their homebase Jellowstone.

Of course the sun is at the center of the solar system, giving us warmth, lighting our days and keeping the planet revolving around it. Similarly, when it came time to create Solar Music the band saw themselves at the center of their sound drawing in other like-minded musicians with gravitational pull.

What could have been an insular musical conversation between the five became a collaboration with some of their friends and faves including Oakland-bred wordsmith Nappy Nina ("Half of It"), hip-hop iconoclast Pink Siifu ("Eye Never Know," "Run It Up"), East London rapper Jay Prince ("Move"), real-life guitar hero Charlie Hunter ("Espionage") and more.

On the new album, Butcher Brown flexes their musicianship not only as players but also songwriters, producers, and composers collaborating with guests. "We can do everything on our own, sure, and we have done that for forever, but it's also cool to have other people come in and get their perspectives," explains Morgan. "Butcher Brown is evolving, maturing, and we're growing as people," adds Corey reflecting on the making of Solar Music.

The results of these collabs are extraordinary. Take the album's first single, "I Can Say To You" for instance. "You'll find your way/ tomorrow or today/ there's nothing else I can say to you …," sings guest Vanisha Gould in a voice that sounds both angelic and ancestral. "She has a voice that almost sounds like a sample, almost like Billie Holiday or something, " says Corey who sought her out to feature on the song. "It's got that warmth, like somebody's mama singing to you."

Warmth, light, and connection through a sound that like the sun itself is for everyone. Welcome to Solar Music.

Location: Waterfront Park 20 Lake St, Burlington, VT 05401

9:15 PM - The Soul Rebels with special guests Rakim and Talib Kweli

Free

Brass sensation The Soul Rebels started with an idea - to expand upon the pop music they loved on the radio and the New Orleans brass tradition they grew up on. They took that tradition and blended funk and soul with elements of hip hop, jazz and rock all within the style of a modernized and contemporary brass band.

The Soul Rebels built a career around an eclectic live show that harnesses the power of horns and drums in a party-like atmosphere. The eight-member collective frequently appear on major record label releases with star artists including Sony Music artist G- Eazy's single ‘When You're Gone" featuring Lil Wayne, Def Jam artist Dave East and Nas' "Godfather 4", Big Freedia and Icona Pop's "Pipe That" and Warner Music Group artist Phony Ppl's new album. The Soul Rebels have scored original music for Walt Disney's 2023 movie Haunted Mansion and appeared on the official soundtrack for Universal Pictures' hit comedy Girls Trip.

The Soul Rebels have impressed viewers with two appearances on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, featured on NPR's Tiny Desk series with Wu Tang Clan front man GZA, and headlined the global TED Conference.

The Soul Rebels are riding high in 2024 after receiving national attention following the release of their new album, Poetry In Motion. The Soul Rebels continue to expand their international reach touring four continents
including Europe, Australia, China, South Korea and Japan. Their explosive stage presence has led to live collaborations with the likes of Katy Perry, Nas, G-Eazy, DMX, Robin Thicke, Macy Gray, Portugal. The Man, Robert Glasper, Pretty Lights, Macklemore And Ryan Lewis, Matisyahu and most notably their new supergroup with the legendary Wu Tang Clan.

The Soul Rebels continue to chart new territory and are respected for their ability to combine topnotch musicianship with songs that celebrate peace, love and soul.

Location: Waterfront Park 20 Lake St, Burlington, VT 05401

Flynn space

Steve Lehman Trio with special guest Paul Cornish

9:30 PM - Marshall Allen's Ghost Horizons

Free

The Burlington Jazz Festival proudly welcomes centenarian powerhouse Marshall Allen and his ever-changing Ghost Horizons ensemble for a must-see performance.

