JazzBoston wishes all our members and the Boston area jazz community members a happy, healthy, and productive year. We believe that music, and jazz in particular, can build bridges, mend fences, encourage creativity, and strengthen our society and our democracy by bringing communities together, and we promise to continue to work to that end in service to Boston area jazz musicians, audiences, venues, and media.
The Boston area jazz scene is growing, and we are grateful to all the members of our community for working together to continue to celebrate this important music! In particular, we are pleased that JazzBoston, the Cambridge Jazz Foundation, and the Boston Jazz Foundation have agreed to collaborate on a number of projects. Please note that these three non-profit organizations are independent, with differing areas of focus, but all are working towards the mutual goal of support & advocacy of improvisational jazz, a music that originated in the African American community. You can help by donating to them individually at their respective websites. Thank you!
Jazz Jams continuing First & Third Fridays from 5-7 pm at Phoenix Landing!
JazzBoston Hot Club listening Sessions free & online!
GBH Music collaborates with JazzBoston to present GBH Jazz Nights at the BPL, 2nd Thursdays 5:30 – 6:30 pm
JazzNOW concert series continues with composer & vocalist Farayi Malek on Thursday 4/10!
Celebrity Series of Boston’s annual Jazz Festival March 13-16!
Jazz Road Creative Residencies applications now open
Mellon Foundation presents virtual discussion “American Jazz, American Culture” on March 20th 4pm
Charles River Jazz Festival fundraiser Thursday March 27th
JazzBoston Newsletter now accepting paid advertising
Jazz Jams continuing First & Third Fridays from 5-7 pm at Phoenix Landing!
We’re excited that JazzBoston’s free jazz jams are continuing at The Phoenix Landing, 512 Mass Ave, Central Square, Cambridge! Thanks to Kevin from Phoenix Landing for making this happen!! Jams are all-ages, free, and open to the public on the 1st & 3rd Fridays from 5-7 pm. Stop by to play or to hang out and listen to the music!
This program is supported in part by a grant from Cambridge Arts, a local agency which is supported by the Mass Cultural Council, a state agency.
JazzBoston President Ken Field will lead the jam on Friday, March 7, and internationally acclaimed saxophonist/composer (and JazzBoston Board member) Noah Preminger will lead the jam on March 21st. Join us and thank The Phoenix Landing for hosting us by purchasing food and/or drink!
The jams have provided a much-needed opportunity for intermediate & advanced musicians to collaborate directly with a house band of noted area professionals and educators. This series is partially grant-funded, but it needs additional support. You can make a difference by donating to JazzBoston today – this funding will support stipends for the house band musicians. Donate small or large amounts at https://jazzboston.org/get-involved/donate. Thank you for your free membership, and don’t forget to tell your jazz-loving friends they can join at https://jazzboston.org!
JazzBoston Hot Club Listening Sessions free & online!
Join Bill Goldberg and his special guests for free online jazz listening sessions mostly (but not always) on first & third Wednesdays of the month at 7pm at the Zoom link: https://us06web.zoom.us/j/86215122439?pwd=ZHA5bnpWVFNFVXkxRE01K1I1aWhvZz09
Coming up:
Mar 5 Special guest Ron Carter (!) presents the music of Roy Haynes @ 100
Mar 19 Guest Bob Sinicrope presents the music of Abdullah Ibrahim
Apr 2 Composer/bassist/educator/band leader Bruno Raberg – https://www.brunoraberg.com/
Apr 16 Guest Con Chapman, author of K C Jazz and the upcoming biography of Don Byas
May 7 Dedicated to Malcom X with guest Ras Moshe Burnet on the 100th anniversary of his birth.
May 2 Guest Loren Schoenberg presents the music of Mel Powell – https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mel_Powell
June 4 Guest & JazzBoston VP Bobby Tynes presents the music of Marshall Royal – https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marshal_Royal
June 18 Guest Rich Scheinin presents the music of Billy Harper –https://muckrack.com/richard-scheinin
GBH Music collaborates with JazzBoston to present GBH Jazz Nights at the BPL, 2nd Thursdays 5:30-6:30 pm (but this one is 6-7pm due to a scheduling conflict…)
GBH Music collaborates with JazzBoston to present GBH Jazz Nights at the GBH Satellite Studio at the Boston Public Library. The nights are held on the second Thursday from 5:30 to 6:30pm (but this one is 6-7pm due to a scheduling conflict) and are FREE!
The next concert features Mozambican guitarist and vocalist Albino Mbie on Thursday March 13th, from 6-7pm, playing music that combines and captures the energies of Afro-Pop and Moz-Jazz styles and traditions to create a unified and original musical style. Admission is free, but registration is encouraged. Visit https://www.wgbh.org/events/gbh-jazz-nights-at-the-boston-public-library-march-2025 for info and to register. By registering for this event, you agree to receive email communications from GBH Music.
