T

he Jakarta International Java Jazz festival returns this year with the regular mix of festival favorites, newer names in the music scene, and obvious headliners.

Taking place on the March 4 to 6 weekend, Java Jazz '€” as it is more commonly known '€” will feature more than a hundred musicians from both home and abroad.

American pop artist Robin Thicke will perform at the BNI Hall on Friday at 8:30 p.m., the regular prime-time slot.

Known as much for his celebrity '€” controversial song lyrics and music videos and public life '€” as much as his music; Thicke is guaranteed to be one of the festival'€™s biggest drawcards.

More musical than controversial, fellow headliners David Foster and Java Jazz Friends will see the well-known producer share the stage with some of the festival'€™s favorite local musicians though no specific names have been released so far.

Having visited the country numerous times to perform concerts, where extravagant ticket prices became a hot topic of sorts, Foster should be a guaranteed seat-filler considering his rapport with Indonesian audiences.

Foster will perform at 8 p.m. at the BNI Hall on Saturday and at Java Jazz Hall at 7:15 p.m. on Sunday.

Narantara Sitepu, a 31-year-old jazz fan, says he is excited about seeing David Foster again, even though he has seen the pianist numerous times.

'€œI think Indonesians love him because on stage he is funny and charming, and he knows which hits to play.'€

Following Foster at 11 p.m. on the same day will be American trumpeter and composer Chris Botti, who will be joined by Sting, whose popularity endures in Indonesia (the ex-Police leader has also performed here a number of times).

Botti and Sting will also perform at the Java Jazz Hall festival on the following day at 10.15 p.m.

Other notable names include renowned jazz group Level 42, led by singer-bassist Mark King, who has also performed at the festival a number of times; Grammy-award winning saxophonist Boney James; smooth jazz trumpet player Rick Braun; Los Angeles'€™ Ron King Big Band, led by Grammy-nominated Trumpeter Ron King; instrumental experimental jazz group BadBadNotGood; renowned composer and vocalist Kurt Elling; the legendary Japanese ska group Tokyo Ska Paradise Orchestra; German Jazz trumpeter Till Brönner; and many more.

Fans of Indonesian jazz and pop will also be delighted by the addition of favorites, such as RnB sentimentalist Glenn Fredly; pop singers Marcell and Andre Hehanussa; long-time favorite jazz keyboardist Dwiki Dharmawan; alternative pop group Sore; guitarist Dewa Budjana; rising ethnic-infused pop-rockers Barasuara; and many others.

As it does every year, this year'€™s festival has been preceded by its '€œJava Jazz On The Move'€ event series, which takes some of the festival'€™s regulars to perform at various malls and public venues around Jakarta and Bandung in West Java, beginning in January and ending just before the festival begins.

As always, this year the festival will be held at the Jakarta International Expo or JIEXPO, in the PRJ Kemayoran area in Central Jakarta.

Throughout the 11 years of holding the festival, organizers have branched out '€” ostensibly due to the growing popularity of the festival as well as the broadening taste of local '€œjazz'€ fans '€” and the lineup now includes musicians who arguably do not play any kind of music rooted in jazz.

This approach has proven to be a resounding success, as Java Jazz continues to attract large numbers of visitors, growing from around 50,000 in its first installment to an average of over 100,000 for the last few festivals.

'€œIt is always important to get an equal amount of local and international acts to show that we also have many talents music fans have to know about,'€ said Alvin Bahar, a self-billed '€œsupporter of local music'€.