The semi-annual Exit Zero Jazz Festival, its twenty-sixth edition, was held May 15-17, 2026, in the nation’s oldest ocean resort, Cape May, NJ, featuring many of the top performers in jazz, emerging stars and veterans alike, with a sun-splattered, ocean-facing deck that also hosted performances, on a weekend that offered practically summer weather. All performances in Convention Hall were strong and offered something special. There were no club visits for yours truly, but the Festival added a small, intimate performing space, The Clemans Theater for the Arts, which was a handsome addition.
Once termed a relatively small festival, judging by the Convention Hall capacity of 1000, this edition boasted Grammy nominees and winners as well as two NEA Jazz Masters, among the performers. Besides, the headliners were all highly recognized jazz artists. It may be the smallest ‘big name’ festival in jazz, and more varied than the major festivals that are increasingly jazz-adjacent rather than jazz-focused. Besides, one can get a seat, listen and see the musicians, and possibly even speak to them directly in the lobby, advantages that are not necessarily available at larger festivals.
The Top Seven Performances (ordered by artist last name, not ranked)
Will Calhoun Mail Project –Will Calhoun, the Bronx-born Grammy-winning drummer from the iconic rock band Living Color, has amassed an impressive list of jazz credits, including an upcoming album with Joe Lovano’s Paramount Quartet. Over the past 15 years, Calhoun has been living part-time in Mali, where he recorded drums on Oumou Sangaré’s 2009 recording Seya and subsequently toured with her band. This connection eventually led him to meet and study with many master musicians in Mali, including members of The Hunters, a unique tribe in northern Mali that rarely interacts with musicians outside the community.
Calhoun and The Hunters have now joined forces in the Mali Project, featuring the charismatic keyboardist and vocalist Cheick-Tidiane Seck, who has toured with Fela Kuti and Youssou N’Dour. We heard a slightly slimmed-down version as the typical bassist and vocalist were absent, but did hear Adama Bilorou (Djembe, kora, marimba), Dabadi Kouyate (guitar), and Michael Harrison on electric bass alongside Calhoun’s masterful drumming. The set was spiritual, uplifting, highly rhythmic, and varied in sound, as Seck played multiple keyboards, Bilorou soothed with the kora, and was a terrific percussionist on both the djembe and the marimba. Guitarist Kouyate also impressed while Seck engaged the audience in his song “Love.” The group will be issuing a record this year and has a busy touring schedule. Check them out for something off the beaten path.
Orrin Evans Trio Plays Monk with Gary Bartz – Philadelphian pianist-composer-bandleader Orrin Evans brought his regular touring trio of bassist Robert Hurst and drummer Jeff “Tain” Watts for his celebration of Thelonious Monk, the second-most-recorded jazz composer after Duke Ellington. A Monk tune graces most jazz performances. Yet, this was far more than a trio performance as NEA Jazz Master, the 86-year-old alto saxophonist Gary Bartz joined the trio. Bartz’s energetic, passionate, fluid, and fiery playing well belied his age. He was stunning!. This was the best-received performance of the headliners in the festival. All four musicians brought their A-games. All soloed brilliantly. Evans did not identify the tunes, but we likely heard “Well You Needn’t” along with compositions like “Crepescule with Nellie,” “Ruby, My Dear,” “Monk’s Dream,” and “Off Minor.” It was a different twist on Monk’s music, but one that would have made the iconic pianist and composer proud.
Jeremy Pelt Quintet – Jazz has a tradition of an elder recruiting younger musicians, as evidenced by Art Blakey, Miles Davis, and many others. We can’t call trumpeter Pelt an elder as he is only 50, but he did indeed recruit young cats to this band. He was joined by Jalen Baker on vibraphone, Misha Mendelenko on guitar, Leighton Hurrell on acoustic and electric bass, and Jared Spears on drums. They played a varied and versatile set, with Pelt generously giving the spotlight to his musicians. The Ukrainian guitarist Mendelenko was especially impressive on uptempo burner 13-14 and utterly sublime on “Dreamcatcher” and the ballad “Why Did I Choose You,” where Pelt’s restrained, smooth tone was simply beautiful. Vibraphonist Jalen Baker, who has issued a couple of albums as a leader, is one of the new emerging voices on the instrument. The quintet showed a facility in moving from fast-paced fusion fare to scintillating balladry, playing all with aplomb.
Jose James – Presents Facing East- The Music of John Coltrane – Vocalist James, originally billed as “the jazz singer for the hip hop generation,” has increasingly become more jazz oriented in recent years.. No stranger to the Coltrane oeuvre, James released a vocalese cover of the legendary saxophonist’s “Equinox” in 2008 (which he performed as his closing tune), then toured internationally with piano great McCoy Tyner in a 2011 tour that revisited the music of the 1963 classic Impulse! recording, John Coltrane and Johnny Hartman. He performed “It’s Wonderful,” “Lush Life,” and “My One and Only Love” from that album here. He began in spiritual fashion with his introductory “Om” to his tasteful renditions of “Welcome” and “Psalm,” to his driving “Africa” (with original lyrics he penned) and, of course, launched into a crowd favorite, swinging rendition of “My Favorite Things.” He was joined by the extraordinary 21-year-old rising star alto saxophonist Ebban Dorsey, and young pianist Luther Allison (who was picked up serendipitously for the set), who also backed Ekep Nkwelle at the festival. James had a full backing quartet for the performance, which was very good, marred only by perhaps too much talking that detracted somewhat from the show.