Still traveling the spaceways after more than 100 years on the planet, the indefatigable Maestro Marshall Allen remains a brilliant imaginative force whose life has spanned nearly the entire history of jazz. A key member of the Sun Ra Arkestra for more than six decades and its dauntless leader for the last quarter century, Allen has kept the iconic bandleader's cosmic torch blazing brightly while forging a path through the spaceways as a singular voice on the alto saxophone and Electronic Wind Instrument (EWI).

Over the past few years, Philadelphia's Ars Nova Workshop has showcased several diverse incarnations of Marshall Allen's Ghost Horizons ensembles, featuring longtime collaborator and guitarist DM Hotep. Highlights from these performances are, for the first time, compiled on Ghost Horizons' debut album, released by Otherly Love Records. Now, Allen brings his visionary ensemble to the Burlington Jazz Festival for a performance that promises to be both historic and unforgettable.

Location: Flynn Space 153 Main Street, Burlington, VT 05401.

Big Joe's
at Vermont Comedy Club

8:30 PM - Tiffany Pfeiffer Trio

Free

Tiffany Pfeiffer is a jazz chameleon—she becomes what she is in the moment of a song. Morphed into an emotional current, she blends generational roots from Appalachia with a classical sensitivity and an edge of improvisational joy.

A vocalist, composer And educator, Tiffany relocated to Vermont from Brooklyn, NY, in 2008, in search of a more sustainable lifestyle. She grew up in Omaha, Nebraska, started singing at age 4, and made music her life's study and passion, along with helping others to access their unique selves through music.

Tiffany began practicing yoga in her early 20s, and found through her yoga And meditation practice, along with years of travel, inquiry, teaching, and collaboration, a steady connection to intuition and healing through creative work. She received her MFA in music composition from Vermont College of Fine Arts in 2019, worked as Assistant Director of the program from 2020-2022, and maintains a private teaching studio for voice, piano And songwriting. She has released two albums, including an original EP, Amor Frio, in 2010, and an EP of jazz standards, Stampede of Love, in 2016. She is currently performing her new original work with Jane Kittredge on violin and Zoe Keating on cello.

Parker Shper is a pianist and composer who grew up in Central Vermont, playing piano by ear from a young age. In 2005, he moved to Montreal to attend McGill University where he pursued studies in Jazz Piano Performance. During his studies he spent a year living abroad in Sweden, studying music at the University of Gothenburg, forming ongoing connections with musicians from the creative Scandinavian music scene.

He has performed piano, synths and Hammond organ with such artists as Leif Vollebekk, Richard Reed Parry (Arcade Fire), Michael Chorney, Anais Mitchell, The Barr Brothers, Craig Finn (The Holdsteady), Trey Anastasio, Alexi Murdoch, Georgia Anne Muldrow, Land of Talk, Akil the MC (Jurassic 5), and many more.

For the past 15 years, upright bass player JD Haenni has been a staple of the New Orleans music scene. Playing a wide range of styles around the Crescent City, he has performed and recorded with many pillars of the jazz world including Carl Leblanc, Warren Battiste, James Andrews, Jamil Sharif, Jason Marsalis and Steve DeTroy. Since moving to Vermont in 2023, JD has been quickly expanding into new territory in Burlington and across the Northeast, bringing his New Orleans feel to the bands of Ray Vega, Alex Stewart, Dan Ryan, Jon McBride, Dwight Ritcher and many others.

Location: Vermont Comedy Club 101 Main St Burlington, VT 05401

10:00 PM - Dan Ryan Express

Free

Having played with some of the state's most popular acts (Madaila, Grippo Funk Band, James Harvey, Kat Wright, Craig Mitchell And Motor City, Strength in Numbers) and more over his nearly two-decade tenure in town, Dan Ryan is known for bringing a fiery yet subtle touch to the kit.

With his group, the Dan Ryan Express, Ryan serves dual roles as drummer and front man while also toeing the line between tradition and modern expression, often bouncing back and forth between jazz classics and more contemporary music written by his bandmates.

Location: Vermont Comedy Club 101 Main St Burlington, VT 05401

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