Community Calendar

Foundry Hall presents the 9th annual South Haven Jazz Festival on September 18th and 19th in beautiful downtown South Haven. The free, two-day festival showcases a variety of regional musicians from small ensembles to the Lake Effect Jazz Big Band performing traditional and original music.
Friday night's highlight will be Brazilian jazz night with the Rufus Ferguson Quartet featuring Kenny Watson. On Saturday, saxophonist Lafayette Gunter, Jr. kicks off the evening with John Stites award winning pianist, Lisas Sung, Dale Bales and drummer Yuriana Sobrino Garcia.
Later Saturday evening, Creative Capital State of the Art Prize recipient, Brandon Meeks, shares his Unsung Giants program of Midwest jazz legacy stories. Closing out the night the Lake Effect Jazz Big Band will celebrate Miles Davis's 100th birthday.
The festival also showcases vocalist Yolonda Lavender's soul-based jazz and the WMU jazz vocal duo, Daunt & King.
For more information about the artists check out our website:
foundryhall.org/south-haven-jazz-festival/

Foundry Hall presents the 9th annual South Haven Jazz Festival on September 18th and 19th in beautiful downtown South Haven. The free, two-day festival showcases a variety of regional musicians from small ensembles to the Lake Effect Jazz Big Band performing traditional and original music.
Friday night's highlight will be Brazilian jazz night with the Rufus Ferguson Quartet featuring Kenny Watson. On Saturday, saxophonist Lafayette Gunter, Jr. kicks off the evening with John Stites award winning pianist, Lisas Sung, Dale Bales and drummer Yuriana Sobrino Garcia.
Later Saturday evening, Creative Capital State of the Art Prize recipient, Brandon Meeks, shares his Unsung Giants program of Midwest jazz legacy stories. Closing out the night the Lake Effect Jazz Big Band will celebrate Miles Davis's 100th birthday.
The festival also showcases vocalist Yolonda Lavender's soul-based jazz and the WMU jazz vocal duo, Daunt & King.
For more information about the artists check out our website:
foundryhall.org/south-haven-jazz-festival/

Award-winning jazz pianist and composer Dabin Ryu brings a distinctive voice shaped by her roots in Seoul and her career in New York City. A graduate of Berklee College of Music, Manhattan School of Music, and The Juilliard School, Ryu has performed with acclaimed artists including David Virelles, Randy Brecker, Anat Cohen, and Billy Harper.

Winner of the 15th UNISA International Piano Competition and the 2025 Jazz Gallery Residency Commission, Ryu has earned praise for performances that combine “fierce chops and control” with crisp, authoritative ideas. The NYC Jazz Record has called her “a force,” citing her bright energy, deep awareness of jazz history, and extraordinary command at the piano.

Ryu balances an active performing career with teaching as an associate professor at Berklee College of Music, continuing to shape the next generation of jazz musicians while pursuing her own work as a compelling artist “to keenly watch.”

Award-winning jazz pianist and composer Dabin Ryu brings a distinctive voice shaped by her roots in Seoul and her career in New York City. A graduate of Berklee College of Music, Manhattan School of Music, and The Juilliard School, Ryu has performed with acclaimed artists including David Virelles, Randy Brecker, Anat Cohen, and Billy Harper.

Winner of the 15th UNISA International Piano Competition and the 2025 Jazz Gallery Residency Commission, Ryu has earned praise for performances that combine “fierce chops and control” with crisp, authoritative ideas. The NYC Jazz Record has called her “a force,” citing her bright energy, deep awareness of jazz history, and extraordinary command at the piano.

Ryu balances an active performing career with teaching as an associate professor at Berklee College of Music, continuing to shape the next generation of jazz musicians while pursuing her own work as a compelling artist “to keenly watch.”

Pianist Caelan Cardello brings imagination, lyricism, and deep musical connection to every performance. Praised by Bill Charlap for playing that is “an extension of his soul,” Cardello has performed with celebrated artists including Christian McBride, Jimmy Cobb, and Randy Brecker.

This performance marks a return to Kalamazoo for Cardello, who previously appeared at Sounds of the Zoo in 2023. A finalist in both the 2026/27 American Piano Awards and the Herbie Hancock Institute of Jazz International Piano Competition, he is equally at home leading his own trio or collaborating with fellow artists. Among his notable collaborations is Rufus Reid Presents Caelan Cardello, a duo album with NEA Jazz Master Rufus Reid that grew from an impromptu showroom performance and was released in 2023.

A graduate of The Juilliard School, Cardello blends a strong foundation in both jazz and classical music with performances marked by spontaneity and expressive storytelling.

Pianist Caelan Cardello brings imagination, lyricism, and deep musical connection to every performance. Praised by Bill Charlap for playing that is “an extension of his soul,” Cardello has performed with celebrated artists including Christian McBride, Jimmy Cobb, and Randy Brecker.

This performance marks a return to Kalamazoo for Cardello, who previously appeared at Sounds of the Zoo in 2023. A finalist in both the 2026/27 American Piano Awards and the Herbie Hancock Institute of Jazz International Piano Competition, he is equally at home leading his own trio or collaborating with fellow artists. Among his notable collaborations is Rufus Reid Presents Caelan Cardello, a duo album with NEA Jazz Master Rufus Reid that grew from an impromptu showroom performance and was released in 2023.

A graduate of The Juilliard School, Cardello blends a strong foundation in both jazz and classical music with performances marked by spontaneity and expressive storytelling.