Miles Electric Band – To celebrate the centennial of Miles, Emmy and Grammy Award-winning producer/drummer and radio host Vince Wilburn Jr. (who was also a nephew of the late jazz icon and currently oversees Miles Davis Properties, LLC, along with Miles’ son Erin and daughter Cheryl) has assembled an all-star band focusing on the electric side of Miles’ expansive repertoire. Drummer Wilburn brought quite a crew -,Darryl Jones – Bass, Jason Kibler aka DJ Logic, Jean Paul Bourelly – guitar, Greg Spero – keys, Robert Irving III– keys, Musical Director, Munyungo Jackson – percussion, Rasaki Aladokun – percussion, Antoine Roney – saxophones, bass clarinet, Keyon Harrold – trumpet.
The repertoire surprisingly stayed clear of Bitches Brew, Agharta, Dark Magus, On the Corner, and others, but focused on material preceding those albums and on some later-period material familiar to Wilburn. Dj Logic interspersed Miles’ voice three or four times during the performance, usually over a percussion solo. The set was ear-splitting LOUD, and although there were not that many visible walkouts, there was chatter about the volume from several that I later spoke to. Nonetheless, this was a group of ten highly proficient musicians. The front line of Harrold and Roney was exceptional, as was the driving force of the rhythm section and the dual keyboardists. Though we’ll spare you the list of soloists, here is the setlist: “Prelude (Dj Logic)”, “Jack Johnson,” “It Gets Better,” “In a Silent Way/It’s About That Time”, “Selim,” “Nefertiti,” “Decoy,” “Medley Time After Time/Human Nature,” “Footprints,” “Pharoahj/Knights of Cadiz,” “Portia-Jean Pierre.”
Ekep Nkwelle– With a trajectory rivaling that of Samara Joy a few years ago, 26-year-old Cameroonian-American singer Ekep Nkwelle is the “next big thing.” She has it all: a superb sense of dynamics, intonation, phrasing, poise, and charming charisma. Keep her on your radar. Her Mack Avenue debut is pegged for October. Nkwelle had four performances, three of which yours truly witnessed. One was at the aforementioned intimate venue that had a Steinway, while the other two were on the Deck on Sunday. She has already been compared to greats and role models such as Abbey Lincoln, Sarah Vaughan, and Betty Carter. Yet, she has a little bit of Dianne Reeves’ flair as well. Though she is proficient at standards, her arrangements of “The Creator Has a Master Plan” and Geri Allen’s “Timeless Portraits and Dreams” are the real crowd pleasers, along with a gospel or blues number that closes her set. Her duet with pianist Luther Allison on Elington’s “Come Sunday” is especially precious. Besides, she has the flamboyant bassist Russel Hall backing her, along with energetic drummer Brian Richman Jr. She is destined for bigger stages soon.
Walter Smith III Trio– Tenor man Walter Smith III is squarely in the tradition of the tenor saxophone trio, like the ones led by Sonny Rollins and Joe Henderson, evidenced by his latest Blue Note release, Twio, Vol. 2, On the album he leads a rangy and resourceful trio with Joe Sanders on bass and Kendrick Scott on drums; but on Friday night’s opening Convention Hall show, he teamed with lontime colleague, bassist Harish Raghavan and newcomer to his band, drummer Savannah Harris. The trio’s set was very intense, with Smith going into aggressive beast mode from the outset. From this vantage point, there were not too many selections from the album except for a brilliant rendering of Carla Bley’s “Lawns.” Smith displayed some wit, dedicating the ballad “I’ll be Seeing You” to the Sixers’ Joel Embiid. Other memorable selections were Mingus’ “Ellington’s Sound of Love” and a tune from Sam Rivers to close his partly composed, highly improvised set.
Partial Sets That Impressed and a Missed Opportunity.
Edguardo Cintron’s Latin band delivered a rambunctious tribute to Tito Puente both in the Hall and on the deck. On Saturday, we were blessed to hear the ten-piece Brazilian dance music band, Bloco Funk. For Carmen Lundy’s performance, I opted to hear Ekep Nkwelle. Yet, for some reason, I was unable to hear the emerging saxophonist Sarah Hanrahan. Those who did raved about her performance. Finally, this one falls into the area of disappointment. The Festival booklet described Ravi Coltrane’s performance as a sextet with a three-horn front line, presumably in dedication to his father’s music. Instead, Ravi introduced a new project (the name was unclear) featuring trumpeter Jonathan Finlayson, drummer Eli Howell, and a keyboardist (name unclear). The keyboardist played lots of bass with his left hand on the electric keyboard. The program began with non-Coltrane material, which they likely addressed later, but I decided to leave early to avoid shore traffic, well satisfied with the weekend performances.
Held twice a year, the festival returns on October 23-25. Already booked are Chucho Valdez (85th Birthday Celebration), tribute to Eddie Palmieri, The Marcus Miller Band, New Jazz Underground, The BEAT Trio, and Danilo Perez, with booking still underway. Visit www.exitzerojazzfestival.com for more details.
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