Last year's festival occurred in the midst of several noted events for the music genre, including the centennial of the birth of Louis Armstrong, and in 2003, the festival celebrates its 25th anniversary.
This year's festival, which begins Saturday, has a more intimate approach to its mission of educating, exposing and performing great jazz, said James Ketch, festival director. "(The 2002 festival) is a little smaller, but we still have a very broad festival this year," Ketch said.
The 2002 Carolina Jazz Festival, titled "Celebrating the Spirit of Jazz," will begin on Feb. 23 and runs through the week. The festival will feature a week's worth of concerts, forums and educational clinics.
Jazz pianist Cyrus Chestnut and the One For All Sextet will headline the festival with performances on March 1 and March 2 respectively.
"(Chestnut) is what people think of as a quintessential jazz musician," said Jennifer Smith, marketing and design manager of the Carolina Union. Chestnut and his accompanying quartet will also conduct two clinics with UNC jazz students during his time in Chapel Hill.
The One For All Sextet, the festival's artists-in-residence, will teach and coach UNC student musicians in addition to performing at the festival.
"The artists-in-residence will spend time with the students the whole time they're here, giving clinics, (sitting in on classes) and rehearsing with the students," said Scott Warner, a festival organizer.
One of the new features of this year's festival is Jazz After Hours, a series of performances beginning at 11 p.m. by student musicians and visiting artists at several Chapel Hill night spots.
One of the festival's major goals, education, will be reached through forums and symposiums that feature both UNC students and music experts.
