SAN DIEGO — Has any single artist had a bigger impact on more styles of music than Miles Davis, the legendary trumpeter, band leader, composer and cultural provocateur who inspired several generations of jazz, rock, funk, hip-hop and electronica performers?

From Bob Dylan, young Icelandic vocal star Laufey and Pulitzer Prize-winning rapper Kendrick Lamar to Sex Pistols bassist Glen Matlock, former Pearl Jam drummer Matt Cameron and the late David Bowie, the number of performers Davis has deeply inspired is — much like him — beyond categorization.

“I’m a huge fan of Miles,” said singer Joe Jonas of the Jonas Brothers.

“People talk about what’s new in music, and about taking it really far out,” said Lenny Kravitz. “And I’m like: ‘Man, I haven’t heard anybody take it further out than Miles, and that was years ago.’”

“Discussing Miles makes you feel like a dime-store novelist talking about Shakespeare,” Radiohead guitarist Jonny Greenwood said. “We’ve taken and stolen from him shamelessly, not just musically, but in terms of his attitude of moving things forward.”

Davis’ ability to constantly move things forward — to repeatedly change the face of music in subtle and profound ways alike — will be showcased this weekend at the inaugural California Coast Jazz Festival’s “Milestones: A Miles Davis Centennial Celebration.” The three-day event next weekend at the Wyndham San Diego Bayside hotel is being produced and presented by KSDS Jazz 88, the national award-winning radio station based at San Diego City College.

“We have built this event from the ground up,” said KSDS General Manager and “Milestones” mastermind Ken Poston, who is also the founder and director of The Los Angeles Jazz Institute.

“We have a themed concept and we’re putting the whole thing together, piece by piece, and doing it the right way and the best way. We’re going the extra mile for Miles.”

Numerous Davis centennial tribute concerts have been held this year around the world and across the nation, with nearly a dozen in San Diego alone so far. More are coming up.

On Nov. 6, the Library of Congress will host a one-day event, “Unlimited Miles: Miles Davis at 100” in Washington, D.C. On Wednesday, several former Davis band members — including pianist Herbie Hancock, bassist Ron Carter and saxophonist Kenny Garrett — will salute his music at a Hollywood Bowl concert.

And on Sept. 15, former Davis band percussionist Airto Moreira will be one of four 2026 NEA Jazz Masters who will be honored at a free tribute concert at Walt Disney Hall in Los Angeles that will air online and on radio broadcasts across the country.

But KSDS’s “Milestones” stands out for the depth and breadth of its programming, which will feature panel discussions, films, presentations, concerts and jam sessions that will stretch from morning until late at night. And rather than focus on one facet of Davis’ multifarious career — as many centennial programs honoring him have — it will explore most of them, as befits an artist who pioneered nearly every significant jazz movement between the 1940s and 1980s, including cool, hard bop, orchestral, modal and fusion.

Davis, who died in 1991 at the age of 65, was one of those rare musicians who stood out in any stylistic context. He had a sound so distinct, soulful, eloquent and finely crafted that listeners can recognize his playing after hearing him play just a single note.

He was also an extraordinary talent scout and mentor. Over his five-decade span as a band leader, Davis nurtured a remarkable array of young talents. Many of them went on to become major jazz stars in their own right, including John Coltrane, Chick Corea, Wayne Shorter, Herbie Hancock, Tony Williams, Sonny Rollins, Bill Evans, Jack DeJohnette, Joe Zawinul, Mike Stern and Marcus Miller.

Accordingly, some of the panels and presentations at “Milestones” will focus of a number of Davis’ illustrious collaborators.

One concert, Friday’s “New Rhumba: Music of Ahmad Jamal,” will be devoted to the work of Jamal, a pianist and peer who never played with Davis but influenced the trumpeter greatly with his supple touch, instrumental voicings and dramatic use of the space between notes.

Another, Sunday’s “A Supreme Blue: A Centennial Re-imagining of Kind of Blue and A Love Supreme,” will feature a saxophone-free trio led by trumpeter Nicholas Payton paying tribute to “Kind of Blue,” Davis’ landmark 1959 album, and “A Love Supreme,” the game-changing 1964 album by former Davis saxophonist John Coltrane.

