DC JazzFest Opening Night

Sunna Gunnlaugs rise in the jazz ranks has been dramatic, with Top 10 album releases on both U.S. and Canadian radio charts. She has achieved glowing critical reviews; her work has been lauded in jazz magazines across the globe, from DownBeat in the U.S., to Jazzpodium in Germany, and Swing Journal in Japan. As All About Jazz has said, “Gunnlaugs proves that jazz can have a wider appeal without losing integrity.” In her home country of Iceland, all of her albums have been nominated for the Icelandic Music Awards, and in 2019 she won Performer of the Year. She has performed on numerous prestigious festival stages, including the Montreal Jazz Festival, the London Jazz Festival, the Rotterdam Jazz Festival, and the Rochester Jazz Festival among many. This will be her DCJF debut performance.

Opening this evening’s show will be one of the DMV’s most popular attractions, The String Queens. Blessing its audiences with a delightful balance of joie de vivre and artistic integrity, Kendall, Dawn, and Elise are fresh off acclaimed performances on prestigious stages ranging from the Hollywood Bowl to the Keystone Korner Baltimore. With a repertoire that includes classical expressions and pop song re-configurations, to Chick Corea’s classic “Spain,” The String Queens are a fast emerging phenomenon, whose citations include the Atlanta Symphony’s Aspire Award, and a 2023 Wammie Award for DMV artists.