Longtime aficionados of the Blue Jay Jazz Festival will remember the Zydeco stylings of Lisa Haley, her blue fiddle and the Zydekats.

It’s been years since they graced the stage on the mountain but they will be back on Aug. 24!

The Grammy-nominated musician is a fourth-generation fiddler and she is related to Bill Haley of Bill Haley & the Comets. Classically trained as a violinist, Lisa Haley parlayed her knowledge of the instrument into fiddling, a form of music close to her Southern roots.

When Haley picks up her fiddle and begins to coax the Cajun music out of it, folks can’t help but start tapping their feet and then spring up to get the dancing started.

In addition to having played at music festivals all over the country, Haley has appeared on a number of television shows and can be heard on the recordings of such artists as John Hyatt, Toad the Wet Sprocket, Randy Newman, Lyle Lovett and Queen Ida, one of her mentors. Her Zydekats have also recorded with a number of artists, ranging from Andy Williams to John Denver, Donna Summer to Rosanne Cash, Bruce Springsteen to Jackson Browne.

On Thursday, Aug. 24, guests at the Blue Jay Jazz Festival will also be treated to the music of the award-winning Cal Baptist Jazz Ensemble. And they will be introduced to the Future Generation Jazz Scholars: Martina Urrutia, David Anderson, Dylan Witter, Chris Whitty and Ara Tokatlian.

Tickets for the jazz festival are on sale at bluejayjazz.org.

Don’t miss the opportunity to hear this critically acclaimed artist, right here on the mountain.