A Jive Jumpin Heck Of A Good Time, KUVO’s Jazz In The Vineyards 2024 Delivers, LLD Review

By Joe Contreras, Latin Life Denver Media (see videos and photo galleries of this year’s event and from years gone by below

It was a jive jumpin heck of a good time at KUVO’s 19th annual “Jazz in the Vineyards”, August 17, 2024 at Denver’s Balistreri Vineyards. The sold out crowd enjoyed music from the New Orleans sounds of Delfeayo Marsalis and the internationally renowned Uptown Jazz Orchestra. Guests enjoyed culinary delights from more than 15 of Denver’s top chefs and restaurants. A warm afternoon turned into a beautiful moonlit evening as hundreds of guests ate, drank and danced the night away.

Previous “Jazz in the Vineyards” events have featured groups such as the Spanish Harlem Orchestra in 2018 (see article & photos HERE). (see photos from 2019.) The legendary Bobby Watson and his All-Star Quartet & Kansas City Jump Band had everyone on their feet in 2017. Nearly 2,000 people packed the grounds at Balistreri Vineyards on August 8, 2015 to celebrate the 30th anniversary of KUVO Radio with the H2 Big Band 16-piece Orchestra and special guest vocalist Kevin Mahogany. Monty Alexander and the Harlem -Kingston Express entertained in 2011

Delfeayo Marsalis and the internationally renowned Uptown Jazz Orchestra brought down the house at the KUVO radio 19th Annual Jazz in the Vineyards. Video by Latin Life Denver Media.

Tina has been a part of the KUVO family since 1990. During her tenure at KUVO, she has developed the Membership and Underwriting Departments, coordinated all “Live at the Oasis” CD series, helped the station’s annual budget reach $1,000,000, and developed the station’s website (past and current). Photo by Latin Life Denver Media.

Coordinated by KUVO’s Tina Cartagena, Senior Vice President of Radio & News Media, along with her staff and volunteers this year’s event was again another stunning success. “It was lit! Had a blast with our wonderful listeners and supporters! Delfeayo Marsalis and the Uptown Jazz Orchestra brought the house down!” stated KUVO radio personality Paul Donovan on a social media post. “KUVO Jazz and Live at the Vineyards did it again! Oh what a night! Great to be with friends” stated another post by Carrie McKee Vice President of Partnerships & Special Projects at Rocky Mountain PBS

KUVO’s Jazz in the Vineyards has become quite the annual social affair and despite it’s high end appearance it is intended to be affordable to the community at large. “We could sell tickets at much higher price point given the popularity of the event and I have been encouraged to do so,” KUVO’s Tina Cartagena told Latin Life Denver Media. “But we want this event to be available to all our community of listeners so we keep the price affordable for most everyone. This year’s event was sold out weeks in advance and attracted an audience as diverse as KUVO’s tag line: Community, Culture and Music.

The music was great and so was the food and the wine. Oh my! Admission included six wine tastings as well as a full glass of your favorite selection. The wine tasting by Balistreri Vineyards also included KUVO’s Signature wines. The “Gourmet Feast” was just that with generous food offerings including a wide variety of cuisine from French delicacies to New Orleans barbeque, to Latin inspired dishes which included a food truck from Mexico City. There was so much to choose from it was challenging if not impossible to sample it all. The fruit and cheese tables are always a big hit as well.

The Jazz in the Vineyards, KUVO’s signature annual fundraising event, featured, beyond all the great music and cuisine an online silent auction and in person silent auction that included a trip to New Orleans, lots of great art and an “everyone wins” auction for $20 whereby you select a numbered cork and you’ll win the prize with the corresponding number. I won two tickets to the upcoming Buena Vista Social Club Orchestra concert at Denver’s Paramount Theatre September 10th. What a deal!

“Summertime” and the liven is easy….The Delfeayo Marsalis & the Uptown Jazz Orchestra presented an evening of non-stop fun! Acclaimed trombonist, composer, and producer, Delfeayo Marsalis has dedicated his career to music theatre and education. In 2007, NEA Jazz Master and Grammy Award-winning Delfeayo Marsalis formed the Uptown Jazz Orchestra (UJO) to keep important jazz music, he realized that the New Orleans music community was lacking the infusion of young homegrown talent outside the great brass band tradition and chose to form an orchestra that could present traditional, classic, and modern composition, with authenticity. UJO has grown into one of the premier large ensembles in the world, releasing three CDs to critical acclaim, and touring locally, nationally, and internationally. This 15-piece orchestra will presented an unforgettable evening of music.

Congratulations to Tina Cartagena and all the KUVO staff and volunteers for again putting on a fantastic, wonderful and beautiful event. You may want to get your tickets extra early for next year’s 20th Jazz in the Vineyards event. Next year’s event will feature concerts by not one but two renowned musical guests and their orchestras.

Photos by Latin Life Denver Media