Breaking Waves at the Inaugural Santa Monica International Jazz Festival
May 8-9, 2026
This post also appears in Just Jazz Magazine.
Los Angeles County is home to 88 individual incorporated cities, and it is having a jazz moment. With the Blue Note coming up on its first full year in Hollywood, and so many other rooms buzzing, something has quietly been brewing with the ocean breezes of Santa Monica. That something is the Santa Monica International Jazz Festival, the brainchild of Stanley Clarke, who is not only one of the most extraordinary musicians of this (or any) time, but also has been based here for almost three decades. The SMIJF was a weeklong celebration of the music, of its emerging and established voices, of the power of the Miles-Coltrane centennial, and of the region itself. Starting Monday in Downtown Los Angeles, with a performance by pianist Hiromi, and ending Saturday in Tongva Park with Kamasi Washington just steps from the water, it was a powerful statement that should find its place on the calendar for years to come.
I attended the last two days of the festival – a tribute to John Coltrane at the intimate Broad Stage (capacity about 500) on Friday and “A Day in the Park” on Saturday. Two very different settings and vibe, but the gravity of the performances and audience response were a constant.
The Coltrane Tribute featured sets by Lakecia Benjamin, Isaiah Collier and “Tenor Madness” with Marvin “Smitty” Smith, Eric Reed, Aaron Shaw, Emilio Modeste, and Stanley Clarke (Hubert Laws was also billed, but did not perform) and was a sublime night of music from the first note. Serving as host and Artistic Director, Stanley Clarke wore his pride openly, and from the last seat in the house to the stage, the audience was as fully invested as every player on that stage. Never more so than with the rock star response to Lakecia Benjamin’s powerhouse solo on “My Favorite Things” that brought her and the room to a moment of exhausted reflection. A pause to let that moment, and the music, catch its breath before another journey.
Blue skies and Pacific air were the backdrop to Saturday. How the layout would work was TBD, and the SMIJF pulled it off. Comfortable without feeling crowded, good sight lines, an easy family friendly feel, but with the music always front and center. Knower has a growing following and an untraditional note the audience seemed to embrace. Keyon Harrold led the Miles Electric Band, before joining the most anticipated set of the festival with Stanley Clarke & Friends (one of those friends being former Police drummer Stewart Copeland and probably the only time the world will hear School Days into Message In a Bottle). Kamasi Washington was always going to close this festival, by which time a thick marine layer had absorbed the sun. Unbeknownst to the crowd, it was an especially courageous and heart-heavy set as co-founder and trombonist Ryan Porter was critically injured and fighting for his life, a situation that was not yet public at the time. Sadly, Ryan has since passed away.
The SMIJF is not a one off. Stanley Clarke announced the mayor has already committed to next year. Deservedly so.
