World-Class Musicians Bring Good Vibes to Southampton at Summer Jazz Festival

The Pasquale Grasso Quartet performs at day three of the inaugural Jazz Loft @ Southampton Summer Jazz Festival at the Avram Theater at Stony Brook Southampton. Photos by Matthew Lundy.

For three days, Stony Brook Southampton was the place to be to enjoy some of the world's best jazz musicians, as the inaugural Jazz Loft @ Southampton Summer Jazz Festival brought together the rich tradition and vibrant future of jazz to the Avram Theater.

The festival, held July 23-25, featured award-winning artists and unique cultural experiences, with special pop-up performances held alongside the four concerts on stage at The Avram.

"It was such a thrill to see the Southampton campus alive with the sounds of jazz over the course of three days, both indoors and outdoors," said Stony Brook University Professor and Endowed Artist in Residence Fellow Tom Manuel, curator of both the festival and the Jazz Loft @ Southampton Concert Series. "Our monthly jazz concerts have cultivated a wonderful patron base over the past year and half and it's so inspiring to see the local community embracing the campus as their space and home for culture and the arts."

Manuel said he was honored that the powerhouse lineup of international artists were able to perform at Southampton, and credited Vice President for Strategic Initiatives and Executive Director of Stony Brook Southampton Wendy Pearson and her team for putting the festival on. "I'm both humbled and honored to be a part of the energy and vision which is thriving on the Southampton campus - pressed down, shaken together and running over!"

Stony Brook University President Andrea Goldsmith was one of many who attended the festival, and said she enjoyed seeing audience members salsa dancing at the front of the theater on one night, then taking in a mystical and creative performance of a guitar-led quartet the next. "The Jazz Festival's inaugural year was a tremendous success and we are already considering ways we can carry this momentum forward."

The festival began Thursday, July 23 with Manuel hosting a vintage hi-fi LP listening session with audio expert John Piro in the Avram Gallery. The lecture explored the impact of technology on American popular music through rare and historic master acetate recordings played on a period audio system, allowing attendees to experience the music just as it was heard in the 1950s.

The first concert of the festival took place Thursday night with "The Art of Risk: The Miles Davis Birth of the Cool Project." One of jazz's most influential recordings was brought to life by a stellar nonet featuring Manuel alongside some of New York's finest jazz musicians. Vocalist Rahsaan Cruse Jr. joined the ensemble to perform rarely heard vocal arrangements from the legendary sessions alongside other timeless classics inspired by the Birth of the Cool era.

On Friday, July 24, Grammy-nominated percussionist and bandleader Chembo Corniel brought his electrifying Latin Jazz Quintet to the Avram stage for an evening of irresistible rhythms and masterful musicianship. Blending Afro-Cuban traditions with contemporary jazz, the group delivered a vibrant and authentic sound that kept the audience moving.

Day three was the busiest day of the festival, beginning with a pre-concert pop-up performance by the Equity Brass Band on Saturday, July 25. Led Manuel, the band exuded the joyful spirit of New Orleans. Playing classic jazz and brass band favorites in a festive parade atmosphere, the band invited the audience to celebrate, NOLA-style.

Percussionist and bandleader Chembo Corniel brought his electrifying Latin Jazz Quintet to the festival.

The first of two concerts Saturday featured the Pasquale Grasso Quartet, led by Grasso, an acclaimed guitarist who is widely regarded as one of the most extraordinary jazz musicians of his generation. Grasso has earned international recognition for his fresh and sophisticated approach to the guitar. He and his quartet delivered a masterful performance full of improvisation, timeless melodies, and exhilarating swing, combining the elegance of the Great American Songbook with the energy of bebop.

The Mark Wade Trio performed the second pop-up show of the day, featuring original compositions by the acclaimed bassist and bandleader. Wade's 2026 release of New Stages on Dot Time Records is a bold step forward, and the Trio performed music that reimagines the architecture of classical compositions through the lens of a modern jazz trio.

The Judy Carmichael Trio closed out the festival in grand fashion, as the Grammy-nominated pianist and vocalist dazzled with her stride piano style and engaging stage presence. Joined by acclaimed saxophonist Dan Block and guitarist Derek Duleba, Carmichael delivered a memorable show, full of virtuosity, wit and swing.

The jazz won't stop with the end of the festival - The Jazz Loft @ Southampton Concert Series will continue with five more performances at The Avram in 2026. The next show is Thursday, August 27 with All Heart, a joyous, high energy celebration of Afro Cuban jazz, led by Carlos Jiménez Mambo Dulce in an all star Cuban descarga, the jam session tradition fueled by rhythm, spontaneity, and soul. Drawing inspiration from icons including Tito Puente, Arsenio Rodríguez, Ray Barretto and José Fajardo, the performance channels the infectious grooves and emotional intensity at the heart of Cuban music.

For more information and to purchase tickets, visit the concert series website.