The saving grace was that SXM’s Real Jazz channel dedicated the entire holiday to Miles Davis in honor of his Centennial Birthday. It was not all Miles, but you could hear him play in just about every configuration known to music. Solo. Trio. Quartet. Big Band. I heard tunes from Miles for the first time. Songs I never knew he recorded. That was fun.

One song caught my attention more than the others, “Star on Cicely,” Miles’ tribute to the most important woman in his life, Cicely Tyson. Their relationship began in the ‘60’s and was famously an up and down affair until 1981 when they married. “Star on Cicely” was recorded in 1982, likely at the height of their relationship.
 
They divorced a few years later, but maintained a relationship for the rest of their lives and beyond. Their resting places are near each other in Woodlawn Cemetery, where so many jazz icons are, including our good friend Ken Peplowski. When I attended the service recently for Ken, I sheepishly asked our guide to direct me to Miles’ resting place. He pointed it out and we could see it from afar.
 
But the song “Star on Cicely” evoked another emotion in me altogether. I have learned since that the band on the song was called Miles’ Comeback Band. It included Mike Stern (guitar), Al Foster (drums), Bill Evans (reeds) and Mino Cinelu (percussion). Miles played trumpet and synthesizer.

No one needed to tell me who played electric bass. That sound could be produced by no one else but Marcus Miller. Confirming my intuition by Google made me smile. That would be the end of the story except it dawned on me that this tune was recorded 44 years ago. Marcus had just turned 23! (Note: Mark your calendar for June 14…an early Happy Birthday for Marcus and June 13, for his, and our, good friend Alonzo Bodden‘s birthday.)
 
I shared this moment with Marcus, and he offered his own memories on the Miles/Cicely relationship.
 
“I was in the band when they reunited in ’81. At that time, Miles’ health was beginning to fail. He was pretty weak moving pretty slowly. It was so beautiful to see the regal/legendary larger-than-life Cicely Tyson (of Roots fame!) lovingly attend to Miles Davis in the role of being a loving/supportive wife. She literally nurtured him back to life. 
 
I left Miles’ band in ’83 to develop my composing/producing skills. When I came back to do “Tutu” in ’85, I walked in the door on our first day working together and couldn’t believe how great Miles looked. He was a totally new, vibrant artist and he looked fantastic. I knew it was all due to Cicely. He was full of energy and humor and ready to dive into the music I had written. I’m not sure we would have had a “Tutu” or an “Amandla” if Cicely had not been there by his side. The world got another 10 years from Miles for sure because of Cicely!”

Marcus has reunited the band, with Russell Gunn assuming the Miles Davis role, and is touring this summer in honor of Miles’ Centennial. I have not seen the show yet, but I hope that “Star on Cicely” is performed. The tune is not your everyday jazz tune. It requires some thought and concentration for sure. I have four plays under my belt and I hear something different and more intense with each playing.
 
Readers of this note know that Marcus resides at the top of the music food chain at Signature Cruise Experiences. His talent, intellect, dedication and respect for music are models for everyone. Never a wasted word. Never a wasted note. When he speaks or plays, pay attention. If not, you will miss something important. There is no trivial when regarding Marcus Miller.
 
Marcus once referred to me as someone who believed in what he was doing and will ardently pursue those beliefs. That meant the world to me, even though the street interpretation of those lovely words would be “he is a stubborn ass and you cannot tell him anything.”
 
Either view is accurate. But, when the time comes to write my epitaph, I would ask that Marcus be consulted before they start inscribing in stone.

By Michael Lazaroff, Executive Director of The Jazz Cruise, The Smooth Jazz Cruise, Chris Botti at Sea, Journey of Jazz, David Foster: The Hitman Cruise and Top Shelf Country Cruise. Feel free to express your views or pose questions to him at michael@scecruises.com.

Our First ’27 Sailing Isn’t For 230 Days!
Do You Want to Wait THAT Long? 

As of today, over 13,000 guests have sailed on a Signature Cruise Experiences program in ’26. The Smooth Jazz Cruise ’26.3 (9.11.26) is fully reserved upping the guest total to 15,000. The lone remaining sailing in ’26 is Chris Botti at Sea III:

Botti at Sea III (’26)

Los Angeles – San Francisco – Victoria – Vancouver
9.18.26 – 9.25.26

Nearly fully reserved as well, the good news is that staterooms are available in select Stateroom Categories, and the great news is that planning this cruise, with a full schedule of both onboard events and on land excursions, requires us to close the manifest sooner than usual.

What that means to you is that some of the remaining inventories (Veranda/Ocean View/Inside Staterooms) are available at CloseOut Cruise Prices.

So the question becomes…would you rather spend a week this Fall sailing the stunning West Coast with Chris Botti and friends, enjoying performances by Elvis Costello, Boz Scaggs, Melody Gardot, Peabo Bryson, Regina Belle and more, exploring Napa and Sonoma wine country, riding the Napa Valley Wine Train, enjoying the cuisine and culture of San Francisco, attending a Branford Marsalis Quartet show at SFJAZZ, whale watching in Victoria and strolling through the Butchart Gardens…or….wait more than 230 days until the first Signature Cruise Experience sailing of ’27 departs in mid-January?

Opportunities like this rarely happen. Our CloseOut Sale is your invitation to join one one of the most unique and intimate music travel experiences anywhere. We would love to welcome you aboard. Reserve your stateroom today before remaining inventory is gone.

R.I.P. Tenor Titan Sonny Rollins

Earlier this week, on Monday, May 25, Sonny Rollins passed away in his home in Woodstock, NY. The iconic and influential saxophonist was 95 years old and had been suffering from various pulmonary and respiratory ailments. He hadn’t performed or recorded in many years, but was still widely acclaimed as our greatest living jazz musician. Who could argue that point?

We will not provide you with a proper obituary here, given that every major media outlet from The New York Times to NPR has provided in-depth coverage of his life and music. If you had to read just one, I’d recommend the Washington Post obituary by Matt Schudel which is both comprehensive and engaging.

Even better, we recommend without reservation Aidan Levy’s remarkable biography of Sonny, the aptly titled Saxophone Colossus. Indeed, that title would define Sonny going back to his emergence on the jazz scene in the ’50s, when he burst out of the shadow of Lester Young, Coleman Hawkins and Charlie Parker to spearhead a new modernist form of bebop.

Sonny was in fact a large figure, whose height merely reinforced his powerful sound and presence. During one of his famous hiatuses from public appearances, he retreated to the upper reaches of the Williamsburg Bridge where he not only practiced without bothering his wife or neighbors, but also worked out, doing pull-ups on the bars amidst the guardrails. There is a movement to rename the bridge in Sonny’s name. With his passing, that honor could become a reality.

We were never able to get Sonny to sail with us, either as a performer or even as a guest. He had a standing invitation to join us in the latter role, but eschewed traveling in his later years. Nonetheless, he had an outsized influence on so many of the musicians who have sailed with us over the years, including Melissa Aldana, Tivon Pennicott and Ravi Coltrane, whose father was a close friend and colleague of Sonny’s, though John Coltrane was often misperceived as a rival, thanks to their seminal recording together Tenor Madness. Bringing things full circle, Ravi performed material from that album with Tivon in a tribute to Sonny during Journey of Jazz this past September.

During his long and prolific career, Sonny recorded more than 60 albums as a leader, many of which are considered vital additions to the jazz canon. But it was his electric live performances that made him a singular figure in jazz during the 20th century. His often long solos would quote popular songs, calypsos from his family’s Virgin Islands and even nursery rhymes, all delivered with power and expression unmatched by any saxophonist, or any instrumentalist, for that matter.

“Play every concert as if it is your last time,” Sonny told JazzTimes in 2016. “That’s what I have learned. Do everything as if it is your last time.” Words to live by.

– Lee Mergner

The Sonny Rollins Bridge?

A petition is now circulating to rename the Williamsburg Bridge in Sonny Rollins’ honor, a tribute to the legendary saxophonist who famously spent months practicing alone on the bridge in the early ’60s while living on Manhattan’s Lower East Side. Supporters say the bridge symbolizes Rollins’ discipline, resilience, and enduring connection to New York City. If you wish to join the petition, click below.

Signature Cruise Experiences Congratulates Brian Culbertson

For as long as we can remember, Brian Culbertson has been a major part of the magic of The Smooth Jazz Cruise. Each year, Brian puts together a unique show that includes the very best musicians, high production value and, most of all, HIM! The amazingly talented first-class showman.

That level of creativity, attention to detail and raw talent is evident every year at his Napa Valley Jazz Getaway. The proof is that this is the 13th Annual event and, trust us, success over time is no fluke. It takes talent and work.

Be sure to sign up today for one of the various event options. We cannot think of any better place to be from June 10–13 than in Napa Valley listening to great music, enjoying great wine and hanging with Brian Culbertson and friends. Join a special show on Thursday night with Brian, Marcus Miller and Jonathan Butler.

When purchasing tickets for Thursday and/or Friday Nights, use the Promo Code: SJC27 for a 20% discount.

You do not want to miss these shows!

Signature Cruise Experiences Upcoming Programs

SCE Sailings in ’26

The Smooth Jazz Cruise ‘26.3

9.11.26 – 9.18.26
Vancouver – Victoria – San Francisco – Los Angeles

Known as “The Greatest Party at Sea,” The Smooth Jazz Cruise ’26.3 is Fully Reserved.

If you wish to join the cruise, go to the website and JOIN WAITLIST for any stateroom category you wish. All cancellations for this cruise will be filled from the waitlist.

Botti at Sea ’26

9.18.26 – 9.25.26
Los Angeles – San Francisco – Victoria – Vancouver

STATEROOM CLOSEOUT SALE IN EFFECT
For more information, see above.

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David Foster: The Hitman Cruise Encore

1.12.27 – 1.17.27
Tampa – Cozumel – Costa Maya – Tampa

David Foster: The Hitman Cruise ’26 was a runaway hit program. From the first note to the last song, the brilliance of David Foster was evident in every show and event.

The star-studded lineup for David Foster: The Hitman Cruise Encore includes Michael McDonald, Dianne Reeves, Leslie Odom Jr., Katharine McPhee, Erich Bergen and more.

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The Jazz Cruise ’27

1.17.27 – 1.24.27
Tampa – Cozumel – Belize – Costa Maya – Tampa

The Jazz Cruise is the first program that Signature Cruise Experiences ever produced. Since its first sailing in 2001, The Jazz Cruise has been the world leader in presenting “straight ahead” jazz at sea. The Jazz Cruise has reached Fully Reserved every year it has sailed and The Jazz Cruise ’27 is on its way to reaching that goal again.

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Journey of Jazz ’27

1.24.27 – 1.31.27
Tampa – New Orleans – Progreso – Tampa

Journey of Jazz ’27 will be an amazing cruise program featuring hosts Marcus Miller and Gregory Porter, a full lineup of great musicians and vocalists, a special two days in New Orleans which features Wynton Marsalis and a group of his hand-picked musicians.

In its second season, Journey of Jazz proudly combines the very best music with opportunities to live The Jazz Life.

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The Smooth Jazz Cruise

’27.1 (1.31.27 – 2.7.27)
Tampa – Ocho Rios – Grand Cayman – Tampa
  ’27.2 (2.7.27 – 2.14.27)
Tampa – Grand Cayman – Ocho Rios – Tampa

The Greatest Party at Sea presents its customary back-to-back weeklong programs in the Caribbean. Tampa is the port of embarkation and disembarkation for the first time and both sailings will call on Ocho Rios, Jamaica and Grand Cayman.

The star studded lineup is led by hosts Marcus Miller and Boney James and features Brian Culbertson, Jonathan Butler, Candy Dulfer, Kirk Whalum, Peter White and more.

Both sailings are in Open Booking and both are nearly 95% reserved at this time.

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Botti at Sea ’27

10.6.27 – 10.13.27
Boston – Portland – Saint John – Sydney –
Charlottetown – Quebec City

A Canadian itinerary in the Fall is one of the most popular cruise itineraries in the industry. Fall colors, beautiful scenery, hands on adventures in famous ports-of-call. If nothing else was taking place on the ship, a cruise with these features would be in high demand. So, when Chris Botti decided to take his amazing cruise program from Boston to Quebec City, with a full complement of the entertainers and performers that you have grown to love and expect, not only was he gilding the lily, but he was creating one of the top music cruise experiences ever offered.

