Tokyo Jazz Festival 2011

The biggest jazz event of the year hits the capital at the tale end of the summer festival season, rallying together some of the biggest names in the biz for three days of concerts. The biggest draw at Tokyo Jazz Festival 2011 will probably be DMS, a new unit that pools the talents of bass player Marcus Miller, keyboardist George Duke and sax master David Sanborn. Axeman Lee Ritenour is going to lead what's billed as a 'Tokyo Jazz Super Guitar Session', while spritely pianist Hiromi Uehara will be performing in two combos – first as a trio with Anthony Jackson and Simon Phillips, then in a duo (duel?) with tap-dancer Kazunori Kumagai. And that's to say nothing of 79-year-old pianist Michel Legrand, bossa nova supremo Sergio Mendes, one-man ensemble Raul Midón... we could go on, but here's the full lineup so far:

September 2:
Naruyoshi Kikuchi Date Course Pentagon Royal Garden, Raul Midón, Jazz for Japan Special Project (Al Jarreau, Tom Scott, Clarence McDonald, Ndugu Chancler, Del Atkins and others)

September 3:
Afternoon: Count Basie Orchestra, Naoko Terai & Richard Galliano, Michel Legrand Trio
Evening: Quasimode, Incognito, Hiromi Uehara with Anthony Jackson and Simon Phillips

September 4:
Afternoon: Kenny Barron, Hiromi Uehara x Kazunori Kumagai, Sergio Mendes
Evening: Hino Terumasa Special Project, Tokyo Jazz Super Guitar Session directed by Lee Ritenour, DMS