For Immediate Release                                                                                   
Contact: Kristin Tutino, (585) 258-0253

WXXI FILMS THREE ACTS AT THE ROCHESTER INTERNATIONAL JAZZ FESTIVAL TO AIR ON PBS
WXXI-TV and Radio present special jazz broadcasts June 13 – June 20

Rochester, New York (June 9, 2008) – WXXI will film three Rochester International Jazz Festival (RIJF) performances at Kilbourn Hall as part of its 2008 ROCHESTER INTERNATIONAL JAZZ FESTIVAL series, which will premiere Summer 2009 on WXXI-TV 21, and on PBS stations across the country. The tapings will include: The Bad Plus on Saturday, June 14 at 6 p.m., Slide Hampton & Friends on Tuesday, June 17 at 6 p.m., and Catherine Russell on Saturday, June 21 at 6 p.m. This will be WXXI’s third season of the series, which has been seen by more than three million viewers across the country. In addition to being on-site for the filming, and hosting a free screening of its 1970s series At The Top on Sunday, June 15 at the Eastman Theatre, WXXI will present special RIJF coverage and jazz programming throughout the nine-day event. A list of programs and descriptions are below. A complete list of jazz programs and events can also be found at <WXXI.org/jazzfest>.

6/13, 6/16-20 – Special Jazz Festival News Segments on WXXI Radio
WXXI will produce daily segments to air during All Things Considered. From 5:50–6:00 p.m., June 13 and June 16-20, tune in to hear features and interviews with artists, organizers, vendors and music lovers. All Things Considered airs on WXXI-AM 1370, WRUR-FM 88.5, and WJSL-FM 90.3 in Houghton. Morning Edition, airing weekdays from 5 a.m. to 10 a.m.,will also have daily coverage and previews during the hourly newscasts.

6/13– 1370 Connection tribute to Dizzy Gillespie
RPO Pops Director Jeff Tyzik joins 1370 Connection host Bob Smith for a tribute to Dizzy Gillespie on a special Jazz Festival broadcast Friday, June 13 at 12 noon on AM1370/HD91.5-2.

6/15– At The Top free screening at the Eastman Theatre
WXXI will host a free screening of WXXI’s 1970s series At The Top on Sunday, June 15 beginning at 4 p.m. at the Eastman Theatre. In the mid-1970s, WXXI produced a series of one-hour jazz programs that were shown nationally on PBS. Most of the programs were filmed in Rochester at the Top of the Plaza, which is how the series got its name, At the Top. WXXI-AM 1370’s Mostly Jazz Tom Hampson, who was present at the 1970 filming of the programs featured, will briefly share his memories of each of the performances.

Other programs – Throughout the week, What’s New (Sundays at 10 p.m. onAM1370/HD91.5-2), Mostly Jazz (Sundays at 7 p.m. on AM1370/HD91.5-2), Open Tunings (weekdays, 9 a.m. to 12 noon on WRUR-FM 88.5)and Salmagundy (weekdays, 6 a.m. to 10 a.m. on Classical 91.5/90.3/HD91.5-1) will feature jazz music.

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