WSU School of Music Promotes the Second Brazilian Jazz Festival in the Palouse!
After a very successful debut with a fully attended concert, Washington State University School of Music announced the second edition of the multinational Brazilian Jazz Festival to the Palouse. Spearheaded by Professor Dr. César Haas, the festival will feature internationally acclaimed Brazilian and American jazz artists, Três Mais joined by multi-Grammy Award nominee drummer Rafael Barata.
The 5-day festival will focus on performances, clinics, rehearsals, and talks that promote dissemination, teaching, and learning of Brazilian music at WSU and local schools. The internationally acclaimed guest artists will be working closely with local middle and high school students, and also WSU Pullman students and faculty on performances and clinics that involve several areas and ensembles from the School of Music, including the WSU Jazz Big Band, the Jazz Lab Band, WSU Chamber Singers, Jazz Northwest (WSU Jazz Faculty Ensemble), and a combined student and faculty chamber ensemble. All concerts and clinics are free of charge and open to the public!
The festival will take place on October 18th through October 22nd in Pullman, WA, and features a guest artist residency by Três Mais, a new collaboration between American and Brazilian rhythm section musicians and educators marrying Brazilian music styles with American Jazz. The core of Três Mais consists of musicians and educators: WSU Guitar Professor Brazilian guitarist Dr. César Haas and award-winner big band and orchestra director American jazz bassist Wayne Moose. For each performance, Três Mais invites featured artists that share the same passion for diversity and collaboration. For the second year of the festival, the featured artist will be drummer Rafael Barata. Born and raised in Rio de Janeiro, the birthplace of samba and bossa nova, Barata started his career at the age of 14. A multi-Grammy Award nominee, Barata has performed and recorded with Brazilian and jazz masters of the highest caliber such as Herbie Hancock, Christian McBride, Kenny Barron, Rosa Passos, Eliane Elias, Edu Lobo, Ivan Lins, Milton Nascimento, among many others. As an educator, he has presented clinics at renowned universities, such as Berklee School of Music, University of Southern California, University of Rhode Island, and Brown University.
The festival activities will start on Saturday October 18th at 7:30pm with a jam session open to the public hosted by the guest artists at Bucer’s Coffee House Pub in Moscow, ID. The festival main concert will take place on Tuesday October 21st at 7:30 at WSU Kimbrough Concert Hall, presenting Três Mais with Rafael Barata featuring the WSU Jazz Big Band, the WSU Jazz Lab Band, WSU Chamber Singers, Jazz Northwest (WSU Jazz Faculty Ensemble), and a combined student and faculty chamber ensemble. All concerts and clinics are free of charge and open to the public!
This event is funded by Allegro (WSU School of Music Registered Student Association) and the David G. Pollart Center for Arts and Humanities. Each year, the David G. Pollart Center for Arts and Humanities solicits proposals from all WSU faculty for projects that advance knowledge in and public awareness of the arts and humanities. Through a competitive process, a small group of Faculty Fellows is then selected and provided with significant support to bring their projects to life. In addition to pursuing their individual projects, fellows meet monthly to share their progress and reflect on the broader work of the arts and humanities in the public sphere. Dr. Haas was one of the awardees for the 2025-2026 academic year.
Festival Programming:
Saturday (Oct 18th):
- 1-2 Rehearsal with Jazz Northwest (Kimbrough Concert Hall)
- 7:30pm Jazz and Bossa Jam Session – Três Mais with Rafael Barata and Vern Sielert (Bucer’s Coffee House in Moscow, ID.)
- BRING YOUR AXE!
Sunday (Oct 19th):
- 2-3:30 Percussion workshop (Kimbrough Music Building – Room 115)
Monday (Oct 20th):
- 9-11 Clinic with Clarkston and Pullman Middle/High School Jazz Bands (Pullman High School)
- 12:10-1 Rehearsal with WSU Jazz Big Band (Kimbrough Concert Hall)
- 1:10-2 Rehearsal with WSU Lab Band (Kimbrough Concert Hall)
- 4:10-5 Samba & swing clinic – all instruments and voice welcome! (Kimbrough Concert Hall)
Tuesday (Oct 21st):
- 9-10 Rehearsal with combined faculty and student chamber ensemble (Kimbrough Concert Hall)
- 12:10-12:50 Rehearsal with WSU Jazz Big Band (Kimbrough Concert Hall)
- 12:50-1:20 Rehearsal with WSU Chamber Singers (Kimbrough Concert Hall)
- 3-4 Rafael Barata interview for NWPB
7:30pm Main Concert
- Três Mais feat. Rafael Barata with WSU Jazz Big Band, Lab Band, Chamber Singers, Jazz Northwest (WSU Jazz Faculty Ensemble), and a combined student and faculty chamber ensemble. (Kimbrough Concert Hall)
Wednesday (Oct 22nd) *closed to the public:
- 10-12 Rehearsal – Três Mais with Rafael Barata and Aaron Hill (WSU Recording Studios)
- 2-4:30 Video Recording – Três Mais with Rafael Barata and Aaron Hill (WSU Recording Studios)
The goal of the festival is to enable WSU students and instructors exposure to worldclass Brazilian jazz talent and music that are often limited to larger urban areas. Brazilian styles of music (bossa-nova, samba, baião) are an integral part of the jazz canon. The music is rich and complex and has a storied history. However, Brazilian pieces are difficult to effectively interpret with stylistic, cultural, and historic accuracy. Brazilian music has its unique features, with rhythmic and melodic patterns that are unique even within the scope of Latin American music. And often students miss the full depth and dimension of these musical traditions. The festival will promote a richer understanding of Brazilian music and provide culturally informed study and interpretation of the music to help students develop musical skills and concepts they would not necessarily develop studying straight-ahead jazz. It will also enrich their cultural awareness and knowledge of a musical culture that is integral to the jazz idiom.
All events are free of charge and open to the community. This project is in alignment with WSU strategic plan and mission as a public land-grant research university that is committed to the principles of practical education for all, scholarly inquiry that benefits society, and the sharing of expertise to positively impact the state and communities.
This is event is grant supported by the WSU Office of Research and the WSU Office of the Provost through the New Faculty Seed Grant Program that helps junior faculty develop research, scholarly, or creative programs that lead to sustained professional development and extramural funding. This grant support has been allocated in full to the Brazilian Jazz Festival.
Contact:
César Haas
(201) 699-2725
cesar.haas@wsu.edu