Like many musical events during the pandemic, St. Paul's 19th annual Selby Avenue JazzFest is going virtual this year.
Instead of a one-day event in September, founder/director Mychael Wright is pivoting to four Saturday night livestream performances this month.
Kicking off the free series this Saturday will be Charmin & Shapira. That's veteran vocalist Charmin Michelle and guitarist Joel Shapira, who were weekly mainstays at the Midtown Global Market for a decade. The duo will feature selections from their new album, "Butterfly Wings."
The Solomon Parham Quintet will perform Sept. 12. The all-star Twin Cities ensemble features Parham on trumpet, Kevin Washington on drums, Jeff Bailey on bass, Ernest Bisong on violin and Jordan Anderson on piano.
The PJP Trio starring well-traveled St. Paul vocalist Patricia Lacy will be showcased on Sept. 19. A longtime member of the Sounds of Blackness, she also toured with soul star Luther Vandross for many years and performed regularly on radio's "A Prairie Home Companion" and TV's "Your Church of the Air." Part of the Selby JazzFest since 2005, Lacy will be accompanied by pianist Jacob Todd and drummer Perry (Tree) Graham.
Closing Selby Avenue JazzFest on Sept. 26 will be the great Cuban-American pianist Nachito Herrera. The powerhouse pianist from White Bear Lake is just returning to livestream public performances after his miraculous recovery from COVID-19 after 14 days in a coma.
All the performances start at 7 p.m. at selbyavejazzfest.com.
