Omara Portuondo wants to celebrate with a grand fiesta representing the impressive sweep of her career, meeting with friends old and new to perform together much-loved Cuban classics from "Besame Mucho" to "Veinte Años." Listeners will be taken back to her younger years and her continuing love of elegant cabaret, from the Buena Vista Social Club days to the present, in a musical feast full of piquant sabrosura.

Portuondo will be joined by colleagues who will perform timeless Cuban songs, as well as selections from their own repertoires.

Regina Carter is the foremost jazz violinist of her generation. Her passion for excellence did not escape the attention of the MacArthur Foundation, which awarded her with its prestigious "genius grant."

Anat Cohen has won hearts and minds the world over with her expressive virtuosity and delightful stage presence. She is an established bandleader and prolific composer whose music is a unique blend of modern and traditional jazz, classical music, Brazilian choro, Argentine tango and an expansive timeline of Afro-Cuban styles.

From the beginning of his career in the 1990s, Cuban-born multi-instrumentalist Roberto Fonseca, although considered very young by the standards of jazz, world music or other genres, has maintained a sharp focus on a mission that has already garnered him worldwide recognition.

Ralph Ellison's life was filled with music. To celebrate the joyous personal side of Ellison, NJPAC presents Jazz in the Key of Ellison, a special evening of live music inspired by the Harlem jazz world that Ellison loved and knew so well, along with live readings from his writing on music. This evening is inspired by Ellison mentee Don Katz, Founder and CEO of Audible, Inc.

Ellison (1913-1994) built a superb record collection to enjoy while he wrote his seminal work, Invisible Man. A music writer as well, his Living with Music is a collection of his explorations of jazz. Ellison's favorite music included many artists he saw perform live, such as Duke Ellington, Louis Armstrong, Jimmy Rushing and Bessie Smith, along with next-generation greats including Charlie Parker, Dizzy Gillespie and Thelonious Monk.

Judy Kaye, one of the musical theater's most valuable and versatile performers ( The New York Times), won a 2012 Tony Award for her role in Nice Work If You Can Get It. Some of her many Broadway roles include Mamma Mia!, Ragtime, Wicked, and The Phantom of the Opera, for which she also won a Tony Award.

The author of Cole and The Gershwins, Robert Kimball is a historian of American musical theater and artistic adviser to the Ira and Leonore Gershwin Trusts and the Cole Porter Musical and Literary Property Trusts.

"From the songs to the sets, FELA! The Concert screams color and excitement ... that will leave you wanting more." (AussieTheatre.com)

The sensual, eclectic sounds and powerful lyrics of Fela Kuti prove why he became one of the world's most celebrated and rebellious music legends. Set against a soaring canvas of projected images, FELA! The Concert is driven by the electrifying rhythms of an onstage Afrobeat band, with nine singers and dancers who bring to life Fela's provocative spirit.

GRP Records is the groundbreaking jazz label founded by musicians Dave Grusin and the late Larry Rosen. In tribute to Rosen -- an esteemed consulting producer of the Sarah Vaughan International Jazz Vocal Competition -- these GRP musicians and others will gather for a memorable celebration.

Join this ultra-high-energy celebration of "The Hardest-Working Man in Show Business," with NJPAC Jazz Advisor Christian McBride; Sharon Jones, often called the female James Brown; the dynamic singer and songwriter Bettye LaVette; vocalist Lee Fields; gospel and soul singer Ryan Shaw; Grammy-winning musician Terrace Martin; and James Brown Band alumni Pee Wee Ellis on saxophone, emcee Danny "The Cape Man" Ray, Robert "Mousey" Thompson on drums, and Fred Wesley on trombone, with more to be announced!

Join NJPAC for We Got the Funk Dance Party as Deejay CT spins music by James Brown, Janelle Monae, Prince and other funkmeisters following Get On Up: A James Brown Celebration. The dance party takes place in Prudential Hall Lobby until midnight. Admission is free and open only to those attending the concert!

Nicknamed "Sassy," Sarah Vaughan was one of the top female jazz singers of all time. Her wide, perfectly controlled range often ranked her with Ella Fitzgerald and Billie Holiday. Vaughan was an NEA Jazz Master, and this program is supported by the NEA.

Four-time Grammy winner Dianne Reeves has recorded and performed extensively with the Lincoln Center Jazz Orchestra and Wynton Marsalis, who said of the singer, "She has one of the most powerful, purposeful and accurate voices of this or any time." She was the first Creative Chair for Jazz for the Los Angeles Philharmonic and the first singer to perform at the famed Walt Disney Concert Hall. Reeves appeared throughout George Clooney's Good Night and Good Luck and performed every song on the Grammy-winning soundtrack.

After four decades of singing background for icons like the Rolling Stones and Tina Turner, Grammy winner Lisa Fischer embarked on a new musical journey with the success of the Oscar-winning documentary Twenty Feet from Stardom. The film told her story, complete with clips of her 1991 R&B hit "How Can I Ease the Pain," live footage of her legendary duets with Mick Jagger on "Gimme Shelter," and glowing testimonials from famous colleagues like Sting, Patti Austin and Chris Botti.

Raised in poverty in Pennsylvania's coal-mining country, Sheila Jordan began singing as a child and was working in Detroit clubs by her early teens. Her uncompromising style and unique musical trademarks include frequent and unexpected sweeping changes of pitch. She is recognized for her collaborations with bassist Cameron Brown in performance and the recording studio.

NJPAC Jazz Advisor Christian McBride, the recently named Artistic Director of the Newport Jazz Festival, is a five-time Grammy Award-winning bassist-composer who, since the early '90s, has recorded over 300 dates as a sideman and released albums as a leader since '95. Aside from various stints with Sting, Chick Corea, Pat Metheny, Roy Haynes, John McLaughlin and George Duke, among others, McBride tours consistently with his trio and his quintet, Inside Straight. He also fronts the Christian McBride Big Band, whose album The Good Feeling won a 2012 Grammy for Best Large Jazz Ensemble Album.

There is a free Pre-show event at 6pm with film clips and a discussion hosted by Todd Barkan

Renee Rosnes has toured and recorded with bands led by such giants as Wayne Shorter, James Moody, Buster Williams, and Ron Carter's Foursight Band, and is a founding member of the all-star octet, the SFJAZZ Collective. As a leader, Rosnes has released 15 acclaimed albums and has appeared on other recordings as a consummate sideman. "Rosnes rubs balm in jaded ears," writes DownBeat Magazine. "She offers exquisite balances of delicacy and power, witty and weighted ideas, assertiveness and deference."

Women vocalists from around the globe compete for a chance to perform in the finals, also known as the "Sassy Awards." The only one of its kind, this competition for female jazz singers gives one outstanding performer a platform for embarking on a career in the music business. The grand prize winner receives a $5,000 cash prize and an offer for a record deal with Concord Music Group. This year's judges include bassist and NJPAC Jazz Advisor Christian McBride, powerhouse singer Dianne Reeves, award-winning vocalist  Sheila Jordan, music journalist Mark Ruffin and WBGO 88.3 FM host Sheila E. Anderson. For more information, visit SarahVaughanCompetition.com.