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"Of course, we love jazz music, but it's just as important to step back and look at the different styles of music that have been influenced by jazz, be it rock and blues or world music," said Laurent Saulnier, vice president of programming for the Festival. "We have visitors who don't make plans for the festival until the schedule comes out so they can make sure they see the specific artists that they are interested in, and then we have those people who make their plans as soon as they know the dates of the festival because they know that even if they can't get tickets to see a particular indoor show, they'll be able to find great music to listen to just walking through the plaza for all the outdoor concerts."

This year's lineup is as eclectic as any the festival has ever put together, with acts ranging from world-renowned jazz musicians like Keith Jarrett and David Sanborn to pop music acts like Cindi Lauper and Lionel Ritchie. Although it wasn't intentional, the 2010 jazz festival line-up also serves as kind of a master class in African American music and the musicians who helped create it over the years, from the hardcore funk of George Clinton to the classic soul of Ben E. King to the pop of Joan Armatrading to the smooth sounds of George Benson, who will be performing a tribute to the legendary crooner Nat King Cole.

"You can pick out performers and come up with an idea like that, but we didn't ever think of it when we were putting the lineup together," Saulnier said. "We really are color blind when it comes to scheduling the acts. Of course jazz originated as Black music, but we don't care what color you are as long as you have talent and an honest passion for the music you perform."

One African American performer who will be singled out by the festival this year is legendary jazz trumpeter Miles Davis, whose career will be celebrated in a special pair of concerts, as well as with the North American premiere of a multi-media retrospective called "We Want Miles: Miles Davis vs. Jazz." The multi-media exhibition is divided into eight thematic and chronological periods of the musician, from his early days in St, Louis to his final days as a global icon of sound.

The concerts honoring Miles and his music encompass two of the man's most influential recordings: Bitches Brew Revisited with Vernon Reid, Graham Haynes, DJ Logic, Lonnie Plaxico, James Hurt, JT Lewis, Adam Rudolph and Antoine Roney (June 25); and renowned Montreal musician Ron Di Lauro presenting Porgy and Bess as performed by Miles Davis (June 30).

The 2010 Festival International de Jazz de Montreal takes place June 25 through July 6. For more information, visit www.montrealjazzfest.com.