Stay tuned (8.15.26) for more programming and reservation procedure details.

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The Smooth Jazz Cruise ‘27.3

10.13.27 – 10.20.27
Quebec City – Charlottetown – Sydney –
Saint John – Portland – Boston

The Smooth Jazz Cruise ‘27.3 program will be an exciting combination of our customary great music, Fall colors and other special events. Marcus Miller, Boney James, Brian Culbertson, Jonathan Butler, Candy Dulfer and others will lead the team for another edition of this iconic program.

This cruise is currently in Open Booking, where anyone may reserve any available stateroom.

The post Our Take: Miles at 100, Marcus at 23 appeared first on Signature Cruise Experiences.

Many believe that last September’s sailing of Journey of Jazz ’25 was one of the very best programs produced by Signature Cruise Experiences (SCE) in its 26 year/100+ cruise history. That program combined SCE’s trademark onboard music programs with an exciting itinerary filled with special events and excursions curated by us.

The ’25 sailing explored the jazz life with stops in San Francisco and tours in Napa and Sonoma. Jazz shows at SFAZZ and a first-class culinary tour of San Francisco were also enjoyed. That was the Special Sauce.

For Journey of Jazz ’27, we have prepared another heaping portion of Special Sauce. To quote one of New Orleans more famous chefs, Emeril Lagasse, we are “taking it up a notch…maybe more than one notch!” Marcus Miller and Gregory Porter are back as the hosts of Journey of Jazz ’27, with Marcus reprising his famous “History of Jazz” show in which he tells the story of jazz…in music! And Gregory will bring his magical voice and grand presence to every aspect of the cruise!

Ready to add a notch or two? The ’27 sailing is going to the heart of jazz, its birthplace, New Orleans! Two full days and one exciting night. Did we mention that Wynton Marsalis will be our New Orleans host for the cruise!? While in New Orleans, guests will have the choice of fine dining, special jazz shows and excursions, all curated and operated by us.

Wynton’s shows on the ship will be spaced so that every guest who wishes to dine in New Orleans and enjoy his show will be able to do so. But, I am getting way ahead of myself here. Much of this information is on the website and we highlight some of the key elements in the other parts of this edition of Jazz Notes.

If I seem very excited about this program, trust me, I am. Marcus and Gregory with Wynton in New Orleans…very cool.

Michael Lazaroff
Executive Director
Signature Cruise Experiences

Journey of Jazz ‘27 is Hosted by Marcus Miller & Gregory Porter

An iconic bassist and a generational singing voice. That is what you have when your cruise is hosted by Marcus Miller and Gregory Porter. In music, often you must choose between great musicianship and entertainment value. Both Marcus and Gregory are top musicians who can share their gifts and talents in a way that embraces the audience and creates joy.

Their secret? Both are comfortable in their own skin, know their talent and refuse to take the shortcuts in performing that “entertainers” often take. I believe the word for both men is “authentic.” Yes, they have won GRAMMY® Awards and countless other awards, but, though all were earned, none were sought.

Wynton Marsalis: The Return of New Orleans’ Native Son

Although he’s lived many more years away from New Orleans than he’s lived there, Wynton Marsalis will always be associated with that storied and very musical city. Partially because his father, Ellis Marsalis, was a lifelong patriarch for jazz in the area, both as a pianist and educator. Partially because he received his first trumpet at the age of four from the local legend Al Hirt. Partially because he was the first of several younger jazz musicians to be signed by Columbia Records in the late ’70s and early ’80s – including his brother Branford, Terence Blanchard, Donald Harrison and Harry Connick, Jr. Partially because Wynton would later become a champion of both Louis Armstrong and New Orleans jazz. But that came later.

In fact, despite being raised in a jazz household and surrounded by live jazz in the neighborhoods, Wynton initially resisted the lure of that music. He and Branford preferred playing in a funk band called the Creators around town. In an interview Wynton did with Marcus Miller on one of our cruises a few years ago, he explained that jazz came later. “My father wanted me to take lessons from a trumpeter named Teddy Riley who we called Buck,” Wynton explained. “He played Louis Armstrong’s cornet when Louis Armstrong passed away. But New Orleans music didn’t interest us then. We thought we were the Crusaders. My father said, ‘Have you called Buck yet?’ I said to him, ‘No, I didn’t call Buck.” And later, ‘Did you call Buck?’ Finally, he said, ‘Man, you need to call Buck so you can learn how to play.’ I said, ‘Man, Buck can’t even read.’ My father said, ‘Son, people can either play or they can’t play. Look at you. You can read.’”

Wynton was soon listening to artists like Clifford Brown, Dizzy Gillespie and Miles Davis. “I started to wonder if I could learn how to play jazz,” he said. “Then I got a gig with some college kids playing at a club. When I was 15, they called the house and one guy, a bass player named Alvin Young, called the house and asked me, ‘Are you Ellis’s son?’ I said, “Well, yea, there are five of us.’ He said, ‘No, are you the one who plays trumpet?’ I said, ‘Yes.” He said, ‘Can you play a gig with us at this place called Tyler’s Bear Gardens?” I said, ‘What are y’all playing?’ He said, ‘You know, tunes like Chick Corea, Herbie Hancock.’ I couldn’t really play on changes at that time and I told him that I’m gonna be real sad. He said, ‘It’s all right. We’re all sad to start. You’ll get better.’” Indeed, Wynton did get better.

Ironically, it was classical music that brought him to New York City and put him on a path to international acclaim. Wynton was barely a teenager when an older musician introduced him to the virtuoso playing of classical trumpet Maurice Andre. “I said to myself, I wonder if I could learn how to play like him,” Wynton explained. “So I start practicing to play classical music off the record.” He was just 14 years old when he won a competition and performed Haydn‘s trumpet concerto with the New Orleans Philharmonic. Wynton has not forgotten his first rehearsal with that group. “When they played that first chord of the Haydn concerto, and that unbelievable big E flat chord filled the room, I got goosebumps,” he recalled. “The sound of it with 60 or so people playing it was so deep and full. All the times I’ve played concertos and played with orchestras, I always would go back to that first sound I heard.”

For Wynton, classical music offered him the opportunity to leave New Orleans. He had seen his father struggle economically as a local musician and he had also experienced racism in that city. After being admitted to the prestigious summer program at Tanglewood Music Center, Wynton applied and got into the Juilliard School. But like Miles Davis before him and Christian McBride after him, he left Juilliard to play jazz with his heroes, in Wynton’s case with Art Blakey and the Jazz Messengers. 

That apprenticeship would lead to a storied career as a bandleader and composer and eventually the founding of Jazz at Lincoln Center, which has become the premier jazz organization in the world. More on that in a later edition of Jazz Notes. But despite being exposed to the music of Louis Armstrong, Wynton would only come to appreciate his genius later. “I was 17 and had a tape of Armstrong’s music,” Wynton said. “My father said I had to learn (Armstrong’s 1938 classic) ‘Jubilee.’ At the time I was learning solos by Freddie Hubbard, complicated things. ‘Jubilee’ was simple — and I couldn’t play it. Learning to play it made me understand I really had to study his songs. So, I started learning Armstrong’s music and his style. Being from New Orleans, I was aware of his style when I was young, from marching band and all the experiences he had, but I certainly didn’t know this was something you needed to study. We didn’t know the history well enough so we felt like Lous Armstrong was old-fashioned. We had a preconceived notion of him that kept us from appreciating how significant he was then and is now.”

During the last few decades Wynton has become one of the most foremost champions not only of Armstrong but of New Orleans jazz. That’s why it’s exciting for us to present Wynton and his group in performances in his hometown during Journey of Jazz ’27.

Lee Mergner
Jazz Consultant

Journey of Jazz ‘27 Presents Superstar Performers

When your headliners are Marcus Miller, Gregory Porter and Wynton Marsalis, the rest of the lineup can sometimes be overlooked. Not so on Journey of Jazz ’27.

GRAMMY® Winner Ledisi’s contribution to the Journey of Jazz concept will be her amazing tribute to Dinah Washington. She will perform many of the songs from her For Dinah tribute album along with the songs that have made Ledisi one of the top vocalists.

Winning GRAMMY® Awards has become routine to pianist Sullivan Fortner. Whether he is leading his own group or accompanying superstar vocalists, Sullivan has become one of the top names in jazz and a “go to” pianist for many.

Cyrille Aimee has been a star on many Signature Cruise Experiences’ programs over the years. Her French background will be the perfect tone and expression for our trip to New Orleans.

The list of instrumentalists reads like an all-star band: Sean Jones, Wycliffe Gordon, Edmar Castaneda, Herlin Riley, Kurt Rosenwinkel, Gregoire Maret, Taylor Eigsti, Harold Lopez–Nussa, Gerald Clayton and, our Music Director, Eric Marienthal. Each one an accomplished leader and band member.

Journey of Jazz ‘27 Presents “Bucket List” Excursions:
The Very Best of New Orleans Will Be Available to YOU!

Journey of Jazz ‘27 will overnight in New Orleans, providing guests with two full days and one night to enjoy the wonders of the Birthplace of Jazz. We have curated a host of great excursions just for our guests, ranging from brunch at Brennan’s (we have secured the entire restaurant), to boat tours of the city, to fabulous jazz shows at local venues. 

The best way to check out the excursions the website: https://journeyofjazz.com/sce-excursions/, but here are a few of the highlights:

Sightseeing Tours

• Discover Magazine Street
• Natchez Steamboat Tour
• Mardi Gras World Tour
• Hidden Gems of New Orleans City Tour

Dining

• Antoine’s
• Arnaud’s
• Commander’s Palace
• Brennan’s (brunch)

Concerts

• New Orleans Jazz and Blues Market – Kermit Ruffins
• New Orleans Jazz and Blues Market – Donald Harrison

Back-to-Back with The Jazz Cruise ’27 and The Smooth Jazz Cruise ’27.1

Journey of Jazz ’27 was intentionally scheduled between The Jazz Cruise ’27 and The Smooth Jazz Cruise ’27.1. Though each of those cruises has its own identity, there are sufficient similarities between Journey of Jazz ’27 in terms of lineup and musical styles with each of the other programs that guests could easily create a two-week special music cruise vacation.

Benefits and pricing for sailing back-to-back will be dependent upon the Sailing History of the guest. If interested in doing so, please contact us at the office for Cruise Prices and other information.  

Great Time to Reserve a Stateroom

Journey of Jazz ’25 was fully reserved months before sailing, so we advise guests to select a stateroom and complete a reservation now.  

And, the sooner you finalize your reservation, the sooner you can reserve your spot on one of the amazing excursions in New Orleans. Stateroom selection and reservation may be completed online or by calling the office during regular business hours.

Signature Cruise Experiences Upcoming Programs

SCE Sailings in ’26

The Smooth Jazz Cruise

  ’26.3 (9.11.26 – 9.18.26)

34th Sailing of The Greatest Party at Sea

Known as “The Greatest Party at Sea,” The Smooth Jazz Cruise ’26.3, which departs from Vancouver on 9.11.26 and sails to Victoria, BC and San Francisco, before terminating in Los Angeles on 9.18.26 is fully reserved. If you wish to try to join the cruise, go to the website and JOIN WAITLIST for any stateroom category you wish. All cancellations for this cruise will be filled from the waitlist.

Botti at Sea III (’26)

9.18.26 – 9.25.26
The West Coast Edition – The Perfect Music Experience

When The Smooth Jazz Cruise ’26.3 docks in Los Angeles, we will turn around and head back to Vancouver (via San Francisco and Victoria BC) under the guidance of superstar Chris Botti. Chris Botti at Sea III will be the perfect combination of a topflight music cruise and exciting excursions.  

Joining Chris on the cruise are several icons of the world of music:  Elvis Costello, Boz Scaggs, Melody Gardot, Peabo Bryson, Regina Belle and many others. When in San Francisco, guests may take winery tours in Napa and Sonoma, spend the day on the Napa Valley Wine Train, sample the finest cuisine in San Francisco and much more.  

