The Wall Street Jazz Festival co-founder Peggy Stern (above) is determined to keep the festival accessible and grassroots, elegant in its presentation and free.
The Wall Street Jazz Festival began in 2004 when John Bilotti and Peggy Stern were attending a jazz festival and noticed a conspicuous absence of women in the lineup. “What’s wrong with this picture?” they say gave way to “What are we going to do about it?” Thus was born a jazz festival in which all the leaders are women.
The Wall Street Jazz Festival present traditionalists as well as progressives, local players as well as out-of-towners. Bilotti and Stern were determined to keep the festival accessible and grassroots, elegant in its presentation and free. The festival was made possible in part through a grant from the Dutchess County Arts Council, administrator of public funds through the New York State Council on the Arts’ Decentralization Program.
The Wall Street Jazz Festival takes place on Saturday, August 30 on the corner of Wall Street and North Front. Performers include the Laura Dubin Piano Trio at 5 p.m., All-Star All-Play at 6 p.m., the Virginia Mayhew Quartet at 7 p.m., the Roberta Piket Sextet at 8 p.m. and Estrella Salsa at 9 p.m.