2009 Knox-Rootabaga Jazz Festival

The 29th annual Knox-Rootabaga Jazz Festival will feature two top jazz bands -- John Miller and the Romaniacs, and the Aaron Goldberg Trio featuring Matt Penman and Eric Harland -- along with the Knox College Jazz Ensemble, Knox Faculty and Friends Combo, and the Knox Alumni Big Band, with shows on April 16, 17 and 18.

The annual festival -- named after a children's book, "Rootabaga Stories," by Galesburg native Carl Sandburg -- runs from Thursday, April 16 through Saturday, April 18 at three locations in Galesburg, Illinois. Festival passes are available from Nikki Whittaker at 309-341-7265.

On Thursday, April 16, the Knox Faculty and Friends Combo opens the festival with a jam session from 8 p.m. to midnight at McGillacuddy's, 58 S. Cherry St. Admission is $7 at the door.

The Knox Faculty and Friends Combo will feature some of the region's top musicians, including Dave Hoffman and Manny Lopez, trumpet; Kevin Malley and Cassie Hart, saxophone; John Miller, guitar; Semenya McCord, vocals; Danny Leahy, piano; Kevin Hart, vibraphone, piano, and drums; Nikki Malley, vibraphone; Andy Crawford, bass; and Brian Zeglis and Manuel Lopez, drums.

On Friday, April 17, the Knox Alumni Big Band performs from 8 p.m. to 9 p.m. at Cherry Street Bier Garten, 57 S. Cherry, Galesburg; while the Romaniacs perform from 9:30 p.m. to midnight at McGillacuddy's. Admission is $10 at the door, which covers both events.

John Miller and the Romaniacs is a five-member group that performs authentic Gypsy jazz, inspired by Django Reinhardt's work at the Hot Club of France in the 1930s and 40s. Guitarists John Miller and Joe Park, saxophonist Perry Rask, bassist Tim Brickner, and drummer Corey Flanigan, have performed throughout the region. Miller teaches guitar at Knox and Brickner has studied at Knox.

On Saturday, April 18, the Knox Jazz Ensemble and the Aaron Goldberg Trio featuring Matt Penman and Eric Harland perform at 5 p.m. at the Orpheum Theatre, 57 S. Kellogg St., Galesburg. Tickets are $12 and $16, and are available at the door.

Headlined by pianist Aaron Goldberg, the Aaron Goldberg Trio featuring Matt Penman and Eric Harland has been hailed by the Boston Globe as "a superlative group... one of the era's definitive piano trios." Goldberg studied at Harvard College and the New School for Jazz and Contemporary Music. Goldberg has recorded seven CDs with his own group, and performed on more than 40 CDs by other jazz artists.

Directed by Nikki Malley, the Knox College Jazz Ensemble has performed for the annual conference of the Illinois Music Educators Association (IMEA) and at jazz festivals at Western Illinois University, University of Wisconsin at Eau Claire, University of Notre Dame, University of Kentucky, University of Kansas and University of North Texas. The ensemble recently returned from a concert tour of Spain.

At the annual Knox-RootabagaJazz Festival, the Knox Jazz Ensemble has performed with a number of top jazz artists, including Benny Green, Kurt Elling, Rob McConnell, Joey DiFrancesco, and Matt Wilson.