Another menu of excursions awaits guests when the cruise docks in Victoria, BC. Trust us, this is the perfect music experience!

SCE Sailings in ’27

David Foster: The Hitman Cruise ’27

1.12.27 – 1.17.27

Encore! Encore!

David Foster: The Hitman Cruise ’26 (Foster ’26) was a runaway hit program. From the first note to the last song, the brilliance of David Foster was evident in every show and event. As you recall, David wanted to learn more about how the cruise programs unfold before he casted the lineup for David Foster: The Hitman Cruise Encore Sailing ’27.

That moment has arrived. Last week, the lineup for David Foster: The Hitman Cruise Encore Sailing ’27 was announced and includes Michael McDonald, Dianne Reeves, Katharine McPhee, Erich Bergen and more.

Foster ’26 Guests are currently able to finalize rebooking of their staterooms through April 10, after which Pre-Sail Reservations holders will be eligible to select a stateroom and complete their reservation. There is still time to complete a Pre-Sail Reservation (no deposit or obligation required) on the website here

The Jazz Cruise ’27

1.17.27 – 1.24.27

Still the Greatest Jazz Festival at Sea

The Jazz Cruise is the first program that Signature Cruise Experiences ever produced. Since its first sailing in 2001, The Jazz Cruise has been the world leader in presenting “straight ahead” jazz at sea. 
 
The Jazz Cruise has reached “fully reserved” every year it has sailed and The Jazz Cruise ’27 is on its way to reaching that goal again. Open Booking began on February 24, 2026 and the cruise is nearly 80% reserved.  

Journey of Jazz ’27

1.24.27 – 1.31.27

Now in Open Booking

Journey of Jazz ’27 is in Open Booking. For more information, check out the articles above.

The Smooth Jazz Cruise

  ’27.1 (1.31.27 – 2.7.27)
  ’27.2 (2.7.27 – 2.14.27)
2 Sailings of “The Greatest Party at Sea”

The Greatest Party at Sea presents its customary back to back weeklong programs in the Caribbean. Tampa is the port of embarkation and disembarkation for the first time and both sailings will call on Ocho Rios, Jamaica and Grand Cayman.

The star studded lineup is led by hosts Marcus Miller and Boney James and features Brian Culbertson, Jonathan Butler, Candy Dulfer, Kirk Whalum, Peter White and more.

Both sailings are in “Open Booking” and both are 90% reserved at this time.

Botti at Sea IV (’27)

10.6.27 – 10.13.27

Chris Botti Takes His Cruise from Boston to Quebec

A Canadian itinerary in the Fall is one of the most popular cruise itineraries in the industry. Fall colors, beautiful scenery, hands on adventures in famous ports-of-call. If nothing else was taking place on the ship, a cruise with these features would be in high demand. So, when Chris Botti decided to take his amazing cruise program from Boston to Quebec City, with a full complement of the entertainers and performers that you have grown to love and expect, not only was he gilding the lily, but he was creating one of the top music cruise experiences ever offered.

Stay tuned for more programming and reservation procedure details. As is always the case on a Signature Cruise Experiences program, guests on Botti at Sea III (’26) (’26 Guests) will be able to rebook their current staterooms and those who are not ’26 Guests will be eligible to submit a Pre-Sail Reservation which will establish their stateroom selection priority after the ’26 Guests complete their rebooking procedure.
 
Look for most of this to happen around 8.15.26!

The Smooth Jazz Cruise ‘27.3

10.13.27 – 10.20.27

This program will be an exciting combination of our customary great music, Fall colors and other special events. 

Currently, guests sailing on The Smooth Jazz Cruise ’26.3 (’26 Guests) have the exclusive opportunity to reserve their ’26 stateroom for The Smooth Jazz Cruise ’27.3 through 3.31.26. Those who are not ’26 Guests may establish their priority for selecting a stateroom for that cruise by completing a Pre-Sail Reservation.

The post Jazz Notes: 3.25.26 appeared first on Signature Cruise Experiences.

Wynton Marsalis joining Journey of Jazz ’27 may be the most exciting headline for Jazz Notes that we have ever presented! Each of these three jazz icons are among the most talented in the world! Individually, they are headliners, collectively they are a “can’t miss” event! 

For those not yet “hip” to Journey of Jazz, our first sailing was a 7-day trip from Vancouver to Los Angeles, with a full day in Victoria and an overnight in San Francisco. While in those ports, the guests were treated to special jazz programs, high-end dining, excursions to wine country and more.

Musically, the cruise traced the origins of jazz and highlighted its past, near-past and current trends. From a leading Big Band to iconic vocalists to famous instrumentalists to the offspring of some of the greatest musicians ever, the cruise blended musical, culinary and participatory experiences that have defined and supported the jazz community for years.

Yes, the “Journey” was more than a 7-day cruise. It was a trip through the history of jazz and a menu of experiences that jazz fans have savored for decades. To many, Journey of Jazz ’25 was the perfect jazz outing. We agreed and are creating another chapter in this “Journey” for January 24 – 31, 2027 on Celebrity Cruises’ Summit.

Marcus and Gregory are returning as your hosts and the itinerary features an overnight in New Orleans, the birthplace of jazz. Your “tour guide” for New Orleans will be none other than Wynton Marsalis. Be sure to check out Lee Mergner’s touching and insightful take below on what Wynton Marsalis means to jazz and what his participation in Journey of Jazz ’27 means to the program (and to you).

From now through December 12, 2025, Guests who sailed on Journey of Jazz ’25 have the exclusive right to rebook their ’25 stateroom for Journey of Jazz ’27.

Those who did not sail in ’25 may establish their priority for Journey of Jazz ’27 through the Pre-Sail Reservation procedure. Instructions for rebooking or for completing a Pre-Sail Reservation may be found on the Journey of Jazz ’27 website.

I have buried the most important date – December 3, 2025 – the day that we present the Program Lineup for the cruise. With the announcement of Marcus Miller, Gregory Porter and Wynton Marsalis, Journey of Jazz ’27 is off to an amazing start, but, trust me, there will be more. We will also begin to share the details of the various NOLA excursions and events. Our team of NOLA experts are working overtime to create events that are unique and on-brand with our world of jazz.

Whether you are Rebooking or completing a Pre-Sail Reservation, no Deposit is required and no obligation is made until ten (10) days AFTER the announcement of the Program Lineup.

Signature Cruise Experiences has been on a “journey” for jazz since 2001. Creating a cruise program that highlights that odyssey has been one of the most rewarding experiences in our history. The best part being sharing it with you.

Michael Lazaroff
Executive Director
Signature Cruise Experiences

The GRAMMY® Nominations Are Announced

The GRAMMY® nominations were announced last Friday, November 7, and, as is always the case, the nominees included several artists with ties to Signature Cruise Experiences’ programs.

From Christian McBride’s World at Sea:

• Christian McBride was nominated in three categories: Best Jazz Performance and Best Jazz Instrumental Album (both for Trilogy 3 – Live with Chick Corea and Brian Blade) and Best Large Jazz Ensemble Album (for Without Further Ado – Vol. 1).
• Samara Joy, who appeared on that big band album as well as released her own Portrait album, received two nominations – one for Best Jazz Performance and the other for Best Jazz Vocal Album. 
• Ledisi is up for two awards – for Best Traditional R&B Performance and for Best R&B Album – both tied to her recording, The Crown.
• Angélique Kidjo was nominated for Best Global Performance. 
• Finally, Sullivan Fortner received a nomination for his Southern Nights album in the Best Jazz Instrumental Album category.

From The Jazz Cruise ‘26:

• Sullivan Fortner is sailing as well on The Jazz Cruise, which was also represented in the list of nominations by featuring Paquito D’Rivera & the Madrid-New York Connection Band for La Fleur de Cayenne is nominated in the Best Latin Jazz Album category.
  

Finally, Gerald Clayton, who has sailed on several of our programs, was nominated in the Best Contemporary Instrumental Album category for his recording Ones and Twos.

We wish all of them the best with the awards to be given on February 1. Even though a few are competing against one another in some categories, they’re all winners to us.

Wynton Marsalis:
Bringing New Orleans to the World (and Bringing the World to New Orleans)

It’s difficult to bring a proper perspective to the legacy of Wynton Marsalis. Not because his impact is in question, but rather because he’s had such a powerful influence in so many spheres. As a musician, he is clearly one of the most virtuosic trumpeters of his, or just about any, generation. As a composer, he is one of the only jazz musicians to receive a Pulitzer Prize. As a mentor, he is someone who has nurtured multiple generations of jazz greats – from Christian McBride to Jonathan Batiste. . As an educator, he is a person who has overseen the distribution of hundreds of big band charts from the jazz greats to high school programs all over the world.

As a jazz advocate and presenter, he is the founder and leader of Jazz at Lincoln Center, arguably the greatest non-profit jazz organization in the world. There’s plenty more that he’s done and he still does, but that’s enough for now.

What we wanted to share here is how he represents and champions the music of New Orleans, his birthplace. It started with his father, Ellis Marsalis, the pianist, educator and esteemed patriarch of New Orleans jazz. Interestingly, Wynton and his brother Branford did not immediately embrace jazz in their early years as teens, preferring to play in the horn sections of R&B and funk bands. Eventually, both fell in line, so to speak, and would come north to study – Branford for jazz at Berklee and Wynton for trumpet performance at Juilliard. Both apprenticed, like so many jazz greats before them, with Art Blakey’s band and both were signed to record deals by Dr. George Butler, who saw in them a means to reach younger audiences.

That kicked off the Young Lions movement, during which a slew of younger artists were signed to record deals and promoted as future stars. Wynton, of course, was the brightest star and even branched out to classical music, which Butler often attributed as a turning point in the trumpeter’s career. Although his early records and sound were a direct link to Blakey and the Miles Davis Quintet of the ’60s, Wynton always retained the New Orleans influence in his music. In time, he would immerse himself in the music of Louis Armstrong and, not only include that influence in his recordings, but also champion Pops as one of the greatest musicians of the 20th Century. That seminal influence would manifest itself directly in albums like Crescent City Christmas and Congo Square and indirectly in just about every recording or concert he has done in the last three decades.

In part because he was a role model, but also because of his hands-on involvement, Wynton mentored and/or collaborated with generation after generation of New Orleans jazz musicians – including Terence Blanchard, Donald Harrison, Marlon Jordan, Herlin Riley, Wessell Anderson, Adonis Rose, Jonathan Batiste and so many others. I remember doing an interview with Troy Andrews, aka Trombone Shorty, more than a dozen years ago backstage at the Newport Jazz Festival. Towards the end of the interview, he saw Wynton getting into a car about 100 yards away and he ran that distance and leapt over a fence to shake Wynton’s hand before he left for his next concert. When Troy came back to the interview, he said to me, “That man changed my life.”  

Indeed, Wynton Marsalis changed the lives of so many artists, and not just those in New Orleans. From the SCE family, Wycliffe Gordon, Sean Jones, Russell Gunn and Christian McBride were all appreciative recipients of Wynton’s unique ability to pay it forward.

We’re honored to have Wynton perform for the Journey of Jazz guests and share his appreciation for the music of his hometown while we’re in New Orleans in January 2027. 

Lee Mergner
Jazz Consultant
Signature Cruise Experiences

Jazz Cruises Conversations Podcast:
Emmet Cohen with Benny Benack III

This episode from the recent Journey of Jazz cruise features an interview with Emmet Cohen by his longtime friend Benny Benack III. Emmet shared the story of his journey from being a student at the University of Miami to being a regular, then host, on The Jazz Cruise. He also talked about his Masters Legacy Series of recordings with his elders. And, of course, he explained the creation and evolution of his Emmet’s Place online concert series. 

Click above to hear Emmet talks about the origins of the Emmet’s Place video concert series

Finding Cruisers at Exit Zero Jazz Fest

If you attend any jazz festival in this country, you’re likely to see several of our guests supporting and enjoying the music. Such was the case at the recent Exit Zero Jazz Festival in Cape May, NJ, where our own Lee Mergner caught up with eight guests from The Jazz Cruise, Journey of Jazz and McBride’s World at Sea. This photo of (l to r) Mike and Cathy Axel, John and Susan Corkery, Dr. Greg Koons, Vicky and Tony Jacobine and Jan Koons  was taken minutes before Cassandra Wilson‘s performance celebrating the 30th anniversary of her seminal album, New Moon Daughter, which closed out the festival.

