Vail Jazz at Vail Square will take place on Thursdays throughout the summer from 6 pm to 8 pm. On September 1st the Alumni Quintet + House Band will perform. Call it a musical homecoming…a jazz family reunion–the last of our Thursday night jazz journeys is almost a religious experience for fans, and always the highlight of the Vail Jazz @ Vail Square season. As the exuberant kickoff to the Vail Jazz Party, this trinity of tonal treats opens with the Vail Jazz All-Stars (in residency at the Vail Jazz Workshop)–a dozen of the best and brightest high school jazz players in the nation, whose infectious enthusiasm always brings Vail audiences to their feet. Adding further to the evening’s merry-making is the Vail Jazz Alumni Quintet–five former Vail Jazz Workshop students including Adam Bravo (piano ‘06), Russell Hall (bass ‘10), Lucianna Padmore (drums ‘97), Benny Benack III (trumpet ‘08), and Braxton Cook (alto saxophone ‘09). And the grand finale of the night, the Vail Jazz House Band, spotlighting fan favorites John Clayton (bass), Jeff Clayton (alto sax), Bill Cunliffe (piano), Terell Stafford (trumpet), Wycliffe Gordon (trombone) and Lewis Nash (drums). Plan to come early; it’s always standing room only for the multigenerational musical fireworks as six of the world’s most revered jazz mentors share the stage with a coterie of their top disciples on this very special night.