The Fresh Coast Jazz Festival returns to The Pabst Theater with three performances a day on Friday and Saturday, Aug. 25 and 26.
The fourth installment of the event brings a slate of contemporary jazz artists, including guitarist Larry Carlton, Rick Braun, Julian Vaughn, Paul Brown, Lin Rountree, Lindsey Webster, Oli Silk and Jeff Ryan.
The event will also include the popular Fresh Coast Cruise and Night Caps after-parties with more music, the chance to mingle with festival artists, artist Q&A sessions and an online auction.
“Our goal is to make this event bigger and better each year and we feel like we have done that this year,” said festival organizer Carl Brown.
“Last year’s event was a big success, and we are building on that momentum in 2023.”
Tickets go on sale Friday, Jan. 20 at 10 a.m. at freshcoastjazz.com and pabsttheatergroup.com.
The event also raises money for college scholarships and to support music education in Milwaukee.
“We are very proud of the philanthropic work we have done, and we are just getting started,” said Brown. "Not only do people get to enjoy fantastic music, food, drinks, and experiences they get to positively impact lives in the process.
“Since 2019, we have supported college scholarships for five deserving students, sent dozens of disadvantaged youth to music camps, provided grants to support music programs at Cristo Rey Jesuit, Rufus King and Bay View High Schools, provided backpacks full of school supplies to the entire kindergarten class at Cass Street School and supported medical research, and financial literacy initiatives in Milwaukee."
Born in Brooklyn, N.Y., where he lived until he was 17, Bobby received his BA-Mass Communications from UWM in 1989 and has lived in Walker's Point, Bay View, Enderis Park, South Milwaukee and on the East Side.
He has published three non-fiction books in Italy – including one about an event in Milwaukee history, which was published in the U.S. in autumn 2010. Four more books, all about Milwaukee, have been published by The History Press.
With his most recent band, The Yell Leaders, Bobby released four LPs and had a songs featured in episodes of TV's "Party of Five" and "Dawson's Creek," and films in Japan, South America and the U.S. The Yell Leaders were named the best unsigned band in their region by VH-1 as part of its Rock Across America 1998 Tour. Most recently, the band contributed tracks to a UK vinyl/CD tribute to the Redskins and collaborated on a track with Italian novelist Enrico Remmert.
He's produced three installments of the "OMCD" series of local music compilations for OnMilwaukee.com and in 2007 produced a CD of Italian music and poetry.
In 2005, he was awarded the City of Asti's (Italy) Journalism Prize for his work focusing on that area. He has also won awards from the Milwaukee Press Club.
He has be heard on 88Nine Radio Milwaukee talking about his "Urban Spelunking" series of stories, in that station's most popular podcast.
