Heather Jackson

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I fell into the jazz world completely by accident. Growing up in a small farming community in mid-northern Indiana, our musical input was largely at the whim of a few local radio stations, which played Christian, top 40 pop, country and a little classic rock. Jazz wasn't even a footnote in our household or everyday lives. But after college, when I decided I wanted a life in the performing arts despite the caution from my family to get a "real job," I started learning about jazz and fell in love with the freedom, flexibility, creativity and imagination (not to mention skill!) involved. I dedicated myself to learning all I could, getting as many gigs as I could, eventually recording two full albums of jazz tunes and touring the world with them. When I opened my music school a few years later, my understanding of jazz evolved. Seeing jazz through students' eyes, at the surface level, I have come to believe jazz offers the chance to start a conversation through song, at its simplest form to take a favorite song from any era or genre and make it your own. But at a much deeper level, it's also a story of community and creation rooted in Black culture. In learning this (and I'm still learning!), I've come to love jazz most because it has a truly unique power to bring people together from across historically racial, cultural and gender divides, to inspire the community through music, and teach us to communicate in a language that can respect everyone equally.

I hosted a number of concerts in my venue, which was like a "house concert" on steroids. Every one was amazing too, regardless of the genre...from Spyro Gyra to Marty Stuart to Judy Collins to John Waite to Howard Jones, the intimate listening room vibe is how I always want to experience music, whether as a performer or a fan!

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