‘Fun and entertaining’

“With all the different components we have, I think the structure of our event is unique,” “Milestones” organizer Poston said.

“The way we will be dealing with Miles’ legacy is not just to talk about him and all his different eras, but also about the many musicians he worked with and influenced. With all the different panels, films and performances, ‘Milestones’ is designed to flow the way Miles’ career flowed so that people can get a really good overall picture of him. It won’t be like going to a university symposium, it will be fun and entertaining.”

The lineup is packed with standout musicians. They include such nationally acclaimed trumpeters as Jon Faddis, Nicholas Payton, Terrell Stafford, Jeremy Pelt and Gilbert Castellanos, who is the San Diego Symphony’s jazz curator and the founder of the Young Lions Jazz Conservatory at Liberty Station.

Also confirmed are such esteemed saxophonists as Charles McPherson, Ernie Watts, Bobby Watson and Doug Webb, drummers Roy McCurdy, Kenny Washington and Gerry Gibbs, and such longtime San Diego favorites as flutist Holly Hofmann, pianist Joshua White and bassist Rob Thorsen.

“I don’t think San Diego has ever experienced any event like this before,” Castellanos said.

“I’m not aware of any other festival in any other city doing something comparable to what Ken and KSDS are doing here to salute Miles. Ken is the master of programming great concerts. So, I was deeply honored when he invited me to be involved with this festival and share the stage with so many of my musical heroes.”

By featuring some of the same musicians in panel discussions and performances — in effect presenting a visceral cause-and-effect — Poston hopes attendees will gain a better perspective on Davis and his work.

For example, Saturday afternoon’s “Trane’s Blues: Miles and Trane” panel — moderated by San Diego State University Jazz Studies Director Brian Levy — will feature a discussion of Davis’ storied collaborations with sax icon Coltrane by fellow saxophonists Watts, Moore and Webb. It will be immediately followed by the same three musician panelists sharing the stage for a “Tenor Conclave: Celebrating John Coltrane” concert.

Similarly, Friday morning’s McPherson-led “Now’s the Time — The Music of Charlie Parker with Miles Davis, 1945–1949” concert will be immediately preceded by saxophonist and jazz historian Loren Schoenberg’s presentation, “Billie’s Bounce: Miles and Bird.” (Bird is a popular nickname for Parker.)

That night will see Schoenberg conduct the concert “Miles Ahead: The Miles Davis-Gil Evans Collaborations,” which will feature the KSDS Jazz Orchestra and trumpeters Castellanos, Evans, Faddis, Pelt and Stafford.

Schoenberg teaches at The Juilliard School in New York and is the senior scholar of the National Jazz Museum in Harlem. He hosts two weekly shows on KSDS, “Jazz Potpourri” and “Big Band Bash,” as well as the special “Sketches of Miles” series about Davis and his music.

“Credit for this Miles Davis Centennial celebration in San Diego goes to the station and Ken Poston,” said Schoenberg, speaking from his home in Rhode Island.

“I’ve known Ken for 40 years. He is a great historian and producer of events, and he’s been doing these kind of things for decades. So, I know that when Ken is involved, it’s going to be a very high-quality presentation. It won’t be a one-off ‘Let’s play some tunes by Miles Davis’ thing. It doesn’t surprise me that he’s assembled the best musicians and hosts, people who know what they are talking about.”

Those people include Schoenberg. He is also a veteran saxophonist and the author of “The NPR Curious Listener’s Guide to Jazz,” which was published in 2002.

“Loren will give his talk about Miles and Charlie Parker, show photos and explain what was most important about their relationship,” Poston said. “Then, you can go right from that to the concert by Charles McPherson and Terrell Stafford. The audience will be able to hear some of the same music that Loren just discussed.”

Flute-driven concert

In an interesting twist, Sunday’s “Seven Steps to Heaven: Music from Miles Davis’ Transition Years, 1960-1963″ will feature his music performed by a trumpet-free quartet led by top local flutist Holly Hofmann.

She will offer her versions of songs that Davis famously recorded and performed in concert, including, “Someday My Prince Will Come,” “Old Folks,” “I Thought About You” and “I Fall in Love Too Easily.” She’ll be accompanied by an ace band that includes pianist Joshua White, drummer Tyler Kreutel and young bass phenom Luke Little.

“These are songs that are favorites of the KSDS audience,” said Hofmann, the only female band leader in the “Milestones” weekend performance lineup.

“Miles’ music lends itself well to all instruments, not just trumpet, and many jazz groups regularly play his music,” she continued. “At my most recent gig at Manhattan in La Jolla, my band and I did ‘Someday My Prince Will Come.’ Miles’ ballad-playing really inspired me as a young musician. His songs offer a lot to flute players that is different than what most trumpet players would approximate.”

Extending and putting a fresh spin on Davis’ music is paramount to festival architect Poston.

“What’s really important for our event,” he stressed, “is that we don’t approach this in terms of trying to have people sound like Miles or imitating the sound of any of his bands. The idea is to pick the right artists for each concert, with music from that period of Miles’ career, and then allow the artists to put it all together. It’s all about what these artists do with the material they are playing. “

For Davis, having his collaborators share his quest to put their own stamp on the music they played — whether self-composed or by other artists — was an artistic imperative. It was also non-negotiable.

“We respect a song so much that we will add to it. If I can’t add to it, I won’t play it,” Davis told this writer in a 1985 San Diego Union interview.

“I would like to have guys who have feeling and technique, but the feeling is much more important. You can always get someone else to play the technical part. In fact, you can just use a synthesizer.”

There will be no synthesizer showcases at “Milestones,” although Davis embraced them, digital drum machines and other high-tech gear on the albums he made in the final years of his career. It was also then that he delved into hip-hop, with decidedly mixed results.

“There are some things we are not touching upon too much, like Miles’ work in the 1980s and early 1990s,” Poston said. “We had looked at adding a concert focusing on that era, but the people we wanted weren’t available.”

In theory, Poston could have booked a number of former Davis band members who are still actively performing and recording, including guitarists John McLaughlin, John Scofield and Mike Stern, drummers Billy Cobham and Lenny White, saxophonists Kenny Garrett and Gary Bartz, and bassists Ron Carter and Marcus Miller.

But some of them are doing Davis tribute tours or are otherwise engaged. Even if that was not the case, their asking prices — in most cases — would be prohibitive for KSDS, which is funded largely by the San Diego Community College District and through donations from listeners.

That makes Los Angeles-based keyboardist Kei Akagi the only musician in the “Milestones” lineup who was a member of Davis’ band, in which he played from 1989 to 1991. And he will only be performing in a single concert, Sunday’s “Kind of Blue: Music from the Legendary 1959 Album.”

“We had to make decisions based on overall expenses,” Poston said. “We could maybe have done one concert with some of Miles’ former band members, as opposed to doing 16 concerts over the three days of ‘Milestones’.”

Next weekend’s event is the most ambitious ever undertaken by KSDS, which was founded in 1951 and began its jazz programming in 1973. The station now streams its round-the-clock programing to more than 200 countries worldwide.

Between 2015 and 2011, KSDS put on an annual jazz festival in Ocean Beach that featured national, regional and local artists. But that event, which ended due to a lack of funding, was a one-day affair. It did not include panel discussions, films or the other presentations “Milestones” is offering alongside its three days of concerts.

Poston, who is offering free tickets to local jazz students, believes the festival will help to significantly elevate the profile of KSDS, locally, nationally and internationally. Doing so will bring more listeners to the station, he believes, and — by extension — more donations to help underwrite the station’s expenses.

Poston laughed when asked if putting on such an ambitious three-day festival means he is a gambling man by nature.

“Well, I have to be, given the nature of what I’ve done over the years putting on other festivals and concerts,” he replied.

“You never know what’s going to happen when you go into these things, so you have to put it together in the way you feel will work best. We have a pretty good track record. But rising gas prices has affected airline ticket prices and other expenses. So, there are things we’re concerned about. But the response has been great and we have people coming here from other states, and even from abroad, to attend ‘Milestones.’

“If we get 200 people a day, that will be great. If we get 300 a day, that would be huge. The thing I worry about is that an event of this size can be overwhelming. If we were just doing a concert with Charles McPherson, Terrell Stafford and Roy McCurdy, it would sell out fast.

