The Woodstock Square is an ideal place for scatting, say those involved with the Woodstock Jazz Festival.

In its ninth year, the two-day festival returns Aug. 26-27 with performances both on the Square and at Stage Left Café, 125 W. Van Buren St., as well as a concert presented in conjunction with the Woodstock Opera House.

“I think every town needs a jazz festival,” said Bryan Kyrouac, organizer of the volunteer-run event, which is hosted by the nonprofit Jazz on the Square. Most of the money raised from the festival will go toward jazz programs and scholarships, while the rest helps pays for the event itself.

“It’s America’s music,” Kyrouac said. “It kind of speaks in a way that I think is very similar to the way poetry is to English. There’s an artistry there that can kind of convey the human experience. It’s spontaneous music. It’s never the same, just like life in general.”

Among the performers this year, Typhanie Monique has performed throughout the world, including one of her favorite projects – the Chicago-based Booty Movement Coalition, a freestyle funk/hop group.

Musicians come together and improvise entire concerts.

“It’s just a collective formation of spontaneous performances,” she said. “Just having that experience and freedom to express is a lifeline for me.”

Monique recently raised $38,000 through a Kickstarter campaign and has created her latest album, “Call it Magic,” which she expects to release soon. She describes it as a jazz album with some pop elements.

Kicking off the festival at 8 p.m. Aug. 26 at Stage Left Café, Monique will perform along with Ben Lewis on piano, Greg Artry on drums and Dennis Carroll on bass.

“I think it’s fabulous,” she said of the festival. “Woodstock is a very quaint town with a strong arts community, and knowing Jazz on the Square, they certainly do a great job of promoting the genre.”

Other acts include free performances the morning of Aug. 27 on the Woodstock Square by returning favorites Potts & Pans Steel Band, the Outcast Jazz Band and a newly created The Jazz on the Square Student Allstars.

The group is made up of high school students who regularly attend Jazz on the Square’s jam sessions.

“It’s been very fun to watch them grow over the years, and now they’re doing their own thing,” Kyrouac said.

At 7 p.m. Aug. 27 at Stage Left Café, Petra & Andy will take the stage with a performance Kyrouac describes as “intimate and warm that works out perfectly for Stage Left Café.” Aug. 27 also includes an 8 p.m. Woodstock Opera House concert featuring Galactic Cowboy Orchestra, a unique group performing an electic blend of music that has been called “jazz-rock,” “jazz-grass” and “jam-based.”

And later at 9:30 p.m. Aug. 27 at Stage Left Café, favorites Patty Greer and Fred Wackenhut will perform.

“She’s a powerful kind of Las Vegas-style singer and entertainer that is something unlike we see around our parts very often,” Kyrouac said of Greer.

The Woodstock Jazz Festival runs Aug. 26-27 on the Woodstock Square and at Stage Left Café, with a special concert in conjunction with the Woodstock Opera House.
For information on the festival, visit www.jazzonthesquare.com. Following is a complete festival schedule:

Aug. 26
• 8 p.m. (doors open at 7:30 p.m.) Stage Left Café, 125 W. Van Buren St. Typhanie Monique (www.tmonique.com) with opening act the Johnny Weber Trio. Tickets: $20 for premium reserved seating (within first four rows) at www.brownpapertickets.com, $10 at door (first-come, first-seated). Seating at Stage Left Café is limited.

Aug 27

• 9 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Woodstock Square. Free performances with The Jazz on the Square Student Allstars at 9 a.m., Potts & Pans Steel Band at 10 a.m. and Outcast Jazz Band at 11:30 a.m.

• 7 p.m. (doors open at 6:30 p.m.) Stage Left Café. Petra & Andy. Tickets: $20 for premium reserved seating (within first four rows) at www.brownpapertickets.com, $10 at door (first-come, first-seated).

• 8 p.m. Woodstock Opera House, 121 W. Van Buren St., Woodstock. Galactic Cowboy Orchestra. Tickets: $23 all seats. Tickets and information: 815-338-5300 or www.woodstockoperahouse.com. A Galactic Cowboy Orchestra ticket includes general admission to Saturday events at Stage Left Café.

• 9:30 p.m. Stage Left Café. Patty Greer & Fred Wackenhut. Tickets: $20 for premium reserved seating (within first four rows) at www.brownpapertickets.com, $10 at door (first-come, first-seated).
​

The Woodstock Square is an ideal place for scatting, say those involved with the Woodstock Jazz Festival.

