Dazzle Jazz to host the first annual Dazzle Recordings Artist Festival

Dazzle Recordings, located in Denver, Colorado, heats things up this spring to showcase the best of Denver jazz. Celebrating the culmination of numerous albums released on the label this past year, Dazzle Recordings hosts the two-day Dazzle Recordings Artist Festival featuring eighteen label recording artists who are an integral part of Denver’s thriving jazz scene.

The festival will be run in association with Dazzle Restaurant and Lounge, recognized as one of the top one hundred jazz venues in the world and a haven for jazz-lovers in Colorado and the west.

View slideshow: Dazzle Recordings Artists and Albums

The label, born of the efforts of former label director and composer, Tyler Gilmore, is considered one of the premier independent jazz record labels of the Rocky Mountain region. “Dazzle Recordings seeks to gain national notoriety for Colorado jazz recording artists who are among the most creative and innovative in the country,” says current label Director and saxophonist, composer and educator Josh Quinlan.

The Dazzle Recordings catalog includes works by internationally known Colorado jazz artists including the Josh Quinlan Quintet, Greg Garrison Low Lonesome, Peter Sommer Tremolo Canteen, the Greg Harris Vibe Quintet, Ninth and Lincoln Orchestra, Fred Hess Big Band, Matt Smiley "Quartet Art," Ben Haugland Sextet featuring Dick Oatts and Jay Anderson, Shirley, Dave Devine, Steve Denny Trio, The Teaching, Metropolitan Jazz Orchestra, Carmen Sandim Sextet, Adam Revell and Essence Rider, Julie Monley and more. As well, jazz greats from around the U.S. such as Cuong VU, Eric Deutsch, Dick Oatts, Matt Wilson, Brad Goode, Jay Anderson, Ron Miles and more are featured on Dazzle Recordings albums.

Dazzle Recordings has been busy ensuring that their artists are in good company as they take the stage this April alongside a roster of inventive jazz musicians that infuse modern twists into the classic tradition. The increased success of Dazzle Recordings shows no sign of tapering off anytime soon. “Along with featuring eighteen bands in the two-day festival, we have ten CD's releasing in the first six months of this year,” says Quinlan.

These artists will be steadily performing under the Dazzle Recordings label leading up to the April Festival. The “swinging jazz standards and the progressive originals” of the Steve Denny Triograce the Dazzle showroom on March 31, followed by an April 7 CD release show from pianist and band leader Ben Haugland.

Quinlan, a frequent performer at Dazzle, holds his CD release for his newest album Mountain Time Standards (Josh Quinlan Quintet)under the Dazzle Recordings label on March 17. He’s grateful to Dazzle for making Dazzle Recordings’ efforts such a success. “Dazzle Jazz is integral to our ability to produce live shows to raise awareness of the increased activity of Dazzle Recordings,” says Quinlan.

The label’s mission is two-fold; to help promote Denver’s often over-looked jazz musicians and act as an additional support for proliferating jazz education in the greater Denver community.

“We are grateful for the Colorado non-profit, the Gift of Jazz, which seeks to preserve the history and culture of jazz music in Denver and generate revenue for Colorado jazz artists,” says Quinlan. “We follow their desire to further the success of jazz education in schools by including Denver Public Schools such as East High School and Denver School of the Artsin Dazzle Recordings' performances.”

Mark your calendars now for the Dazzle Recordings Artist Festival on April 21 & 22 and get a sneak peek at the artist roster from the Dazzle Recordings website or below:

Dazzle Recordings Artist Festival 2012 Roster:

Saturday, April 21

1:45 - 2:30 – East High School Jazz Combo (Dining Room)

2:30 – 3:10 – (Lounge)

3:15 – 4:05 – Metropolitan Jazz Orchestra (Dining Room)

4:10 – 5:00 – Shawn Costantino Quintet (Lounge)

5:05 – 5:55 – Julie Monley (Dining Room)

6:05 – 6:55 – Denver School of the Arts Workshop Orchestra (Lounge)

7:00 – 7:50 – John Lake and Shirley (Lounge)

7:55 – 8:45 – The Teaching (Dining Room)

8:55 – 9:45 – Josh Quinlan Quintet (Dining Room)

9:55 – 10:45 – Greg Harris Vibe Quintet (Dining Room)