“When it’s part of a much bigger event like this, it can be daunting. But I’ve also found that when people attend one concert, one film or one panel discussion, they enjoy it so much that they get very excited and don’t want to leave. The challenge is to give them enough information in advance and create enough excitement — which we are doing over the air and online at KSDS — that people get excited about the whole event and say: ‘Wow, I want to see that’!”

Milestones: A Miles Davis Centennial Celebration

When: Friday, Aug. 21, through Sunday, Aug. 23

Where: Wyndham San Diego Bayside, 1335 North Harbor Drive, downtown

Tickets: Individual event tickets are $10-$60; all-access, three-day weekend VIP passes are $450 for KSDS members and $500 for non members,

Phone: 619-388-3758

Online: jazz88.org

Friday, Aug. 21

Film 1: “From St. Louis to 52nd Street” Rare film clips featuring Clark Terry, Billy Eckstine, Charlie Parker, Dizzy Gillespie, Max Roach, Coleman Hawkins, Gerry Mulligan, Gil Evans, John Lewis, Joe Albany and more. 9-10 a.m. Harborside Room. $10

Session 1: “Billie’s Bounce, Miles and Bird,” presented by Loren Schoenberg. 10:30-11:30 a.m. Harborside Room. $15.

Concert 1: “Now’s the Time — The Music of Charlie Parker with Miles Davis, 1945–1949,” featuring the Charles McPherson Quintet, with Terrell Stafford, trumpet; Roy McCurdy, drums; Eric reed, piano; Rob Thorsen, bass. 1 p.m., Pacific Ballroom. $30.

Session 2: “Boplicity — Gil Evan’s Basement Apartment,” presented by Ken Poston. 2:15 p.m., Harborside Room. $15.

Concert 2: “The Birth of the Cool,” featuring The Jon Faddis Nonet, with Jon Faddis, trumpet; Christopher Hollyday, alto sax; Doug Webb, baritone sax; Matt Hall, trombone; Wayne Rice, tuba; Terrance Cooper, French horn; John Opferkuch, piano; Julian Esparza, bass; Kevin Van Den Elzen, drums. 3:30 p.m., Pacific Ballroom. $30.

Panel Discussion 1: “Contemporaries of Miles” — A discussion with Charles McPherson and Roy McCurdy, with Kenny Washington. 4:45 p.m., Harborside Room. $15.

Concert 3: “Conception: Music of Miles Davis 1952-1954-New Sounds of The Early Prestige Years,” with the Ron Stout Sextet, featuring Ron Stout, trumpet; Jerry Pinter, tenor sax;, Bob Sheppard, alto sax; Leonard Thompson, piano; Mike Selfridge, bass; Roy McCurdy, drums. 7 p.m., Pacific Ballroom. $30

Concert 4: “New Rhumba: Music of Ahmad Jamal,” with the Eric Reed Trio, featuring Eric Reed, piano; Mike Gurrola, bass; Kenny Washington, drums. 8:15 p.m., Pacific Ballroom: $30.

Concert 5: “Round About Midnight: Quintet Music of the Coltrane-Columbia Years,” with Jeremy Pelt, trumpet; Ernie Watts, tenor sax; Eric Reed. piano; Mike Gurrola, bass; Kenny Washington, drums. 9:30 p.m., Pacific Ballroom: $30.

Saturday, Aug. 22

Film 2: “Tune Up: 1950-59,” Featuring rare film clips of Miles Davis, Sonny Rollins, Jackie McLean, Lee Konitz, J.J. Johnson, Barney Wilen, Thelonious Monk, Jimmy Heath, Milt Jackson, Bill Evans, Red Garland, Paul Chambers, Philly Joe Jones, John Coltrane, Cannonball Adderley. 9:30 a.m., Harborside Room. $10.

Concert 6: “Airegin: The Young Lions Play Sonny Rollins,” 11 a.m., Pacific Ballroom. Free.

Concert 7: “Workin’, Steamin’, Relaxin’, and Cookin’: The Music of The Miles Davis Quintet with John Coltrane, 1954-56,” featuring: the Gilbert Castellanos Quintet, with Gilbert Castellanos, trumpet; Brian Levy, tenor sax; Joshua White, piano; Luke Little, bass; Tyler Kruetel, drums. 1:30 p.m., Pacific Ballroom. $30.

