Fall 2024

104 C A R M E L M A G A Z I N E • F A L L 2 0 2 4 The band they formed, Return to Forever (RTF), took the early 1970s by storm, bringing jazz-influenced music to arenas around the globe. For his part, Clarke took his chosen instrument to new heights, putting the bass front and center and demonstrating that, in the right hands, it can stand shoulder to shoulder with traditional solo instruments like horns and keyboards as a strong and inventive solo voice. Following RTF, Clarke embarked on a remarkable solo career that continues to this day. Early solo records “Stanley Clarke” and “School Days” are studied endlessly by bass stu- dents worldwide. The list of artists he has recorded and toured with over the decades is a Who’s Who of the jazz world. Stanley Clarke brings his new lineup N•4EVER to MJF Saturday, September 28, on the Jimmy Lyons Stage. He is also the recipient of this year’s MJF Jazz Legends Award to be presented at the 15th Annual Gala on on September 26. Kyle Eastwood Eastwood is a Carmel native who attended his first Monterey Jazz Festival in 1977 with his father, film legend Clint. “I saw the Count Basie Big Band,” he says. He was 9, and didn’t have a particular interest in playing jazz, but he was a Darin Atwater, Monterey Jazz Festival’s New Artistic Director (Left) Grammy award-winning artist Samara Joy—a 2023 MJF standout—returns to the festival this year. (Right) New York- based José James blends multiple influences from jazz to hip-hop to rock. Both Joy and James are performing on Friday. Photo: Ambe J. Williams Photo: Janette Beckman T aking the reins as artistic director to one of the jazz world’s most celebrated and respected festivals would seem like a daunting task. But Darin Atwater is more than suited to the challenge. As only the third person to hold the title in the Monterey Jazz Festival’s 67-year history—after festival founder Jimmy Lyons and his successor Tim Jackson, who served 33 and 32 years respectively—he brings to the table a lifetime of musical experience as a performer, composer and conductor. The 2024 slate is his first after coming on board. “I shad- owed Tim last year, and he’s been extremely helpful,” he says.“He gave me the holy grail, a thumb drive containing his lineups for every festival he programmed. Seeing how he organized each festival during his tenure gave me an excellent starting point.” Atwater has a clear vision for where he wants to steer the world’s longest running jazz festival in the 21st century and is deeply honored to be entrusted with the task. “I’ve been bequeathed such an amazing festival,” he says.“Monterey is the gold standard of tradition for straight ahead jazz, and I want to keep that as our anchor, our north star.” But that doesn’t mean Atwater will be giving up-and-coming artists short shrift.“We’re working on ways to open up the festival to the next gen- erations of our attendees.” And while, yes, this is serious music, he’s determined to bring a sense of joy and optimism to the proceedings. “We want to put the ‘festive’ back in ‘festival.’” —Michael Chatfield Photo: Damien Carter Photography