Uri Gurvich–Rodolfo Zuniga Quartet at St. Petersburg Jazz Festival

[Photos and video courtesy of Dr. David Manson]

What, exactly, IS a jazz festival?

For all the right reasons, there are many correct answers. It might be a collection of great soul and R& B artists. It could be a host of prominent traditional jazz artists still making great music. Perhaps a smooth jazz festival so popular these days. Or it might be a wide-ranging fest with pop, rock, and funk groups along with some jazz folks.

You can find every one of those and more all over the country.

There is another option: a display of superb players from around the country and around the world, not household names, although they should be. The St. Petersburg Jazz Festival, curated by Dr. David Manson of St. Petersburg College and director of EMIT, is one of those. Every year, Manson lines up incredible talent… for this festival, for the Latin Jazz Festival, and for countless other amazing concerts in and around St. Petersburg. These events provide a mecca for music lovers hungry for what is new and innovative and magnificent.

Take as a case in point the Uri Gurvich–Rodolfo Zuniga Quartet, who played Wednesday, April 2. (The Tal Cohen Trio played Monday, Alexis Cole & the Helios Jazz Orchestra Tuesday, and the Pershounin Quartet Thursday.)

This show could just as easily have been billed as the Martin Bejerano–Peter Slavov Quartet. Or any one of them. Or any combination. This was a titanic show with four brilliant players; it was interesting as we walked out hearing people commenting on their favorites. This was a total team effort, and we were all the beneficiaries of their work together.

Uri Gurvich–Rodolfo Zuniga Quartet – St. Petersburg Jazz Festival ’25 – sound check

The first set opened with two fine compositions from Gurvich’s album Kinship (such an appropriate title for this quartet). They were swinging away during “Song for Kate,” with solos from Gurvich (alto saxophone) and Bejerano (piano). They followed that with “Twelve Tribes,” an urgent, insistent tune, pushed by bassist Slavov and drummer Zuniga. Bejerano, Gurvich, and Zuniga all had features.

Uri Gurvich–Rodolfo Zuniga Quartet – St. Petersburg Jazz Festival ’25

“At the Peak” was a lovely Zuniga ballad with a spectacular piano intro and outro and great interplay from Bejerano and Slavov. Zuniga took up brushes with a deft touch for Charles Mingus’ “Duke Ellington Sound of Love,” reminiscent of “Lush Life.” They closed the first set with a propulsive explosion suitably titled “Orient Express.”

After a brief intermission, the quartet immediately tore into the fine Coltrane song “26-2,” Gurvich blazing and Slavov and Zuniga with beautiful interplay, Bejerano comping underneath. Two Zuniga compositions followed, “Calambour” and the ballad “St. Sulpice.”

Gurvich then announced the final piece of the evening, the traditional song “Go Down Moses,” appropriate any time but especially so just before passover. This was a magnificent, full-frontal approach to a melody often taken as a ballad, dripping with late Coltrane vibes. Although it was evident throughout the performance, the song cemented the power, precision, and unity of this fabulous quartet.

[SET 1: Song for Kate (Gurvich), Twelve Tribes (Gurvich), At the Peak (Zuniga), Duke Ellington Sound of Love (Mingus), Orient Express (Zuniga); SET 2: 26-2 (Coltrane), Calambour (Zuniga), St. Sulpice (Zuniga), Go Down Moses (traditional)]

For you serious non-nonsense jazz fans, always check out the lineup for the St. Petersburg Jazz Festival and for other events on the upcoming calendar. Be sure to check out Tampa Jazz Club as well. Here are a few.

04/15 Alex Malkovich Trio | West St. Petersburg Community Library (free) | St. Petersburg FL

04/17 O Som Do Jazz | Leepa-Rattner Museum | Tarpon Springs FL