Signature Cruise Experiences Programs

David Foster: The Hitman Cruise

1.15.26 – 1.20.26
A 5-Day Weekend Getaway with a Week’s Long Schedule of Talent

The amazing lineup of David Foster, Michael McDonald, Babyface, Katherine McPhee, Take 6, Nathan East, Peter Cincotti, Pia Toscano, Emmet Cohen (and more) is in place for this 5-day Cruise Getaway from Ft. Lauderdale on Celebrity Summit.

Truly a weekend getaway (Thursday – Tuesday) vacation, there will be more than 7 days of music presented in a 5-day cruise! The remaining inventory includes only Veranda, Ocean View and Inside Staterooms.
 
Staterooms in all remaining categories are available at FOR A SONG Cruise Prices. Be sure to use Promo Code: FORASONG when booking online or by calling the office.

Christian McBride’s World at Sea

1.20.26 – 1.27.26
Christian’s Ensembles + World Class Vocalists

Boasting one of the most robust and decorated lineups we have ever presented and led by 9X GRAMMY® Winner Christian McBride, this program will present more than 220 hours of top music over 7 days at sea. Besides Christian’s lineup of amazing ensembles that he leads (Inside Straight, Ursa Major, Christian McBride’s Big Band, Remembering Ray Brown, Christian’s Trio), the cruise also features some of the very best vocalists in the genre; Ledisi, Samara Joy, Cécile McLorin Salvant, Angélique Kidjo, Melissa Walker and José James.

Staterooms in all remaining categories are available at FINAL Prices. Be sure to use Promo Code: FINAL when booking online or by calling the office.

The Jazz Cruise

’26 (1.27.26 – 2.3.26) – Still the Greatest Jazz Festival at Sea
’27 (1.17.27 – 1.24.27) – Stay Tuned for More Information…Soon!

The Jazz Cruise is the first program that Signature Cruise Experiences ever produced. Since its first sailing in 2001, The Jazz Cruise has been the world leader in presenting “straight ahead” jazz at sea. With the new trend in land based jazz festivals including non-jazz music, The Jazz Cruise surpasses land based events for “straight ahead” jazz, too.

This cruise is fully reserved every year and fewer than 50 staterooms remain for the ’26 sailing. Past Guests may use the Promo Code: SHIP to reserve a stateroom at favorable prices based on their sailing history. Information about The Jazz Cruise ’27 will be available on or before November 13, 2025.

The Smooth Jazz Cruise

6 Opportunities to sail on “The Greatest Party at Sea”

Known as “The Greatest Party at Sea,” The Smooth Jazz Cruise has sailed over 30 times since 2004. Year after year, there is a waitlist for staterooms and the cruises hit “fully reserved” earlier and earlier. Rich with great musicians, great fans and great times, The Smooth Jazz Cruise has created a community of fans that span the globe. The Smooth Jazz Cruise ’26.1 & ’26.2, both of which sail in the Caribbean, are fully reserved with significant waitlists. The Smooth Jazz Cruise ’26.3, which will sail from Vancouver to Los Angeles with calls in Victoria and San Francisco, is more than 95% reserved at this time. This is a great opportunity to secure a reservation on this cruise which establishes your priority for other sailings of The Smooth Jazz Cruise.

Guests sailing on ’26.1 & ’26.2 have until November 26, 2025 to reserve their current stateroom for ’27.1 & ’27.2, respectively. Guests not sailing on either ’26.1 or ’26.2 may queue up for the ’27 cruises by completing a Pre-Sail Reservation. Pre-Sail Reservations are activated in the order received starting on December 4, 2025. Over 600 Pre-Sail Reservations, representing nearly 1,200 guests, have completed a Pre-Sail Reservation for the ’27 Cruises.

Guests on ’26.3 have opportunities to book on any of the ’27 cruises, subject to rules which have been shared with them. If you are a guest on ’26.3 and you have not received that information, please call the office (888.852.9987).

Botti at Sea III (’26)

9.18.26 – 9.25.26
Chris Botti hosts a West Coast Cruise with Amazing Talent

The wait is over. It is time to begin the planning process for Botti at Sea III (’26). The lineup has been set for a few months. Joining Chris will be Elvis Costello, Boz Scaggs, Melody Gardot, Peabo Bryson, Regina Belle, Emmet Cohen, Candy Dulfer, John Splithoff, Morgan James, Benny Benack III, Kandace Springs, Harold Lopez-Nussa Trio ft. Gregoire Maret and more. The cruise will sail from Los Angeles to Vancouver, with calls in San Francisco and Victoria. Open Booking has already started, meaning any guest may select any available stateroom and complete a reservation online or by calling the office.

Journey of Jazz ’27

1.25.27 – 1.31.27
Where is Journey of Jazz Headed Next? New Orleans!

The inaugural sailing of Journey of Jazz ended a few weeks ago. The cruise was a wonderful experience and both hosts, Marcus Miller and Gregory Porter, are coming back for the next voyage. Joining them on the cruise as the special guest host in New Orleans is Wynton Marsalis. Indelibly sketched in our minds as the ultimate NOLA jazzman, we are honored to have him join us on the program. In keeping with our theme of great jazz experiences, Journey of Jazz ’27 will be headed to New Orleans for a special overnight jazz experience. Guests who sailed on Journey of Jazz ’25 have until December 12, 2025 to rebook their current stateroom. Others may complete a Pre-Sail Reservation through December 10, 2025. The full lineup will be announced shortly after Thanksgiving.

The post Jazz Notes: 11.12.25 appeared first on Signature Cruise Experiences.

Have you read David R. Adler’s latest article in JazzTimes about the Kennedy Center? In his role as editor of the magazine, Adler makes the case that recent firings and resignations of key jazz personnel at the Kennedy Center signals an attack on jazz. His argument suggests that the powers that be find jazz to be part of the “woke” world with its emphasis on “diversity, equity and inclusion.”

There is no good answer to the debate about “woke.” Defined as “aware of and actively attentive to important facts and issues,” being “woke” sounds like a very natural and laudatory pursuit. Most people do not criticize folks for being “woke.” The critics latch onto someone being “too woke”!

Where the line between “woke” and “too woke” rests is anyone’s guess. Some believe that when the pursuit of “woke” impairs being practical, it has gone too far. The level of subjectivity and personal attitudes in that analysis make any workable definition impossible. I will leave that discussion to others.

I will, however, take up the defense of jazz in this discussion. “Woke” is a 1930’s term. The etymology of “woke” is clearly found in African-American society. Jazz was coined in the late 19th Century. Its etymology has many, many theories.

I find it impossible to argue that jazz has become “too woke.” That would be like arguing that Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (the selection of a jazz fan was no accident) is “too tall” now. He has always been tall, and jazz has always been “woke.”  

Not sure if jazz fans want to be known as “woke.” You will have to ask them one by one. For me, if being aware and attentive to facts is being “woke,” count me in. If you want to tie that to “diversity, equity and inclusion,” I am still on the team.

But if you want to suggest that jazz has become “too woke” in pursuit of those goals, then we separate ways. Whatever jazz is now, in this context, is what jazz has been from the start. Nothing has changed. There is no revolution brewing.

When jazz fans get together, they talk music, not how they can make jazz more “woke.”

Michael Lazaroff
Executive Director
Signature Cruise Experiences
michael@scecruises.com

Our Big Band Tradition

Many jazz fans view the big band as something out of the past, which is not entirely inaccurate. After all, the period during which jazz as a musical genre was most popular was the Big Band Era of the ’30s and ’40s, nearly a century ago.  It was a time when the big bands dominated broadcasts and recordings and when people danced to the music. Yes, people still do dance to swing bands on occasion, but not like they used to. These days, people have to get dressed up to do it, thanks to bands like the Hot Sardines and Postmodern Jukebox, but they still do it. But, the music’s impact persists.

Back in the day, bandleaders like Glenn Miller, Benny Goodman and Artie Shaw were pop stars, maybe not on the same level as Taylor Swift now, but such that their music permutated even throughout both sides of WWII. For his part, Artie parlayed his popularity into marriages with some of the most high-profile starlets of that time, including Ava Gardner and Lana Turner. He also “dated” Judy Garland, Betty Grable and Lena Horne. Yes, a jazz big band leader was the John Mayer of his time. Insert your own punch line here.

In subsequent years, the small group and more improvisational music of bebop, pioneered by people like Charlie Parker and Dizzy Gillespie, took much of both the popular and critical attention away from those big bands. The ’50s and ’60s were all about that musical innovation that has informed jazz ever since and, frankly, didn’t encourage dancing.  

But, in fact, regardless of the proliferation of bebop and post-bop, the impact of big bands persisted throughout those years. Bands like those led by Duke Ellington, Count Basie, Thad Jones & Mel Lewis, Gil Evans, Woody Herman, Buddy Rich, Stan Kenton and many others continued to both record and tour throughout the ’60s and ’70s.

Later in the ’80s and forward, ensembles like the Mingus Big Band, Maria Schneider Orchestra, Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra and, of course, Clayton-Hamilton Jazz Orchestra would carry forward that tradition, but would also bring the music into the present with their own innovative compositions and arrangements. That modern innovation was in part because so many of those leaders had not only apprenticed with or studied the music of their antecedents, but also developed their own musical vision, based on more contemporary influences.  

For example, John Clayton toured and recorded with Count Basie, while Jeff Hamilton did the same with Woody Herman. Coming off that experience, the two formed their own big band in 1985, drawing for the band personnel on many veterans of the LA jazz and studio scene, including greats like Snooky Young and George Bohannan. They founded a band that would rely on both past tradition and yet reflect their current influences.

We were thrilled to present the Clayton-Hamilton Jazz Orchestra for concerts during Journey of Jazz in September. Our guests on that sailing got to experience what John and Jeff have created and nurtured all these years. But, if you missed those shows, guests of The Jazz Cruise will get to hear what John Clayton can do with Anita’s Big Band, an ensemble pulled from the musicians sailing with us that week. We won’t run down the whole lineup of musicians in that “pick-up” ensemble, but how about his trumpet section of Bijon Watson, Sean Jones, James Morrison, Terell Stafford and Randy Brecker (not listed in order of their chair seating)? Nuff said about that pick-up ensemble.

What’s further incredible is that John creates the arrangements for the shows during The Jazz Cruise shortly both before and after we set sail.

So, if you, as a guest on The Jazz Cruise, don’t see John hanging around the ship, it’s likely because he’s either in his room writing charts or in the theater in the AM hours rehearing those charts with one of the greatest big bands in jazz in pop-up fashion.

Isn’t it ironic that the greatness of a big band starts with the vision of one person? But one could argue that ALL of those great big bands started with one person. Just run through the list of the original innovators: Glenn Miller, Artie Shaw, Benny Goodman, Count Basie, Duke Ellington, Woody Herman, Stan Kenton and so many others. Formidable leaders who put forward a sound they envisioned.

We’re honored that we have not only John Clayton aboard The Jazz Cruise, but also to have Christian McBride hosting his own sailing the week before, featuring his big band (along with other ensembles) performing with an all-star lineup of guest vocalists like Angèlique Kidjo, Samara Joy, Ledisi, Cècile McLorin Salvant and Josè James. After all, Christian got his first gigs as a teenager in Philadelphia with the Joe Sudler Jazz Machine, a big band featuring the best musicians from that scene, including many players from the famous Philly International/Sigma Sound sessions. 

If you want the best, you have to get the best. It’s an ethos we’ve tried to live up to.

– Lee Mergner

Jazz Cruises Conversations Podcast
John Clayton & Jeff Hamilton with Marcus Miller

This week’s episode of the Jazz Cruises Conversations podcast features an interview from the Journey of Jazz ’25 cruise with John Clayton and Jeff Hamilton, hosted by Marcus Miller, during which they talk about their GRAMMY® Award-winning Clayton-Hamilton Jazz Orchestra and all things big band.

