John Ernesto Previews the 2023 Berks Jazz Fest

WDIY | By Neil Hever

Published March 24, 2023 at 7:07 PM EDT

John Ernesto stands outside of the Flatiron Building in Bethlehem, PA, home to WDIY's studios.

WDIY's Neil Hever talks with John Ernesto, Boscov's Berks Jazz Fest general manager and artistic director, about what's in store for the 2023 festival, coming to Reading, PA for ten days starting March 24.

This year will be the festival's 32nd year and will take place at several venues, including the Miller Center for the Arts, DoubleTree by Hilton Reading, and Scottish Rite Cathedral. Performances will include Samara Joy, Tommy Castro and the Painkillers, Victor Wooten and the Wooten Brothers, Brian Culbertson, and the 50th anniversary tour of the Manhattan Transfer.

The Boscov's Berks Jazz is produced by the Berks Arts Council. The full schedule is available at the festival website.

(Original air-date: 3/23/2023)

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Neil Hever

Neil began his radio career as a student disc jockey at Muhlenberg college radio station WMUH in 1978. After earning a B.A. degree from the college, he spent the next 13 years in commercial radio and sound production at WSAN, Creative Sound studios and later at WAEB. In 1981, while attending Muhlenberg College, he and another community member joined together to form the first organized group of community radio volunteers in the Lehigh Valley. The group began incorporation meetings in 1984 and spent the next decade building support for a new community based station. WDIY 88.1 FM began broadcasting in 1995. Neil joined the staff in August of 1997 as Program Director and was promoted to Operations Director in February 2008.

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