Limited seating is available on a first-come, first-served basis. If you need a seat, we would like to encourage you to arrive before the event starts.
Coming up:
3/13/25 Albino Mbie, solo guitar/vox
5/8/25 Anabel Gil Díaz Trio, Cuban-born flutist
Special thanks to the Goldstein Family Fund for support of this series!
JazzNOW concert series continues with composer & vocalist Farayi Malek on Thursday 4/10!
GBH Music and JazzBoston continue our popular JazzNOW series with a performance by composer & vocalist Farayi Malek on Thursday 4/10. The concert will feature songs from her brand new EP “Edge of the Earth,” alongside Gospel works and selections from the American Songbook. Farayi Malek is a dynamic jazz and contemporary vocalist, composer, and educator. A graduate of both the New England Conservatory and Berklee College of Music, she now serves as a faculty member at both institutions. A Grammy-nominated artist, Malek defies genre boundaries, whether she’s reinventing jazz standards, exploring contemporary folk, or bringing the Black roots of country music to center stage.
In-person and streaming registration at https://www.wgbh.org/events/gbh-music-presents-jazznow-with-farayi-malek-hybrid-event
Special thanks to the Goldstein Family Fund for support of this series!
JazzBoston Newsletter Now Accepting Paid Advertising!
JazzBoston has received several inquiries regarding paid advertising in our newsletter, which is sent monthly by email to over 4600 JazzBoston members. We have decided to move forward with paid advertising. Email inquiries to newsletter@jazzboston.org. The guidelines are as follows:
Content: Promotion of any single Boston-area live jazz performance. Determination of acceptable content is solely at the discretion of JazzBoston. (Note that certain jazz events presented by JazzBoston and its partners, as well as Boston-area jazz festivals and other events of general interest are included in the Newsletter without charge at the discretion of JazzBoston.)
Cost: $1/word, with a minimum of $75, and a maximum of 200 words ($200).
Payment: Via check to JazzBoston, 111 Perkins St #073, Boston, MA 02130, or via Venmo (@JazzBostonInc) or PayPal (treasurer@jazzboston.org)
Deadline: Receipt of materials and payment by 20th of the month preceding the desired placement
Placement: Ads will be placed at the bottom of the JazzBoston Newsletter
Limitations: A maximum of 5 ads will run in each Newsletter. The first 5 ad requests received by the deadline will run each month.
Formatting: Ads will run using the same font and font size as other items in the Newsletter. The JazzBoston Newsletter Editor will format submitted text as needed.
Images: A single optional submitted image can be included with the ad, with sizing and placement to be determined by the JazzBoston Newsletter Editor.
Shop JazzBoston Merch!!
There is now a quick and easy way to buy official JazzBoston hats & t-shirts, and to support JazzBoston at the same time!! Thanks to volunteers Nate Aronow and Cj Kelley, we now have an official online store hosted by the fine folks at Bonfire. Browse and shop at
https://www.bonfire.com/store/shop-jazz-boston!
JazzBoston membership is free, and open to all members of the Boston-area jazz community, including musicians, audiences, venues/presenters, and jazz media!
In an effort to encourage everyone to participate and eliminate any financial barriers, there is no charge to become a JazzBoston member. Whether you are already a subscriber or were a past member, if you’d like to continue your support of, and advocacy for, the Boston area jazz community, we strongly encourage you to sign up again for free JazzBoston membership.
https://mailchi.mp/jazzboston.org/membership-sign-up-form
Donations are still accepted in order to assist with ongoing JazzBoston expenses. You can donate at:
https://jazzboston.org/get-involved/donate/
JazzBoston Inc. is a 501(c)(3) organization. Donations to JazzBoston Inc. are tax-deductible to the full extent allowed by law.
Boston Jazz History Blog:
A short History of the 1369 Jazz Club
Boston jazz historian Richard Vacca’s Boston Jazz Chronicles is an amazing and valuable resource. We encourage jazz musicians and fans to check it out.
Vacca’s beautifully maintained and researched blog includes regular features about noted people & places that helped shape the Boston-area jazz scene. The current entry is about the the much beloved and much missed 1369 Jazz Club, which closed in 1988. You can read about it here!
Music Museum of New England Jazz Features!
The Music Museum of New England has posted several interesting articles about important people and places from the Boston area jazz scene. Take a look at their pieces about Eric Jackson, Serge Chaloff, Herb Pomeroy, Lloyd Trotman, Wally’s Cafe Jazz Club, and the latest entry about The Hi-Hat Club!
Our programs have been funded in part by generous grants from:
