8th Annual Faena Jazz Series at Faena Theater
Season Launches February 4, 2026
Faena Theater
Miami Beach, Florida
3201 Collins Avenue • Miami Beach, FL 33140 • Box Office: (786) 655-6500
Curated and produced by Grammy-nominated producer Rachel Faro, the 2026 season includes Brazilian musical icons, interpreters of the Great American Songbook, and an Afro-Cuban duo.
The announced lineup features Catherine Russell, Stella Cole, Benny Benack III, João Bosco, Hamilton de Holanda, and OKAN.
Season tickets (all six performances) and individual concert tickets are available here:
faenatheater.com/concerts.
Tickets may also be purchased by calling the Faena Theater box office at (786) 655-6500.
February 4, 2026
Catherine Russell
The Faena Jazz Series opens its 2026 season with Grammy Award-winning vocalist Catherine Russell, known for her interpretations of mid-20th century American popular song, blues, and jazz.
Raised in a musical household, Russell’s father, Luis Russell, served as Louis Armstrong’s longtime musical director. Her work has been received by audiences across the United States, Europe, and the Americas.
During the 1990s, she performed as a background singer with artists including Madonna, Cyndi Lauper, Roseanne Cash, Gloria Estefan, Diana Ross, Marc Cohn, and Joan Osborne. She also worked with David Bowie and Steely Dan.
Her solo career began after Bowie’s retirement in 2004, and she has since released seven albums, including three Grammy-nominated projects. Her voice is featured on HBO’s Boardwalk Empire, and the soundtrack album received a Grammy Award for Best Compilation Soundtrack.
Russell is currently a Harvard Jazz Master in Residence. Her most recent album, My Ideal, a collaboration with Sean Mason, received a 2025 Grammy Award nomination for Best Jazz Vocal Album.
The Lineup (2026)
March 18, 2026
Stella Cole
Stella Cole is a vocalist in the jazz tradition. Still in her 20s, she has introduced selections from the Great American Songbook to newer audiences through contemporary platforms, while drawing on the legacy of songwriters such as Cole Porter, Stephen Sondheim, Sammy Cahn, and Frank Loesser, and interpreters including Nat “King” Cole, Frank Sinatra, Mel Tormé, Rosemary Clooney, and Judy Garland.
In 2020, she began posting at-home performance videos that reached a wide audience. Clips of “Over the Rainbow” and Stephen Sondheim’s “Everybody Says Don’t” circulated broadly online, contributing to an audience of over 800,000 followers. Her collaboration with Postmodern Jukebox on a cover of Miley Cyrus’ “Flowers” has drawn over six million views.
She has held residencies at New York’s Birdland and Café Carlyle and appeared in Paris at Duc des Lombards. She has released three albums produced by Matt Pierson, including Snow and her most recent album, It’s Magic.
April 15, 2026
Benny Benack III
Benny Benack III is known as both a trumpeter and vocalist, with a range that spans classic jazz trumpet traditions and post-Sinatra vocal stylings.
He has collaborated with Christian McBride, Veronica Swift, and Emmet Cohen, and has released five albums that reached the top of the JazzWeek charts. His most recent release, This Is The Life, features his father Benny Benack Jr. on saxophone.
Benack was a finalist in the 2014 Thelonious Monk Competition (trumpet) and placed third in the 2021 Sarah Vaughan International Jazz Vocal Competition. In DownBeat Magazine’s 2025 Readers Poll, he placed #1 for Rising Star Male Vocalist and #8 for Rising Star Trumpet.
In November 2026, he is scheduled to tour Europe with Jazz at Lincoln Center’s “Sing and Swing” show, followed by a U.S. tour.
May 5, 2026
João Bosco
For over five decades, guitarist and singer/songwriter João Bosco has been a major figure in Brazilian popular music, recognized for his versatility and influence.
Born in Minas Gerais, Bosco began composing and performing in the 1960s and was recognized early by Antonio Carlos Jobim and singer Elis Regina, with whom he collaborated. His work with Vinicius de Moraes and poet Aldir Blanc helped establish a repertoire now widely covered across Brazilian music.
A 1984 appearance on a Lee Ritenour recording helped expand international interest, leading to U.S. touring and appearances at the Montreux Jazz Festival. Bosco has continued to record and tour internationally while remaining deeply connected to Brazil, incorporating samba, bossa nova, rock, jazz, and related styles.
Bosco has stated plans to retire, and this performance is presented as part of his farewell touring period.
June 3, 2026
Hamilton de Holanda
Hamilton de Holanda is a Brazilian bandolim virtuoso and improviser known for redefining the 10-string version of the instrument and bridging Brazilian traditions such as choro with jazz and global forms. His collaborators include Wynton Marsalis, Chick Corea, Milton Nascimento, Djavan, Gonzalo Rubalcaba, Dave Matthews, John Paul Jones, and Hermeto Pascoal.
In 2024, he recorded 14 million streams across 180 countries and reached over 800,000 monthly listeners on Spotify. He is also a four-time Latin Grammy winner with seventeen Latin Grammy nominations and a 2025 Grammy Award nomination.
He has performed at venues including the Grand Palais (Paris), the Smithsonian (Washington), and the J. Paul Getty Museum (Los Angeles), and at festivals such as Montreux Jazz, Newport Jazz, Montreal, Umbria Jazz, Marciac, and North Sea Jazz. He performed at the opening ceremony of the Rio 2016 Summer Games and at the 2018 G20 Summit in Buenos Aires.
His work is often described as bridging traditions while expanding the role of the bandolim in contemporary settings.
June 24, 2026
OKAN
Taking its name from the word for “heart” or “soul” in Lukumí, OKAN is an Afro-Cuban duo that blends global rhythms with jazz, folk, and classical forms, often writing about immigration, exile, and identity.
Elizabeth Rodriguez is a classically trained violinist, and Magdelys Savigne is a percussionist from Santiago de Cuba. They formed OKAN in 2017 after both performing in Jane Bunnett’s all-woman Cuban jazz group Maqueque.
Since forming, they have released three albums and received two Juno Awards, appeared on NPR’s Tiny Desk Concert series with their quintet, and performed across the United States and Canada at clubs and festivals. In 2024, OKAN relocated to South Florida after several years in Toronto.
Sponsors & Collaborators
The Faena Jazz Series notes partnerships with local institutions focused on music and music education. WDNA-FM is listed as a media partner, and Young Musicians Unite! participates through student interns who attend each show to assist the artists.
Sponsors listed include Miami Piano Center, Steinway Pianos, Young Musicians Unite, Frost School of Music, and WDNA 88.9 FM.
