Fall 2024

T he 67th Monterey Jazz Festival (MJF) will feature two top-tier bassists this year. Stanley Clarke is a groundbreaking artist who played a seminal role in the creation of a new musical genre in the 1970s. Kyle Eastwood is a leader of a later generation of player/com- posers who is also charting new paths in jazz. Stanley Clarke A Philadelphia son, young Clarke was strug- gling to play violin with his outsized hands when he laid eyes on an upright bass gathering dust in the corner. He quickly gained proficiency on the instrument and soon added an electric bass to his arsenal. Relocating to NewYork after leaving the Philadelphia Musical Academy, he soon found himself working with jazz greats such as Gil Evans, Stan Getz, Dexter Gordon, Pharaoh Saunders, Art Blakey and the man with whom he would pioneer the nascent field of fusion jazz, Chick Corea. 102 C A R M E L M A G A Z I N E • F A L L 2 0 2 4 Photo:Francis Vernhet Photo: Mitsuru Nishimura (Above) Pianist Hiromi spans the jazz and classical worlds, as does Kyle Eastwood’s new release “Symphonic” (below). Performed here with members of the Monterey Symphony, the album features themes from his father Clint’s most famous films.