Shabaka Hutchings photo by atibaphoto
2024 Earshot Jazz Festival
Save the dates for Seattle’s favorite jazz marathon, the 2024 Earshot Jazz Festival, October 18-November 3. Earshot’s 36th edition warms Seattle stages over three rainy fall weekends, celebrating the jazz traditions of passion, invention and inclusion. As always, Seattle’s own bright stars share the marquee with trailblazing artists from around the world—in concerts, films, commissions and community engagement—in several warm, dry, venues located at various points around the city. Artists slated for this year include: Shabaka; Vijay Iyer Trio; Nduduzo Makhathini; Skerik; Legacy of Wayne Shorter w/ Danilo Pérez, Brian Blade, John Patitucci, and Mark Turner; Riley Mulherkar Quartet; Ryan Keberle Catharsis; Freddy Fuego; BOOMscat; Flat Earth Society; What’s Going On, tribute to Butch Morris and Julius Hemphill; Preston Singletary’s Khu.éex’ and more. Tickets on sale soon!
Jazz Night School: Building Harmony
Community non-profit Jazz Night School, celebrating 16 years of uplifting lives through appreciation of Black American music, announces a transformative project to secure a permanent facility. This new state-of-the-art space will enhance student experiences, provide stability, and elevate community impact. The project, inspired by a visit to Gil Evans’ Manhattan home, includes creating over 100 affordable housing units for combatting displacement of BIPOC and artist communities in Southeast Seattle, in partnership with SouthEast Effective Development (SEED). Additionally, it will house the historic L.E.M.S. Bookstore, fostering community empowerment. Jazz Night School’s $6,000,000 capital campaign, Building Harmony: Brick by Brick, launched in May 2024, marks a pivotal moment for the organization, ensuring it a bright and sustainable future while continuing to inspire and create community. More information can be found at jazznightschool.org or by contacting Executive Director Erik Hanson at erikh@jazznightschool.org.
Music Educator Professional Development
Facilitated by Beth Fortune and Kelly Clingan, “Play Like a Beginner,” is a 2-day professional development July 1-2 for pre-service teachers and current music teachers that will leave you rethinking how to teach in a beginning music classroom. Participants can expect to experience a musical role reversal by joining an ensemble on an “off” instrument, a brown bag lunch conversation to unpack learnings and discuss other relevant topics, a focus on aural learning and improvisation, and an exploration into lessons and methods that are centered in jazz music but uses the National Core Act standards. Teachers will earn 12 clock hours. Cost is $480, offered on a sliding scale. Register now at seattlejazzed.org/events.
