Over the Festival’s history, artists have had an informal role in the production and artistic selection of the festival, including John Lewis, Dizzy Gillespie, and many others who acted as guest soloists with the Next Generation Jazz Orchestra festival weekend. This role was revisited in 1994 when Tim Jackson rebooted the program to highlight specific artists during festival weekend.

In 2004, the Artist-In-Residence program was revamped to include visits to to the Next Generation Jazz Festival and Summer Jazz Camp outside the festival weekend. Violinist Regina Carter was the first Artist-In-Residence to fulfill this expanded educational role.

With the modern and revamped program now in its 13th year, the Artists-In-Residence for 2017 and the 60th annual Monterey Jazz Festival will be bassist/composer John Clayton, drummer Jeff Hamilton and pianist/composer Gerald Clayton. It is the first time in the Festival’s history that a father and son have been chosen in this role, and they will join jazz luminaries and past Artists-In-Residence Branford Marsalis, Regina Carter, Kurt Elling, Terence Blanchard, Christian McBride, Dianne Reeves, Joshua Redman, Ambrose Akinmusire, Joe Lovano, Eric Harland, Wynton Marsalis and the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra, and Terri Lyne Carrington in this important and vital educational position at Montetrey Jazz Festival.

This program is supported in part by an award from the National Endowment for the Arts.