Signature Cruise Experiences Programs

David Foster: The Hitman Cruise

1.15.26 – 1.20.26
A 5-Day Weekend Getaway with a Week’s Long Schedule of Talent

The amazing lineup of David Foster, Michael McDonald, Babyface, Katherine McPhee, Take 6, Nathan East, Peter Cincotti, Pia Toscano, Emmet Cohen (and more) is in place for this 5-day Cruise Getaway from Ft. Lauderdale on Celebrity Summit.

Truly a weekend getaway (Thursday – Tuesday) vacation, there will be more than 7 days of music presented in a 5-day cruise! The remaining inventory includes only Veranda, Ocean View and Inside Staterooms.
 
Staterooms in all remaining categories are available at BESTVALUE Cruise Prices. Be sure to use Promo Code: BESTVALUE when booking online or by calling the office.

Christian McBride’s World at Sea

1.20.26 – 1.27.26
Christian’s Ensembles + World Class Vocalists

Boasting one of the most robust and decorated lineups we have ever presented and led by 9X GRAMMY® Winner Christian McBride, this program will present more than 220 hours of top music over 7 days at sea. Besides Christian’s lineup of amazing ensembles that he leads (Inside Straight, Ursa Major, Christian McBride’s Big Band, Remembering Ray Brown, Christian’s Trio), the cruise also features some of the very best vocalists in the genre; Ledisi, Samara Joy, Cécile McLorin Salvant, Angélique Kidjo, Melissa Walker and José James.

Staterooms in all remaining categories are available at FINAL Prices. Be sure to use Promo Code: FINAL when booking online or by calling the office.

The Jazz Cruise

’26 (1.27.26 – 2.3.26) – Still the Greatest Jazz Festival at Sea
’27 (1.17.27 – 1.24.27) – Stay Tuned for More Information…Soon!

The Jazz Cruise is the first program that Signature Cruise Experiences ever produced. Since its first sailing in 2001, The Jazz Cruise has been the world leader in presenting “straight ahead” jazz at sea. With the new trend in land based jazz festivals including non-jazz music, The Jazz Cruise surpasses land based events for “straight ahead” jazz, too.

This cruise is fully reserved every year, and fewer than 75 staterooms remain for the ’26 sailing. Past Guests may use the Promo Code: SHIP to reserve a stateroom at favorable prices based on their sailing history. Information about The Jazz Cruise ’27 will be available on or before November 13, 2025.

The Smooth Jazz Cruise

6 Opportunities to sail on “The Greatest Party at Sea”

Known as “The Greatest Party at Sea,” The Smooth Jazz Cruise has sailed over 30 times since 2004. Year after year, there is a waitlist for staterooms and the cruises hit “fully reserved” earlier and earlier. Rich with great musicians, great fans and great times, The Smooth Jazz Cruise has created a community of fans that span the globe. The Smooth Jazz Cruise ’26.1 & ’26.2, both of which sail in the Caribbean, are fully reserved with significant waitlists. The Smooth Jazz Cruise ’26.3, which will sail from Vancouver to Los Angeles with calls in Victoria and San Francisco, is more than 95% reserved at this time. This is a great opportunity to secure a reservation on this cruise which establishes your priority for other sailings of The Smooth Jazz Cruise.

Botti at Sea III (’26)

9.18.26 – 9.25.26
Chris Botti hosts a West Coast Cruise with Amazing Talent

The wait is over. It is time to begin the planning process for Botti at Sea III (’26). The lineup has been set for a few months. Joining Chris will be Elvis Costello, Boz Scaggs, Melody Gardot, Peabo Bryson, Regina Belle, Emmet Cohen, Candy Dulfer, John Splithoff, Morgan James, Benny Benack III, Kandace Springs, Harold Lopez-Nussa Trio ft. Gregoire Maret and more. The cruise will sail from Los Angeles to Vancouver, with calls in San Francisco and Victoria. Open Booking has already started, meaning any guest may select any available stateroom and complete a reservation online or by calling the office.

Journey of Jazz ’27

1.25.27 – 1.31.27
Where is Journey of Jazz Headed Next? New Orleans!

The inaugural sailing of Journey of Jazz ended a few weeks ago. The cruise was a wonderful experience and both hosts, Marcus Miller and Gregory Porter, are coming back for the next voyage. In keeping with our theme of great jazz experiences, Journey of Jazz ’27 will be headed to New Orleans for a special overnight jazz experience. Guests who sailed on Journey of Jazz ’25 have until December 12, 2025 to rebook their current stateroom. Others may complete a Pre-Sail Reservation through December 10, 2025. The full lineup will be announced on November 4, 2025.

The post Jazz Notes: 10.22.25 appeared first on Signature Cruise Experiences.

While We Are At Sea

Though we are at sea for the next several weeks (January 28 – February 25), please know that while some of us are away, our office will be open during normal business hours, our email lines will be open and the websites for each of our cruise programs will be available 24/7.

These services are available to guests who have questions about their upcoming ’25 Sailings and those who wish to complete or discuss a ’26 Reservation. To contact us, you may choose among the following:

  Call the Office: 
Toll Free US & Canada – 888.852.9987
Toll Free International – 01.800.852.99872
Monday – Thursday: 10 AM ET – 6 PM ET
Friday: 10 AM ET – 5 PM ET

Inquire by E – Mail:
info@scecruises.com

Learn More or Make a Reservation:
www.scecruises.com or review SCE Brand Book
Select the Cruise Program You Wish
Follow prompts

Stateroom Availability

With 13 active cruise programs, it is difficult to keep up with Stateroom Availability. To assist you with your planning, below is a chart that we will update weekly in The Weekender. 

Cruise Programs 2025

Cruise Programs 2026

Hot Offers

Inside Staterooms are available on Journey of Jazz ’25. From now through February 28, you can reserve an Inside Stateroom on the cruise for under $2,000/person. Reservations are based upon double occupancy, available for new reservations only and non-commissionable. Further, this discount may not be combined with any other offer (Promo Code: ATSEA).

The Smooth Jazz Cruise ’25.2 has been fully reserved for months. Guests do cancel their reservations for various reasons and we place those staterooms with guests on the Wait List. If you are on the Wait List or wish to reserve a stateroom for one of these sailings, call the office for availability and pricing.

Sullivan Fortner’s Southern Nights

The pianist Sullivan Fortner, who was a big hit during the last two weeks with our guests sailing on The Jazz Cruise and Botti at Sea, has just released Southern Nights, his fifth album as a leader. 

Recorded live at the iconic Village Vanguard in NYC, the album features a wide-ranging repertoire, including tunes by Allen Toussaint and Clifford Brown, and tributes to Sullivan’s late mentor Bill Lee and Lee’s sister, the underappreciated pianist and educator Consuela Lee, as well as an original from Sullivan. Accompanied by bassist Peter Washington and drummer Marcus Gilmore, Sullivan celebrates his roots in the Crescent City.

“New Orleans is at the top of the Caribbean,” he explains. “It’s definitely not America. The Spanish and Caribbean influences run deep, and you can hear that in the music.”

LEARN MORE

Signature Jazz Cruises’ Programs

JOURNEY OF JAZZ ’25
Limited Time Promotional Pricing

Now through February 28, or until fully reserved, promotional pricing is available on Inside Staterooms for Journey of Jazz! Make your reservation today using promo code ATSEA for significant savings*! Exciting land-based concerts and excursions are also available! *Discount applies to new reservations only. 

BOOK NOW

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HOMECOMING: THE CRUISE ’26
Open Booking Now Available!

Join us for a celebration of HBCUs and inspired by the tradition of the Divine Nine Challenge from recent sailings of The Smooth Jazz Cruise. Sailing January 15 – 20, 2026 (including MLK Day), this cruise will deliver Excellence, Education and Entertainment. ALLBLK’s Homecoming: The Cruise is produced in association with the National HBCU Alumni Alliance and features Babyface, Chanté Moore, Take 6 and more! The best part is that we will award over $200,000 in scholarships to deserving organizations. Reserve Your Stateroom Today! 

BOOK NOW

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CHRISTIAN MCBRIDE’S WORLD AT SEA
Open Booking Now Available!

9X GRAMMY® winner Christian McBride will host our newest Signature Jazz Cruises’ program, Christian McBride’s World at Sea! The cruise will feature legions of musicians who comprise the various ensembles that are the hallmarks of Christian’s music world AND first-class comedy talent. See the full lineup here!

Open Booking has begun! Reserve your stateroom today! 

BOOK NOW

THE JAZZ CRUISE ’26
Open Booking Starts February 19!

Hailed as “Jazz Heaven” by musicians and guests alike, The Jazz Cruise ’26 lineup will feature some of the most iconic musicians from the straight-ahead jazz genre. See the full lineup here.  Guests who registered for the Pre-Sail are selecting their staterooms now, and Open Booking will begin on February 19!

LEARN MORE

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THE SMOOTH JAZZ CRUISE ‘26.1 & 26.2
Open Booking Now Available

 The Smooth Jazz Cruise ‘26.1 & ‘26.2 are in Open Booking (anyone may reserve any available stateroom) and staterooms are more than 85% reserved. Reserve your stateroom today!

BOOK NOW

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THE TOP SHELF COUNTRY CRUISE
Headline Artist Just Announced – Keith Urban

Fans of the country genre love the music that represents the simple, humble American lifestyle and they love to party. Top Shelf Country Cruise brings these ideas together on a luxury ship for one unforgettable week, February 27 – March 6, 2026! The inaugural sailing will feature headline artist Keith Urban and widely popular personalities from iHeartMedia’s The Bobby Bones Show, led by Bobby Bones himself. Pre-Sail reservations are open now through tomorrow, February 9! Visit topshelfcountrycruise.com for more information and join the Pre-Sail today! 

LEARN MORE

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THE SMOOTH JAZZ CRUISE ‘26.3
Open Booking Now Available

For the first time in many years, The Smooth Jazz Cruise will sail on the West Coast, embarking in Vancouver, sailing to Victoria and San Francisco before disembarking in Los Angeles. Exciting land excursions will be available in the ports-of-call! The Smooth Jazz Cruise ‘26.3 is in Open Booking! Anyone may now reserve any available stateroom.

BOOK NOW

BOTTI AT SEA’25 is Fully Reserved!
Pre-Sail Reservations Accepted Until February 11!
Open Booking Begins February 28

We’re thrilled to be able to announce that Boz Scaggs, Elvis Costello and Melody Gardot will be onboard the Botti at Sea ’26 . Of course, Chris Botti will be there with his very talented band and, as always, we will fill the remaining performance slots with a variety of great music, comedy and more. Establish your priority for reserving a stateroom NOW by joining the Pre-Sail. 

LEARN MORE

Mug Shot of the Week

Guests on the ’24 jazz cruises received The Weekender mug, which we hope you will use with your Saturday morning coffee while you read the latest edition. Please share a picture of yourself & your mug with us so that we can include it for the 100,000+ folks who receive The Weekender each Saturday.

Tag us @thejazzcruise, @bottiatsea, @thesmoothjazzcruise, #jazzcruises and #theweekender. Email your photo to MugShot@scecruises.com.

The post Our Take: From Botti to Smooth appeared first on Signature Cruise Experiences.

Honoring Marcus Miller on Receiving the
Los Angeles Jazz Society’s Lifetime Achievement Award – 2024 

Introduction by Michael Lazaroff

In 2010, our company was discussing a new cruise program, one that would sail in the North Sea for several days and then dock in Rotterdam and become the hotel for folks attending the North Sea Jazz Festival. Working with MOJO, the Dutch company that produced the festival, we batted around names of top performers to play on the ship and then at the festival, but we needed a host.
 
For this event, we needed someone of the highest talent level, universally acknowledged as a superstar musician, known and revered by fans in Europe and the United States, as well as a person who had the people skills to engage guests from all over the world.
 
I asked the opinion of many musicians, agents and producers. Without a doubt, one name dominated the responses. Armed with that name, I contacted the folks at MOJO to share this information, but, before I could say a word, they asked me if I thought Marcus Miller would be acceptable to me. Laughing into the phone (no Zoom calls yet), I told them that Marcus was the near unanimous choice of those I polled.
 
Great, we were set. Marcus Miller would be the host of the North Sea Jazz Cruise.  There were two hurdles to making that happen. First, they asked me to contact him and make an offer. Second, though I knew the name and a lot about his career, I had never met the man.
 
