Performers to look out for at this year’s Monterey Jazz Festival.

FOR 65 YEARS, the Monterey Jazz Festival has hosted giants and upstarts alike from across the wide, varied world of jazz. This year is no exception – from totemic icons, to contemporary vanguards, to promising talents, the festival’s 2023 lineup once again shows why Monterey Jazz has become synonymous with both Monterey and jazz. Here are some of the acts to catch at this year’s edition.

Herbie Hancock

He needs no introduction, but allow us to indulge: Herbie Hancock’s career has straddled the stylistic expanses of modern jazz – from his 1960s work with the Miles Davis Quintet, to his later forays into funk, electronic and fusion – while crossing the rubicon into mainstream success and becoming a living legend of American music. Hancock is no stranger to Monterey Jazz, having first performed at the festival in 1963 and at least 10 times since, by our count. Now 83, none should take for granted this master’s presence.

8:45pm Friday, Sept. 22, Jimmy Lyons Stage

John Scofield

A true guitar great of modern jazz, Scofield has worked with virtually everyone – Miles, Herbie, Pat Metheny, the list goes on – since bursting on the scene nearly 50 years ago. Deservingly the festival’s Showcase Artist this year, Scofield is all over the bill: he’ll appear with Scary Goldings on Friday night, hit the main stage with his Yankee Go Home band Saturday afternoon, and perform a solo guitar set at Pacific Jazz Café on Sunday evening. (There’s also a Sunday noon screening of Inside Scofield, a 2022 documentary about the man himself, at Pacific Jazz Café.)

8:30pm Friday, Sept. 22, West End Stage (with Scary Goldings)

1:50pm Saturday, Sept. 23, Jimmy Lyons Stage (with Yankee Go Home)

7:45pm Sunday, Sept. 24, Pacific Jazz Café

Tammy L. Hall

San Francisco jazz scene veteran Tammy L. Hall was a frequent performer at Monterey Jazz even before she relocated to Seaside in 2021. This year, the pianist will once again lead a “Sunday Gospel” matinee set featuring the Texas Southern University Choir. Last year’s performance at the festival “was a glorious time,” Hall recalled in a January interview. “We had church that morning.” Feel the spirit and salvation coursing through the music once more.

Noon Sunday, Sept. 24, Garden Stage

Samara Joy

The Grammy Award winner for Best New Artist and Best Jazz Vocal Album returns, this time singing on the festival’s biggest stage. She’s a talent to watch – see story, p. 35.

3:10pm Sunday, Sept. 24, Jimmy Lyons Stage

Jamie Cullum

The dynamic British singer, songwriter and piano player was a huge hit in his first appearance at MJF, 15 years ago at age 29. The crossover jazz-pop artist (he also plays drums and guitar) became the UK’s biggest-selling jazz artist of all time in his 20s. Clint Eastwood subsequently hired Cullum to write the original composition for the film Gran Torino, which was nominated for a Golden Globe. For the past 12 years, Cullum has hosted a weekly jazz show on the BBC.

6:45pm Sunday, Sept. 24, Jimmy Lyons Stage

Thundercat

Thundercat has evolved from one of the most talented session bassists working into a Grammy-winning solo artist in his own right. His jazz-indebted funk and R&B stylings have made him an indie darling, and his headlining set should bring the house down. For more, see story, p. 36.

8:15pm Sunday, Sept. 24, Jimmy Lyons Stage