Art and jazz festival trumpets new lineup
By Daniel Wolowicz camarillo@theacorn.com

Camarillo Art and Jazz Festival organizers announced earlier this week their 2007 lineup of performers.

The three-day event is expected to draw nearly 20,000 music and art lovers to the city.

Festival committee volunteer Roy Villa said the three headline performers offer a variety of jazz styles.

"I've seen the musicians play at a number of other Southern California jazz festivals," Villa said. "They've gotten very, very good reviews."

The weekend-long event, Aug. 10 to 12, will be emceed by Pat Prescott, a morning cohost on the popular Los Angeles jazz radio station the WAVE.

The festival kicks off with an opening night concert featuring jazz keyboardist Gregg Karukas and singer Ron Boustead. Festival organizers expect nearly 8,000 to attend the free, outdoor concert at Constitution Park on Friday. Karukas, a Maryland native, continues to tour nationwide and perform his fusionstyle jazz arrangements at a number of notable venues, including the Hollywood Bowl.

Old Town Camarillo will be awash in music and artwork on Saturday. Ventura Boulevard will host an art walk that will include 40 artists and two outdoor stages featuring a rotation of eight Southern California bands.

"We were totally inundated with Southern California artists who wanted to play, and we only had eight slots," Villa said. "It was excruciating to have to cut it down to eight."

On Saturday night, jazz saxophonist Eric Marienthal will perform at California State University at Channel Islands for a limited-seating outdoor concert.

Marienthal joined Chick Corea's Elektric Band in the 1990s, which earned two Grammy Awards during his time with the well-known group. Marienthal has since toured internationally with a number of different bands and continues to spend time in the recording studio.

Saturday evening also will include dinner, a live auction and an exhibition of artwork from the Studio Channel Islands Art Center.

Jazz singer Christine Day will headline the final event on Sunday- a lunch and concert at the Adolfo Camarillo Ranch House. Villa said he expects Day to be one of the biggest surprises of the festival.

"She's not well known," Villa said, "but I think she is going to surprise a lot of people on that Sunday afternoon. She is just one terrific singer."

Richard Wagner, chairman of the festival's executive planning committee, said a team of 10 volunteers have helped plan the event cohosted by Studio Channel Islands Art Center, the Camarillo Chamber of Commerce and the Boys & Girls Club of Camarillo. The city also helps sponsor the growing event.