The Jazz Festival continues on the North Fork this coming weekend with Vineyard 48 presenting “Jazz on the Half Shell” on Saturday March 7th 2-5pm. All Jazz events are free. Vineyard 48 has a pretty center courtyard with teak wood tables, chairs, umbrellas and fountain to add to the beautiful setting, but events at this time of year take place in the warm interior tasting room. Our visit to their last Jazz event with the accomplished Denise Richards Trio was also enhanced by Sommelier Kenny Vaglio’s knowledge of the wines, as well as the Chess Art Gallery, which includes displays of antique chess sets. Tables are set up all year and the sets are also for sale. Their new release Cabernet Franc was a lovely surprise and proved a well balanced accompaniment to the smooth tones of Denise Richards vocals. At $9 a glass, it represents good value to this untrained palette for a wine that sells at $45 a bottle.

Jazz on the Half Shell is an ensemble that performs all music forms from Bebop to Motown and includes vocalist and Long Islander Ahmad Ali, who has been working with various local groups, as well as co-hosting the show “In The Moment” at WBAI 99.5 FM in NY. Bob Hovey on trombone has appeared locally as well with The Sunnyland Jazz Band, The Isotope Stompers, King Scallop, Park Ave Blues Band, Gordon Hurley Big Band, The Golden Fists of Fury as well as The Temptations, Rich Little, and The Great American Circus Band among many others in the USA and Europe.

James Benard, percussionist, studied with Jack DeJohnette and Tony Williams and Neil Ralph has been seen in many local bands throughout New York, playing keyboards, guitar and bass with equal proficiency and has been referred to by Roland Parker as “NYC’s best kept secret”.

And last but not least, Kim Tetrault, who plays electric and acoustic bass, has a background with various local groups including the Nuclear Hillbillies, Half Life, King Scallop and the Oysterettes, and the original Golden Fists. Kim is perhaps best known locally by his day job at the Southold Project in Aquaculture Training (SPAT)— which is doing what it can to restock our waters with oysters, clams, and scallops. A Cornell Cooperative Extension program, S.P.A.T. teaches volunteers how to grow shellfish in containers, away from predators, until they reach adult size, when they are released into local creeks and bays.

S.P.A.T. has partnered with Jamesport Vineyards, which donates 10% of the proceeds from all of their East End Series wines  to S.P.A.T. It was there that Jazz on the Half Shell played during the 2008 Festival. You can see the half shell motif on their East End Series wine labels. Are you getting the flavor of the local culture yet?

This year,  Jamesport Vineyards host performances by other musicians on March 8th and 14th as part of the Jazz on the Vine series, then Jazz on the Half Shell will be playing there on March 21st at 1pm. For the full list of Jazz Venues, check the Long Island Winterfest website.