In its ninth year, the two-day festival returns Aug. 26-27 with performances both on the Square and at Stage Left Café, 125 W. Van Buren St., as well as a concert presented in conjunction with the Woodstock Opera House.

“I think every town needs a jazz festival,” said Bryan Kyrouac, organizer of the volunteer-run event, which is hosted by the nonprofit Jazz on the Square. Most of the money raised from the festival will go toward jazz programs and scholarships, while the rest helps pays for the event itself.

“It’s America’s music,” Kyrouac said. “It kind of speaks in a way that I think is very similar to the way poetry is to English. There’s an artistry there that can kind of convey the human experience. It’s spontaneous music. It’s never the same, just like life in general.”

Among the performers this year, Typhanie Monique has performed throughout the world, including one of her favorite projects – the Chicago-based Booty Movement Coalition, a freestyle funk/hop group.

Musicians come together and improvise entire concerts.

“It’s just a collective formation of spontaneous performances,” she said. “Just having that experience and freedom to express is a lifeline for me.”

Monique recently raised $38,000 through a Kickstarter campaign and has created her latest album, “Call it Magic,” which she expects to release soon. She describes it as a jazz album with some pop elements.

Kicking off the festival at 8 p.m. Aug. 26 at Stage Left Café, Monique will perform along with Ben Lewis on piano, Greg Artry on drums and Dennis Carroll on bass.

“I think it’s fabulous,” she said of the festival. “Woodstock is a very quaint town with a strong arts community, and knowing Jazz on the Square, they certainly do a great job of promoting the genre.”

Other acts include free performances the morning of Aug. 27 on the Woodstock Square by returning favorites Potts & Pans Steel Band, the Outcast Jazz Band and a newly created The Jazz on the Square Student Allstars.

The group is made up of high school students who regularly attend Jazz on the Square’s jam sessions.

“It’s been very fun to watch them grow over the years, and now they’re doing their own thing,” Kyrouac said.

At 7 p.m. Aug. 27 at Stage Left Café, Petra & Andy will take the stage with a performance Kyrouac describes as “intimate and warm that works out perfectly for Stage Left Café.” Aug. 27 also includes an 8 p.m. Woodstock Opera House concert featuring Galactic Cowboy Orchestra, a unique group performing an electic blend of music that has been called “jazz-rock,” “jazz-grass” and “jam-based.”

And later at 9:30 p.m. Aug. 27 at Stage Left Café, favorites Patty Greer and Fred Wackenhut will perform.

“She’s a powerful kind of Las Vegas-style singer and entertainer that is something unlike we see around our parts very often,” Kyrouac said of Greer.

The Woodstock Jazz Festival runs Aug. 26-27 on the Woodstock Square and at Stage Left Café, with a special concert in conjunction with the Woodstock Opera House.
For information on the festival, visit www.jazzonthesquare.com. Following is a complete festival schedule:

Aug. 26
• 8 p.m. (doors open at 7:30 p.m.) Stage Left Café, 125 W. Van Buren St. Typhanie Monique (www.tmonique.com) with opening act the Johnny Weber Trio. Tickets: $20 for premium reserved seating (within first four rows) at www.brownpapertickets.com, $10 at door (first-come, first-seated). Seating at Stage Left Café is limited.

Aug 27

• 9 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Woodstock Square. Free performances with The Jazz on the Square Student Allstars at 9 a.m., Potts & Pans Steel Band at 10 a.m. and Outcast Jazz Band at 11:30 a.m.

• 7 p.m. (doors open at 6:30 p.m.) Stage Left Café. Petra & Andy. Tickets: $20 for premium reserved seating (within first four rows) at www.brownpapertickets.com, $10 at door (first-come, first-seated).

• 8 p.m. Woodstock Opera House, 121 W. Van Buren St., Woodstock. Galactic Cowboy Orchestra. Tickets: $23 all seats. Tickets and information: 815-338-5300 or www.woodstockoperahouse.com. A Galactic Cowboy Orchestra ticket includes general admission to Saturday events at Stage Left Café.

• 9:30 p.m. Stage Left Café. Patty Greer & Fred Wackenhut. Tickets: $20 for premium reserved seating (within first four rows) at www.brownpapertickets.com, $10 at door (first-come, first-seated).
​