Bill Frisell-Julian Lage Duo at Healdsburg Jazz Festival at Healdsburg Shed

It is fitting that the Healdsburg Jazz Festival 20th Anniversary edition is starting out with a duet of the two most creative guitarists in jazz. Julian Lage, of course, is no stranger to the festival. A Santa Rosa native who made his debut at the festival in 2000 when he was all of 12, Julian is an HJF all-star, having performed onstage here approximately a dozen times. And those who have seen him would no doubt agree, it isn’t enough.

Bill Frisell is also a Healdsburg veteran, and it’s pretty clear that he created the template that Julian is following. Not that they sound alike. In fact, it is their dramatically different styles that make their collaboration so exciting to anticipate. Since releasing his first album in 1983, Frisell has pushed open the territory of what people generally consider jazz....

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It is fitting that the Healdsburg Jazz Festival 20th Anniversary edition is starting out with a duet of the two most creative guitarists in jazz. Julian Lage, of course, is no stranger to the festival. A Santa Rosa native who made his debut at the festival in 2000 when he was all of 12, Julian is an HJF all-star, having performed onstage here approximately a dozen times. And those who have seen him would no doubt agree, it isn’t enough.

Bill Frisell is also a Healdsburg veteran, and it’s pretty clear that he created the template that Julian is following. Not that they sound alike. In fact, it is their dramatically different styles that make their collaboration so exciting to anticipate. Since releasing his first album in 1983, Frisell has pushed open the territory of what people generally consider jazz.

Just looking at the two previous shows he played at Healdsburg festivals gives an idea of what this means. The first was with pianist Jason Moran’s high-flying post-bop trio Bandwagon in 2010, the second in 2013 with the Haden family, a country-folk vocal outfit featuring the late great bassist Charlie Haden’s daughters. To Frisell there is no separation between these two genres – he just knew that he was going to bring jazz-forged virtuosity and sensitivity to each occasion.

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