Great Sounds

Great Sounds | Acrylic on canvas | 30" x 50" | December 2005 | Framed

The piece "Great Sounds," painted by Ligel Lambert, was selected as the artwork for the 2006 Jacksonville Jazz Festival. The 2006 Jacksonville Jazz Festival, held April 6–9, featured events scheduled across three prominent cultural venues: the Florida Theatre, Metropolitan Park, and the Ritz Theatre & LaVilla Museum (City of Jacksonville, n.d.). Together, these locations reflected the Festival’s long-standing mission to integrate historic performance spaces, outdoor riverfront settings, and culturally significant institutions into a single, citywide celebration of jazz.

The Jacksonville Jazz Festival is among the longest-running jazz festivals in the southeastern United States. Established in 1979 and later anchored in downtown Jacksonville, the Festival has consistently positioned itself as both a major musical event and a civic initiative supported by the City of Jacksonville (City of Jacksonville, n.d.). By 2006, the Festival had evolved into a multi-day program showcasing internationally acclaimed artists alongside regional and emerging talent, and it also incorporated educational and competitive components, such as the Jacksonville Jazz Piano Competition at the Florida Theatre (Florida Theatre, n.d.).

Ligel Lambert’s Great Sounds was selected as the official Festival artwork through a juried process administered by the City of Jacksonville’s Office of Special Events. Chosen from submissions by more than 40 artists, the painting was recognized for its ability to visually convey the movement, rhythm, and improvisational character of jazz (Lambert, 2006). The selection marked a significant milestone, as Lambert became the first artist outside Florida to be selected for the Festival’s official artwork (Lambert, 2006). Great Sounds served as a unifying visual identity for the 2006 Festival, appearing in promotional materials and reinforcing the Festival’s commitment to interdisciplinary artistic expression.

Musically, the 2006 Festival presented a diverse and high-profile lineup. Headlining performers included legendary pianist and composer Herbie Hancock and internationally recognized saxophonist Kenny G, alongside additional artists such as Jane Monheit, Peter Cincotti, and The Rippingtons (Jacksonville Daily Record, 2006). Performances ranged from large-scale outdoor concerts at Metropolitan Park to more intimate, acoustically focused presentations at the Florida Theatre and the Ritz Theatre & LaVilla Museum, allowing audiences to experience jazz across a variety of formats and settings (Ritz Theatre & LaVilla Museum, n.d.).

The 2006 Festival also represented a transitional moment in its operational model. That year, the City of Jacksonville implemented admission fees for Metropolitan Park performances to offset rising production costs. While this shift resulted in lower attendance compared with prior free-admission years, it reflected a strategic effort to ensure the Festival’s financial sustainability while maintaining artistic quality (Jacksonville Daily Record, 2006).

Collectively, the 2006 Jacksonville Jazz Festival exemplified the Festival’s broader cultural significance as a convergence of music, visual art, history, and community engagement. The selection of Great Sounds by Ligel Lambert underscored jazz’s influence beyond sound, positioning visual art as an essential component of the Festival’s identity and legacy (Lambert, 2006).

References

City of Jacksonville. (n.d.). Jacksonville Jazz Festival history. Jacksonville Jazz Festival. https://jacksonvillejazzfest.com/history/

Jacksonville Jazz Festival. (2006). The City of Jacksonville presents the Jacksonville Jazz Festival [Festival program brochure]. University of North Florida Digital Commons. https://digitalcommons.unf.edu/jacksonville_jazz_text/27/

Jacksonville Daily Record. (2006, April 10). Smaller crowds, but big time at Jazz Fest. https://www.jaxdailyrecord.com/news/2006/apr/10/smaller-crowds-big-time-jazz-fest/

Lambert, L. (2006). Judges chose Ligel Lambert’s artwork to represent the 2006 Jacksonville Jazz Festival. https://ligel.com/blogs/news/judges-choose-ligel-lamberts-artwork-to-represent-the-2006-jacksonville-jazz-festival

Ritz Theatre (Jacksonville). (n.d.). Ritz Theatre. In Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ritz_Theatre_(Jacksonville)