Folly Jazz Series

Karrin Allyson
Saturday, September 21, 2024 at 7:30 p.m.

Five-time GRAMMY® nominee Karrin Allyson makes her triumphant return home to Kansas City to share her latest love letters to Brazil: “A Kiss for Brazil”, released in May. Hear for yourself why critic Scott Yanow writes, “See Karrin Allyson whenever you want to experience the music of a jazz master.”

Some Enchanted Evening – featuring Benny Benack III, Stella Cole, and Jabu Graybeal
Saturday, October 26, 2024, 7:30 p.m.

Led by Emmy-nominated crooner Benny Benack III and social media sensation Stella Cole, “Some Enchanted Evening” will lead you on a jazz-inspired journey through Broadway’s greatest hits from the Golden Age of yesterday to the freshest hits of today. This jazzy musical mashup also showcases Jabu Graybeal, a one-of-a-kind talent and tap-dancing star!

Yellowjackets
Saturday, January 25, 2025, 7:30 p.m.

Russell Ferrante, Bob Mintzer, Will Kennedy, and Dane Alderson return to the Folly Jazz Series fresh off their 2023 GRAMMY® nomination for “Parallel Motion”, the band’s latest album that “showcases a collective at their prime” (bandcamp). These jazz fusion legends never fail to astound and delight audiences!

säje
Friday, February 28, 2025, 7:30 p.m.

Vocal supergroup säje make their Kansas City debut on the Series! Born out of close friendship and deep admiration, these world-renowned artists, composers, and arrangers have come together to explore, create, and celebrate the music that moves them, earning them the John Lennon Songwriting Contest Grand Prize Award and their first GRAMMY® Award as they rise to the top of the vocal jazz world.

An Evening with Branford Marsalis
Saturday, March 15, 2025, 7:30 p.m.

New Orleans-born saxophonist Branford Marsalis is one of the most influential and revered figures in contemporary music. In addition to three-GRAMMY® Award wins and a Tony® nomination, Marsalis received a citation by the National Endowment for the Arts as a Jazz Master. The core of his musical universe remains the Branford Marsalis Quartet, a celebrated ensemble revered for its uncompromising interpretation of a kaleidoscopic range of both original compositions and jazz classics.

Helen Sung Meets Bach Aria Soloists
Saturday, April 5, 2025, 7:30 p.m.

Acclaimed jazz pianist and composer Helen Sung meets Kansas City’s own Bach Aria Soloists for a world premiere performance! BAS commissioned Sung to compose a work celebrating Bach as the OG improviser, the foundations of jazz. Join us for a one-of-a-kind collaborative evening and “piano playing at a quite unbelievably jaw-dropping level” (London Jazz News).