Through a third party, I set up a meeting with Marcus at his studio in Los Angeles and flew out to meet him. I stumbled through my pitch afterwards Marcus asked two questions: “May I select the musicians?” and “Is there a budget for the talent?”
 
The answers were “yes” and “whatever you need.” As Bogie said to Claude Reins at the airport in Casablanca, this was “the beginning of a beautiful friendship.”
 
The career of Marcus Miller spans decades and includes performing, composing, arranging and producing music with and for some of the most talented vocalists and instrumentalists in the world: Chaka Khan, Herbie Hancock, Eric Clapton, Aretha Franklin, George Benson, Elton John, Roberta Flack, Al Jarreau, Bob James, Lalah Hathaway, Wayne Shorter and more. His talents have been utilized for live performances, recordings of all types, film, television and documentaries.
 
Perhaps his most famous associations were with David Sanborn, Luther Vandross and Miles Davis, a very diverse group of generational talents. Only someone with the talent of Marcus Miller could be the driving force for those three. Marcus Miller is a man for all music.
 
The experience with Marcus hosting the North Sea Jazz Festival was eye opening for us. Of course, we knew his musical chops, but he showed himself to be the very best host ever. He led the talent, engaged the guests and made himself available for all events.
 
Though, in no way is he a “smooth jazz” musician, when our host for that cruise, former NBA star Wayman Tisdale, became ill, Marcus stepped in to help his close friend host that program. 

Evidently, for years, Marcus and Wayman were exchanging bass lessons for basketball opportunities. Marcus served as a close confidante of Wayman’s during his tragic illness.

Upon Wayman’s passing, Marcus has become the leader of that program along with our other jazz programs. In fact, Marcus has hosted over 40 of our sailings. 

His talents on and off the bandstand are the best in our world of cruising. He is the straw that stirs this drink. In my 25 years of producing jazz events, I have learned that the best way to measure the stature of a musician is to watch them when they are with their colleagues.

Without fanfare or announcement, Marcus is the leader of every group of musicians with whom I have seen him. They hang on his every word, take stock of their status based upon his reaction to them and follow him on stage without hesitation.

Mind you, Marcus does not demand those reactions. In fact, he is more than a little oblivious to what he means to the others. In sports, you recognize the captain as the guy with the “C” on his jersey. In our jazz cruise world, just look for the man in the porkpie hat and follow him.
 
Before closing, I want to share a personal message. Marcus and his talented and brilliant wife, Brenda, have been the most significant association we have had during our 25 years of producing cruises. Never once has there been even a hint of conflict or concern. They have shown us respect and friendship and, we have tried to return those feelings at every turn.
 
“Do not hire your friends” is a very good business rule. But there is no rule against becoming friends with your business associates. It is my honor and privilege to call Marcus and Brenda my friends and I applaud the Los Angeles Jazz Society for having the wisdom and knowledge to honor Marcus Miller with its highest honor, the Lifetime Achievement Award for 2024.

At this point, I anticipate thunderous applause from the audience, as they acknowledge the greatness of Marcus Miller and enjoy the relief of me not speaking any more.

I consider Marcus Miller to be the most complete and talented jazz musician I have ever known. But, what I admire most is his natural leadership skills. When on stage, he is always in charge, but never once have I heard him say something to assert that role. He simply does what he does and everyone knows to listen and follow.

Never once have I seen or heard him “brag” or “boast.” Well, there is the story of him telling Alonzo and me about his time with Prince Albert of Monaco. Alonzo asked a question about one matter Marcus mentioned. Responding as naturally as possible, Marcus told us the “he and Al” were working on a solution. “Al,” really!

Funny thing, it never dawned on him that others might find that reference to be a boast. He just does not think that way.

If only everyone in the world followed his lead. Just as all musicians do!

By Michael Lazaroff, Executive Director of The Jazz Cruise, The Smooth Jazz Cruise, Chris Botti at Sea, Christian McBride’s World at Sea and Journey of Jazz. Feel free to express your views or pose questions to him at michael@scecruises.com.

The Smooth Jazz Cruise ‘26.3
Will Be Announced On October 11!

With the number of completed reservations and Pre-Sale Reservations totaling over 2,000, Jazz Cruises will be announcing the plans for a third sailing of The Smooth Jazz Cruise ’26. Though the full details are being finalized, here is what we know now:
 

The Smooth Jazz Cruise ’26.3
Dates: September 11, 2026 – September 18, 2026
Ship: Celebrity Summit
Port of Embarkation: Vancouver, BC
Port of Disembarkation: Los Angeles
Additional Ports-of-Call: Victoria BC and San Francisco (overnight)
Cruise Hosts: Marcus Miller & Boney James

Special Guests, Artists and Featured Performers will be announced, together with the reservation procedure, on October 11, 2024! A Special Announcement Webinar will be presented that day as well and Jazz Cruises will answer all questions you may have in real time. You may sign up for the webinar HERE.

NOTICE: To Guests With Reservations on The Smooth Jazz Cruise ’26.1 or ’26.2 (’26.1/’26.2 Guests)
 

• The purpose of adding a third sailing is to provide all guests with the opportunity to sail on The Smooth Jazz Cruise. ’26.1 or ’26.2 Guests may not reserve a stateroom on the ’26.3 Cruise until every guest holding a Pre-Sale Reservation for any ’26 sailing of The Smooth Jazz Cruise has had the opportunity to reserve a stateroom.

Soon after the announcement of the ‘26.3 Cruise, ’26.1 or ’26.2 Guests will be provided an opportunity (small window) to transfer their reservations to The Smooth Jazz Cruise ‘26.3 (“‘26.3 Cruise”). In doing so, such guests will be relinquishing their current reservations, which will be made available to guests wishing to sail on one of those earlier sailings.

No system or procedure is perfect, but, by adding a third sailing of The Smooth Jazz Cruise, allowing ’26.1/’26.2 Guests to transfer to ’26.3, and restricting ’26.1/’26.2 Guests from reserving a stateroom for ’26.3, we believe that we have configured a very fair, equitable and user-friendly system to allow more guests to enjoy a ’26 sailing of The Smooth Jazz Cruise.

John Clayton to Be Honored at Jazz Congress

John Clayton, who, for many years has ably led Anita’s Big Band on The Jazz Cruise, will be presented with the Bruce Lundvall Visionary Award at the Jazz Congress held Jan. 8-9, 2025 at Jazz at Lincoln Center in NYC. The award was created in 2014 in honor of the longtime jazz record executive who was a champion and advocate for so many jazz artists over the last four decades. The annual award recognizes someone who has demonstrated extraordinary leadership and vision in expanding the audience for jazz and who has made a real difference for the artists, the music and the audience. Previous recipients include Randall Kline, Brice Rosenbloom, Christian McBride, Terri Lyne Carrington, Darlene Chan, Barry Harris, Danilo Perez and Dee Dee Bridgewater  Pianist Gerald Clayton will present his father with the award during the keynote session of Jazz Congress.

The Vanguard Jazz Orchestra’s Centennial:
The Music of Thad Jones

The Vanguard Orchestra, which features several All-Stars and Anita’s Big Band members from The Jazz Cruise (including Gary Smulyan, Dick Oatts and Terell Stafford), has just released Centennial: The Music of Thad Jones, an album celebrating the noted trumpeter and big band leader. Released on BCM+D Records, Centennial is a two-album set captured live at the ensemble’s Monday night home for nearly six decades, the Village Vanguard. The Thad Jones/Mel Lewis Orchestra, which he co-founded in 1966, modernized the big band sound as the world changed through the late ’60s and early ’70s. Jones’ writing and arranging drew upon the inspiration of two of the most iconic bands in jazz history: Duke Ellington and Count Basie, in whose band Jones had launched his career.  “Thad set the Orchestra up as a small group with a lot of horns,” says lead alto saxophonist Dick Oatts, the current band’s senior member and artistic director. “The way Thad wrote was just ingenious. It was the future of the jazz big band tradition.”

Signature Jazz Cruises’ Programs

The Jazz Cruise ’25
FULLY RESERVED
Celebrating its 25th Anniversary
The Jazz Cruise ’26 to be Announced Soon!

The Jazz Cruise ’25 is fully reserved. Since the cruise does
not sail for several months, there will be cancellations and staterooms will become available. Stateroom vacancies are filled from the Waitlist, which is not lengthy right now. If you wish to sail on The Jazz Cruise ’25, we urge you to JOIN WAITLIST now.  

JOIN WAITLIST

The Smooth Jazz Cruise ‘26.1 & ‘26.2
Pre-Sale Reservation
Holders Begin Booking

Both sailings for 2025 are fully reserved and the Waitlist has more than 4,000 entrants. 
  
We are now focused on reservations for the ’26 Sailings. Three waves of guests with Pre-Sale Reservations (each wave with 200 holders) have become eligible to reserve a stateroom. 

We will continue to activate holders in groups until all those holding Pre-Sale Reservations can book. Open Booking begins on October 17.

See above for the announcement of the 3rd sailing of The Smooth Jazz Cruise in ’26! 

JOIN PRE-SALE

Signature Cruise Experiences Mug Shots of the Week

Guests on the ’24 jazz cruises received The Weekender mug, which we hope you will use with your Saturday morning coffee while you read the latest edition. Please share a picture of yourself & your mug with us so that we can include it for the 100,000+ folks who receive The Weekender each Saturday.

Tag us @thejazzcruise, @bottiatsea, @thesmoothjazzcruise, #jazzcruises and #theweekender. Email your photo to MugShot@scecruises.com.

The post OUR TAKE: Honoring Marcus Miller appeared first on Signature Cruise Experiences.

I guess being around those subjects and items all day long tempers, if not extinguishes, their passion for the very thing that they do for a living.

As one who spends every day in some pursuit of jazz, whether that be signing talent, programming shows or just making sure that our guests have the information they need, I can report that my proximity to the music only stimulates my desire and need for live music.

Our business advisor refers to this as the Baking Pies syndrome. There was a woman who loved baking pies. She was so skilled at doing so, that she went into business selling her product. The packaging, marketing, promoting and rules and procedures that accompany a pie selling business were more than she wanted. She quit the business.

All she wanted to do was bake pies.

At Signature Jazz Cruises, our passion is music. We spend a lot of time engaged in the business of music, but, unlike the pie lady, we will continue to balance our work with listening to live music, which is why last Wednesday night and tomorrow night are so precious to us.

Wednesday night was the opening of JazzSTL, which is St. Louis’ “straight ahead” jazz forum. The first night is usually some type of gala with special guests and fundraising. This year’s offering was Paquito D’Rivera and Chucho Valdés. The evening included a Cuban style dinner, rum and a “meet and greet” with the musicians.

Paquito and Chucho have performed on many of our cruise programs over the years. For years they presented separately, but, on The Jazz Cruise ’24, they shared the stage for several sets and it was magical. As many know, they have been friends and colleagues for decades, back to the early days of the famous Cuban band, Irakere.

Irakere, founded in 1973, combined Cuban rhythms with American jazz, and, in doing so, created a sound that defined Cuban popular music. Chucho was the musical director, and the band included both Paquito and Arturo Sandoval. You can see and hear Arturo on The Jazz Cruise ’25. Due to the testy relationship between Cuba and the United States, Irakere was prevented from performing in the United States, though they did make a landmark appearance at the Newport Jazz Festival in 1979.

In the past, relations among Chucho, Paquito and Arturo have been strained due to differing views as to how to respond to Fidel Castro and the regime in Cuba. Today, not only do they interact, but the three of them are performing together. Sort of like The Three Tenors, only rather than singing, they play instruments.

After the show, we were able to hang with Chucho and Paquito for a moment or two. Both are at the top of the list of gentlemen and ambassadors of our music. When Paula, my wife, was walking with them in Miami earlier this year, she told me that fans came up to them as if they were rock stars. In our world, they are!

Tomorrow night, we will be attending a Chris Botti concert in St. Louis. The venue will be The Factory, where we have presented George Benson, Boney James, Gregory Porter, Samara Joy, Brian Culbertson and many others in the past few years. Most of the Jazz Cruises’ team will be front and center for the show.