Panel 2: “Trane’s Blues: Miles and Trane,” moderated by Brian Levy, with panelists: Ernie Watts, Ralph Moore and Doug Webb. 2:45 p.m., Harborside Room: $15.

Concert 8: “Tenor Conclave: Celebrating John Coltrane,” featuring saxophonists Ernie Watts, Doug Webb and Ralph Moore, with Gerry Gibbs, drums; John Opferkuch, piano; Rob Thorsen, bass. 4 p.m., Pacific Ballroom. $30.

Panel 3: “Svengali: The Genius of Gil Evans,” with Miles Evans and Ken Poston. 5:15 p.m., Harborside Room. $15.

Concert 9: “Miles Ahead: The Miles Davis-Gil Evans Collaborations,” with the KSDS Jazz Orchestra, conducted by Loren Schoenberg, featuring trumpeters Miles Evans, Jon Faddis, Terrell Stafford, Jeremy Pelt and Gilbert Castellanos; with Phil Feather, Alex Budman, Brandon Wilkins, John Mitchell and Neil Cole-Reeds, saxophones; Matt Hall. lead trombone; Scott Kyle and Jeanne Geiger, trombone; Ryan Kupsh, bass trombone; Wayne Rice, tuba; Eric Burke and Cynthia McGregor, Matt Pennington and Kennan Langsford, French horn; Paul Seaforth, lead trumpet; Billy Edwall, Derek Cannon, and Doug Meeuwsen, trumpet; Julian Esparza, bass; Kenny Washington, drums. 7:30 p.m., Pacific Ballroom. $60.

Concert 10: “Round Midnight” — Open Jam Session. 11:30 p.m., Pacific Ballroom. Free.

Sunday, Aug. 23

Film 3: “Miles Smiles 1960-1991,” featuring rare film clips of Wynton Kelly, Jimmy Cobb, John Coltrane, Wayne Shorter, Ron Carter, Tony Williams, Herbie Hancock, Chick Corea, Victor Feldman, Dave Holland, Jack DeJohnette, Dave Liebman, Jon Scofield, Kenny Garrett, Marcus Miller and more. 9:30 a.m., Harborside Room. $10.

Panel 4: “Musings on Miles: Modern Trumpet Giants,” moderated by Loren Schoenberg, with panelists: Jon Faddis, Nicholas Payton, Jeremy Pelt, Miles Evans and Gilbert Castellanos. 11 a.m., Harborside Room. $15.

Concert 11: “Milestones: Music of the 1958 Miles Davis Sextet,” featuring Ron Stout, trumpet; Bobby Watson, alto sax; Doug Webb, tenor sax; Eric Reed, piano; Edwin Livingston, bass; Kenny Washington, drums. 1 p.m., Pacific Ballroom. $30.

Concert 12: “Kind of Blue: Music from the Legendary 1959 Album,” featuring Jon Faddis, trumpet; Bobby Watson, alto sax; Ernie Watts, tenor sax; Kei Akagi, piano; Edwin Livingston, bass; Kenny Washington, drums. 2:30 p.m., Pacific Ballroom. $30.

Concert 13: “Seven Steps to Heaven: Music from Miles Davis Transition Years, 1960-1963,” featuring the Holly Hofmann Quartet, with Holly Hofmann, flute;Joshua White, piano; Luke Little, bass; Tyler Kreutel, drums. 4 p.m., Pacific Ballroom. $30

Concert 14: “E.S.P.: Music of Miles Davis’ Second Great Quintet, 1964-67, featuring Jeremy Pelt, trumpet, Doug Webb, tenor sax; Eric reed, piano; Gerry Gibbs, drums. 5:15 p.m., Pacific Ballroom. $30.

Concert 15: The Music of Miles Davis, 1967-75,” Gerry Gibbs and The Electric Thrasher Orchestra, featuring Jeremy Pelt, trumpet; Doug Webb, soprano sax; Mike Hoffmann, guitar; Andy Langham, piano; Edwin Livingston, bass; Gerry Gibbs, drums. 8 p.m., Pacific Ballroom. $30.

Concert 16: “A Supreme Blue: A Centennial Re-imagining of Kind of Blue and A Love Supreme,” featuring The Nicholas Payton Trio. 9:30 p.m., Pacific Ballroom. $30.

Artist performances and schedule subject to change

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