Hopefully, we will have a chance to chat with Chris about a few programming plans for Botti at Sea ’25. The star power of that program is amazing. After 25 years of producing cruises, I believe that we are more excited about presenting Diana Krall on that cruise than almost any other performer.

Note: Remaining Inventory for Botti at Sea ’25 includes only 15 Veranda Staterooms, a few Ocean View Staterooms and some Inside Staterooms. The runway to reserve a stateroom is dwindling.

Our world of music is a gift, one that I cherish as it not only allows me to enjoy the best musicians in the world, but it also affords me the opportunity to hang with fellow jazz fans. With two exceptions, I have never met a jazz fan that I did not like…a lot.

Both of you know who you are. No, I am not ready to forgive and forget.

By Michael Lazaroff, Executive Director of The Jazz Cruise, The Smooth Jazz Cruise, Chris Botti at Sea and Journey of Jazz. Feel free to express your views or pose questions to him at michael@scecruises.com.

Introducing Christian McBride’s World at Sea!

Be the first to get the details on our newest program, Christian McBride’s World at Sea! Details will be announced soon for this cruise which will be sailing in late January/early February ’26. Sign up to be among the first to receive the cruise lineup, destinations and reservation information!

Catch Chris Botti at The Factory
in Chesterfield, MO on September 22!

Soon, Chris Botti and his amazing band will be headed off to South Africa for Joy of Jazz 2024. But, before doing so, there’s one more wonderful opportunity to see him. 

The entire Jazz Cruises’ team will be attending the September 22 show as it will be presented at the same suburban St. Louis venue that we have used for many of our own shows. Join us for an amazing night of great music with Chris Botti.

Chris resumes a robust US schedule in October. Check out chrisbotti.com/tour/#/

Ron Carter in Residence at Birdland

During the month of October, Ron Carter will be featured at Birdland Jazz Club in NYC as an artist-in-residence, performing each week with a different group.

The legendary bassist kicks off the month on October 1-5 with shows featuring his new trio of Donald Vega and Donald Harrison (who replaces the late Russell Malone). His Foursight Quartet (featuring Renee Rosnes, Jimmy Greene and Payton Crossley), who will be performing during Journey of Jazz ’25, take the stage October 8-12, followed by his Great Big Band (October 15-19), and a series of duo performances with pianist Bill Charlap (October 22-26).

Monterey Jazz Festival is This Weekend!

Experience the Monterey Jazz Festival set against the breathtaking backdrop of Monterey, California. One of the world’s longest-running jazz festivals, this iconic event has hosted legendary performers like Louis Armstrong, Dizzy Gillespie and Dave Brubeck since 1958. Don’t miss the 67th Annual Monterey Jazz Festival September 27 – 29,  featuring 350 artists across five stages, including Samara Joy, Blind Boys of Alabama, Mavis Staples, Hiromi, Stanley Clarke and more. For tickets and details, visit https://montereyjazzfestival.org.

LA Jazz Society Salutes Renowned Bassist Marcus Miller
with Lifetime Achievement Honors

GRAMMY® Award-winning bassist and frequent Jazz Cruise performer Marcus Miller will receive the 2024 Lifetime Achievement Award from the Los Angeles Jazz Society. Miller will be honored at the 2024 Jazz Tribute Concert & Awards on Saturday, October 5th hosted by the multi-talented comedian Alonzo Bodden. This exciting two-hour event is the annual celebration of jazz and the talented musicians who have made this extraordinary music their life’s passion. Special guests include Stanley Clarke, Michael Lazaroff, John Clayton, Joe LaBarbera and the CSUN Jazz Band plus many more. 

Marcus will be recognized for a 30+ year career as recording artist/performer, composer and producer, including collaborations with dozens of artists from Luther Vandross to David Sanborn to Wayne Shorter. In addition, he also hosts and headlines multiple sold-out Jazz Cruises each year including The Smooth Jazz Cruise.

LAJS will also honor Oscar and Emmy award-winning composer, pianist and documentary director Kris Bowers with the Jazz Composer/Arranger Award and artist and songwriter Veronica Swift who will receive Jazz Vocalist honors.

The annual Tribute is the key Jazz Society fundraiser of the year which supports annual jazz education programs benefitting thousands of young people in LAUSD schools every year. Jazz in Schools provides free educational concerts in elementary schools for 25,000 students and the Bill Green Mentorship Program provides free training in advanced musical techniques from professional musicians for young aspiring jazz musicians. 

Signature Jazz Cruises’ Programs

The Jazz Cruise ’25
FULLY RESERVED
Celebrating it’s 25th Anniversary
The Jazz Cruise ’26 To Be Announced Soon!

The Jazz Cruise ’25 is fully reserved. Since the cruise does not sail for several months, there will be cancellations and staterooms will become available. Stateroom vacancies are filled from the Waitlist, which is not lengthy right now. If you wish to sail on The Jazz Cruise ’25, we urge you to JOIN WAITLIST now.  

Stay tuned for the launch of The Jazz Cruise ’26. Most of the lineup has been secured, so we should be announcing the details of the cruise in mid to late October.

JOIN WAITLIST

The Smooth Jazz Cruise ‘26.1 & ‘26.2
Lineup Just Announced!
’25 Sailings Fully Reserved

Both sailings for 2025 are fully reserved and the Waitlist has more than 4,000 entrants. 

We are now focused on reservations for the ’26 Sailings. On Thursday, the first wave (210 holders) of guests with Pre-Sale Reservations became eligible to reserve a stateroom. By early Friday, every holder had completed their stateroom selection and reservation.

The next wave will be activated on Tuesday, September 24, and we will continue to activate holders in groups until all those holding Pre-Sale Reservations can book. Open Booking begins on October 17, but, if you want to act sooner, there is still time to go to The Smooth Jazz Cruise website and complete a Pre-Sale Reservation for The Smooth Jazz Cruise ’26.   

Stay tuned for the announcement of the 3rd sailing of The Smooth Jazz Cruise in ’26! 

JOIN PRE-SALE

Signature Cruise Experiences’ Mug Shots of the Week

Guests on the ’24 jazz cruises received The Weekender mug, which we hope you will use with your Saturday morning coffee while you read the latest edition. Please share a picture of yourself & your mug with us so that we can include it for the 100,000+ folks who receive The Weekender each Saturday.

Tag us @thejazzcruise @bottiatsea @thesmoothjazzcruise #jazzcruises and #theweekender. Email your photo to MugShot@scecruises.com.

The post OUR TAKE: Why We Love This Music! appeared first on Signature Cruise Experiences.

With our first sailing (The Jazz Cruise ’25) not until January 28, 2025, we have more time this year, but we continued our tradition of this holiday, nonetheless. In part, because the break comes at a good time, as you will learn below, and, in part, because my first ever trip to Wimbledon, while heavily-insured, is too tempting to cancel. Yes, we believe in purchasing Travel Insurance as well as advising our guests to do so! To keep up appearances as a supporter of the art of jazz, we will be visiting Pizza Express and Ronnie Scott’s while in London.

Believe it or not, one of the artists we will be seeing is our very own Marcus Miller, who has a long set of shows at Ronnie Scott’s. For years, our UK friends have jumped the pond to spend time with us listening to jazz. Just the beginning of our theme for this note, “flipping the script.”  

I mentioned that this time of the year is a perfect “break” for us. Our year is divided into four parts, in terms of our focus — January and February we spend at sea mostly, presenting our programs. March through the end of June sees us in full launch mode for the sailings of the next year. Mostly, we are reserving staterooms, finalizing lineups and sharing that information with our guests.

The time after July 4th through Halloween is spent in two ways: We are either creating and finalizing the programming for the upcoming cruises or preparing lineups and other information for the launch of the next set of cruises. These activities are not linear. We flip back and forth all the time, dedicating certain days for Performance Schedules, Programming and Special Events and some time for new lineups, website improvements and guest correspondence. Once we hit Halloween, it is full go on the production of the upcoming sailings. When we are closer to those dates, we can share some stories with you.

By now, you have either forgotten or no longer care to learn about why this note is titled “Flipping the Script.” Sorry, but I cannot let you off that easily. In part, out of curiosity and, in part, to either confirm or deny our recent conclusions, rather than us telling you something, we are asking you to “tell us what you think.”

Specifically, share with us the 3 – 5 aspects, events or elements of one or more of our cruise programs that you enjoy the most and 3 – 5 of such items that you would prefer us to either delete or modify in some way. Please identify the cruise you are assessing somewhere in your note. We would hate to remove an item on Cruise #1 that was a sticking point on Cruise #2!

Bullet points are sufficient. No need to explain in detail why you like or dislike something, but, if you believe that a description would assist us, feel free to add one. Send your notes to us at info@scecruises.com. We may respond back to you asking for more information or posing questions for you to consider. Your participation would be greatly appreciated. Let’s shoot for all incoming guest emails be delivered to us by June 30. And all responses from us by July 31.

From the inception of our cruise programs, we made it clear that our goal is to present the type of cruise programs that our guests want to experience. Given the popularity of the programs, we sometimes lose sight of the fact that not everything we do is loved by all and that we may not realize what elements of the cruises are “gold” to our guests. We think we know these things, but it has been a while since we have asked you to share.

Granted, most of our guest information is gathered anecdotally and our guests, never known for their shyness, frequently share their thoughts with us via email or by phone. We do our very best to respond in a timely manner, but sometimes the volume of emails causes us to miss one or two or not respond as we would like to do. By this process, you sending us your comments by email, we will have the holiday time to carefully review each submission.  

St. Louis to London is a long plane ride. Reading your mail will make that trip go by very quickly.

By Michael Lazaroff, Executive Director of The Jazz Cruise, The Smooth Jazz Cruise, Chris Botti at Sea, and Journey of Jazz. Feel free to express your views or pose questions to him at michael@scecruises.com

Ken Peplowski’s Live at Mezzrow

Clarinetist and saxophonist Ken Peplowski, a longtime regular of The Jazz Cruise, has just released his second album of the year. Live at Mezzrow was recorded at the intimate jazz club in NYC and features Ken with Ted Rosenthal, Martin Wind and Willie Jones III, performing several jazz classics as well as some lesser-known gems.

“This is my favorite way to record,” Ken explained. “I like to work on song material for a year or two, find some interesting tunes that are not so often played, revive some tunes that I haven’t played in years, and just go in with friends and record in a set up like a band on stage and play through the music, warts and all, and that’s exactly what we did.”

MidSummer Vacation July 4 – 14, 2024

As mentioned in the “Our Take,” the offices of Jazz Cruises will be closed starting at 2:00 PM ET on July 3 through July 14 for a Midsummer Vacation. We will reopen at the usual time (10 AM ET) on Monday, July 15, 2024. During this time, guests may complete reservations online, check their Jazz Cruises account and submit questions to us at info@scecruises.com. Responses may take a bit longer, but we will answer all questions submitted.

All of us at Jazz Cruises wish you and yours a happy, fun and safe July 4th holiday. Whether you spend it on the beach, at a pool, on the deck or just lounging, every holiday deserves a few hours of great jazz! Do not live without it!

Jazz Cruises’ ’25 Programs

The Jazz Cruise ’25
Celebrating its 25^th Anniversary
The Last 90 Staterooms…Act Now! 

The plans for the 25th Anniversary sailing of The Jazz Cruise ’25 are spectacular. The cruise is over 94% reserved and is currently in Open Booking, which means that anyone may reserve any available stateroom. The remaining inventory, totaling just over 80 staterooms, includes Veranda, Ocean View and Inside Staterooms.

BOOK NOW

The Smooth Jazz Cruise ‘25.1 & ‘25.2
Starting its 3^rd Decade
Both Sailings Fully Reserved

With both sailings being fully reserved, guests wishing to sail on a ’25 sailing of The Smooth Jazz Cruise should JOIN WAITLIST now. Cancellations will be filled exclusively from the WAITLIST. WAITLIST guests qualify for special terms when reserving a stateroom on The Jazz Cruise ’25 or Botti at Sea II.

JOIN WAITLIST

Botti at Sea ’25
Every Night is a Night on the Town
New Performer – Diana Krall! 

Botti at Sea ’25 is over 65% reserved. Anyone may reserve an available stateroom by calling the office during regular business hours or doing so online. It was this time last year that there was a “run” on staterooms, so act now! Diana Krall has just been added to the lineup! 

BOOK NOW

Journey of Jazz ’25
Jazz Life at Sea & On Land 
Reserve Now – Land Events Menu Soon

Jazz Cruises’ newest program, Journey of Jazz, hosted by Marcus Miller & Gregory Porter, is in Open Booking. Though not sailing for 15 months, the cruise is more than 65% reserved. Menu of land-based events in Victoria and San Francisco to be announced in late July! Reserve your stateroom now to be eligible for events at that time.

BOOK NOW

1-Day Tickets to STL Jazz Fest Are On Sale Now!

Mug Shots of the Week

Guests on the ’24 jazz cruises received The Weekender mug, which we hope you will use with your Saturday morning coffee while you read the latest edition. Please share a picture of yourself & your mug with us so that we can include it for the 100,000+ folks who receive The Weekender each Saturday.

Tag us @thejazzcruise @bottiatsea @thesmoothjazzcruise #jazzcruises and #theweekender. Email your photo to MugShot@scecruises.com.

The post OUR TAKE: Flipping the Script appeared first on Signature Cruise Experiences.

The addition of more vocalists on The Jazz Cruise and The Smooth Jazz Cruise over the years reflects several considerations. First, we have found that many vocalists are prepared to perform with one of our bands or a combination of their music director, most often a piano player, and our musicians. Second, adding vocals to our lineups has been well received by our guests. Listening to tunes they know being presented by top voices has enriched the cruise experience, broadened the audiences and enlivened the programming. Finding the “right” singers, however, remains a challenge, particularly for The Smooth Jazz Cruise.

Botti at Sea II is intended to offer the broadest array of talent and programming, so vocalists abound. With at least one more significant vocalist addition to be announced soon, this cruise boasts Katharine McPhee, Corinne Bailey Rae, esperanza spalding, Morgan James, Thana Alexa, Mindi Abair and Benny Benack III.

Journey of Jazz ’25 follows suit with Gregory Porter, Dee Dee Bridgewater, Cecile McLorin Salvant, Bria Skonberg and Benny Benack III.

The art of jazz remains dominated by instrumentalists sharing the bandstand. There is no plan or reason to believe that our cruises will depart from that foundation, nor should it. One way to look at our programming is to assess the volume of music. In reviewing the history of our cruises, the hours of vocals have not been added at the expense of instrumental presentation. Instead, vocals account for the expanse of our programming. The total number of instrumental music on The Jazz Cruise ’25 is no less (actually greater) than it was in ’01. The total number of hours of music, though, has increased dramatically, directly related to the addition of vocals and special shows.

That is our story, and we will sing (and play) it from the top of the mountain down to the sea. After all, Jazz Cruises is the Gold Standard of Music at Sea Since 2001.

STL Jazz Fest 1-Day Tickets Available Now!

1-Day tickets for STL Jazz Fest are now on sale!
For details about the festival and information on how to purchase tickets, see below: 

STL Jazz Fest
Produced by Jazz Cruises
The Factory – Chesterfield (St. Louis) Missouri

Friday, August 23, 2024
Eric Marienthal Quintet, featuring Niki Haris
The Comedy of Alonzo Bodden
GREGORY PORTER

Saturday, August 24, 2024
Mindi Abair with Eric Marienthal & Friends
The Comedy of Alonzo Bodden
BRIAN CULBERTSON

Doors 6 PM | Showtime 7 PM

Labor Day Weekend Jazz Festivals

Vail Jazz Party

Detroit Jazz Festival

This sprawling free event is held over the four-day weekend downtown in the city that claims some ownership of the labor movement. Originally founded in 1980, the 2024 edition of the Detroit Jazz Festival features many artists who have appeared on our Jazz Cruises programs, including Christian McBride, Monty Alexander, Warren Wolf, Chief Adjuah, Billy Childs with Sean Jones, Isaiah J. Thompson, Nate Smith and Marquis Hill. Drummer Brian Blade is the artist in residence and will perform multiple sets with his Fellowship band.

DC Jazz Festival

Celebrating its 20th anniversary, this festival in our nation’s capital features a hybrid of free and paid concerts, with the main event being a series of outdoor concerts Aug. 31 and Sep. 1 at the Wharf, as well as some shows at the nearby Anthem venue. Headliners include several Jazz Cruises favorites such as Samara Joy, Dianne Reeves, Kenny Barron, James Morrison, Ron Carter Trio and the Emmet Cohen Trio with Houston Person. In addition, the festival hosts the DCJazzPrix International Band Competition, with the winning group receiving a $15,000 prize and a yearlong association with the DC Jazz Festival

Jazz Cruises’ ’25 Programs

The Jazz Cruise ’25
Celebrating its 25^th Anniversary

The plans for the 25th Anniversary sailing of The Jazz Cruise ’25 are spectacular. The cruise is over 90% reserved and is currently in Open Booking, which means that now anyone may reserve any available stateroom. Staterooms with Verandas remain in inventory along with Ocean View and Inside Staterooms.

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The Smooth Jazz Cruise ‘25.1 & ‘25.2
Starting its 3^rd Decade

With both sailings being fully reserved, guests wishing to sail on a ’25 sailing of The Smooth Jazz Cruise should JOIN WAITLIST now. Cancellations will be filled exclusively from the WAITLIST. WAITLIST guests qualify for special terms when reserving a stateroom on The Jazz Cruise ’25 or Botti at Sea II.

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Botti at Sea ’25
Every Night is a Night on the Town

Botti at Sea ‘25 is in the Open Booking stage and is over 60% reserved. Anyone may reserve any available stateroom either by calling the office during regular business hours or doing so online. It was this time last year that there was a “run” on staterooms, so act now! 

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Journey of Jazz ’25
Jazz Life at Sea & On Land 
West Coast Style 

Jazz Cruises’ newest program, Journey of Jazz ’25, hosted by Marcus Miller & Gregory Porter, has completed the Pre-Sale process and began Open Booking on April 30, 2024. Like a race care, this program as gone from 0 – 60(%) sold in the blink of an eye. 

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Mug Shots of the Week

Guests on the ’24 jazz cruises received The Weekender mug, which we hope you will use with your Saturday morning coffee while you read the latest edition. Please share a picture of yourself & your mug with us so that we can include it for the 100,000+ folks who receive The Weekender each Saturday.

Tag us @thejazzcruise @bottiatsea @thesmoothjazzcruise #jazzcruises and #theweekender. Email your photo to MugShot@scecruises.com.

The post OUR TAKE: Let’s Talk Vocals appeared first on Signature Cruise Experiences.

Seeing Marcus Miller on the cruise was a lot of fun. We all know that he is a serious musician. A man who respects the bandstand, cares about his product, and always looking to challenge his band, his audience, and himself. On this cruise Marcus took up the duty of providing Michael McDonald with a first-class band, or, as Michael said, the best band he has ever performed with. That Marcus took this role seriously and with buoyancy is not surprising to anyone. The man is about the music and making the guests happy.

On the middle day of the cruise, Marcus was the leader of what was undoubtedly, the coolest and best onboard, outdoor, poolside, late-night jam session ever. Lisa Fischer, Lynne Fiddmont, and Romeo Johnson were there to add first class vocals. Joining Marcus in the band was Music Director Eric Marienthal, Arlington Jones, Bill Heller, Jay Williams, Kevin Turner, Munyungo Jackson, Patches Stewart, and Nate Phillips. A tried-and-true Jazz Cruises “A” team.

I spent a lot of time this week walking around the ship watching people have fun. The intensity of the search for enjoyment is much greater in a shorter cruise. I learned that. Our longer cruises have a beginning, a middle and an end. Shorter cruises have none of the above. It is more of an “on your marks, get set, go”. Both are valid. Both are fun. But there is a different vibe, for sure. We had a great time on the cruise.

Again, this type of program is not our regular gig, but, as the cruise ended, we had but one regret. Sadly, the program was billed as “A One-Time Only Cruise Getaway”. We’ll see.

By Michael Lazaroff, Executive Director of The Jazz Cruise, The Smooth Jazz Cruise, Chris Botti at Sea, The McDonald & LaBelle Cruise and Journey of Jazz. Feel free to express your views or pose questions to him at michael@scecruises.com.

Botti at Sea ’25
The Botti Vibe Goes Sailing

One of the jazz magazines called the other day to talk about Botti at Sea II (’25). The writer had not sailed on Botti at Sea ’24, the inaugural sailing, but had recently attended a dinner at which two couples who had been on the cruise were sharing how much fun they had on the program.

One of the husbands, who was neither a cruise fan nor a music fan, told the group that it was the best people watching event in years. He could not remember seeing so many sophisticated and engaged people having so much fun.

I had not thought of the cruise in that way, but it was an apt description. Of course, that is the Botti Vibe. Elegant, talented, first-class, but also fun and exciting. Chris has collaborated with some of the top performers in the world, Sting, Paul Simon, Barbra Streisand, Lady Gaga, Frank Sinatra, and many more. Earning a Grammy^®, multiple Gold and Platinum records and a score of chart-topping jazz albums, Chris’ talents and excellence is in the upped end of the “no doubt” category.

But, as alluded to above, the Botti Vibe is more than that and it has never been in greater display than on the cruise. Botti at Sea II (’25) continues that party, every night is special aura that captivated the sold out sailing a few months ago.

With every day being either a gorgeous, fun filled day at sea or on a beach enjoying Grand Cayman and Cozumel, Every Night is a Night on The Town… dinner, a main show and then your choice of late night fun and excitement. 18X Grammy^® Winner David Foster performs with his famous wife, Katharine McPhee. 5X Grammy^® Winner Esperanza Spalding presents a magical show of great music and dance. Corinne Bailey Rae shows why she is an international star. Kamasi Washington, perhaps the most dynamic musician in jazz, will present his famous show. Kool & The Gang, an OG with great songs and pizzazz, will hit the stage. And, of course, Chris Botti and his amazing group of musicians and vocalists will mesmerize you. Ready to dance, Mindi Abair and an all star band are ready to make that happen. Add in the comedy of Alonzo Bodden and more.
Yes, you can catch the Botti Vibe on land. No one performs more than Chris Botti, but the “at sea” version of the Botti Vibe…now, that is special.

Newport Jazz Festival

The storied Newport Jazz Festival has just announced the lineup for its 70th edition, to be held August 2-4, 2024 at Fort Adams State Park in that iconic Northeast town. With Christian McBride at the helm as artistic director, the historic event features artists from a wide range of jazz genres and “jazz-leaning” genres. Among the 50 or so headliners are several artists who have sailed on our programs, including Kamasi Washington, Kenny Barron, Robert Glasper, Samara Joy, Artemis, Johnathan Blake and, of course, Christian himself who will lead a Jam Jawn group with special guests.

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Jazz Cruises’ ’25 Programs

The Jazz Cruise ’25
Celebrating its 25^th Anniversary

The Jazz Cruise ’25 is 82% reserved and is currently in “Open Booking,” where anyone may reserve any available stateroom. You may view current stateroom availability and start your reservation on the website now.

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The Smooth Jazz Cruise ‘25.1 & ‘25.2
Starting its 3^rd Decade

With both sailings being fully reserved, guests wishing to sail on a ’25 sailing of The Smooth Jazz Cruise should JOIN WAITLIST now. Cancellations will be filled exclusively from the WAITLIST.

JOIN WAITLIST

Botti at Sea ’25

Botti at Sea II began “Open Booking” on March 5, 2024 and is over 50% reserved. Anyone may reserve any available stateroom either by calling the office during regular business hours or doing so online.

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Journey of Jazz ’25
Jazz Life at Sea & On Land 
West Coast Style 

Jazz Cruises’ newest program, Journey of Jazz ’25, hosted by Marcus Miller & Gregory Porter is currently in the stateroom Selection Process for Pre-Sale Reservation holders. “Open Booking” will begin on April 30, 2024.

For more information about the cruise, the lineup of musicians (as of today), full itinerary, pricing and reservation process, go to www.journeyofjazz.com.

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The post OUR TAKE: Great Music is Just That…Great Music appeared first on Signature Cruise Experiences.