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Jazz Forward Award Nominees
Recognizing jazz industry movers and groovers!
All About Jazz, a driving force for jazz music since 1995, is thrilled to honor and celebrate industry trailblazers who actively promote jazz awareness, discovery, and culture through its prestigious Jazz Forward award program. For more information about Jazz Forward, go here.
Bird & Beckett Books & Records
Impact
Eric the proprietor of Bird & Beckett books has started a non-proft to enable him to pay and present as many jazz musicians as possible. he promotes, supports and presents this music the way it should be, with respect and appreciation. he aslo streams every show live on YouTube so his reach is far beyond the San Francisco area, but around the world.
This is more than a books and record store, there are many live JAZZ shows here a week.
Nominated by
adbsound onJazz In The Neighborhood Series
Impact
They bring live jazz to places it would normally not be heard, exposing people to the magic that is live jazz who have maybe never experienced it before. The impact is huge because as we all know, once you hear great jazz performed live, it is life changing!
These folks make live jazz happen all over the city.. parks, venues, you name it.
Nominated by
adbsound onWRTI 90.1 FM
Impact
There is in general a dearth of good jazz podcasts, and these guys are really putting forth very high-quality production technique plus lots of social media extras that make for an engaging lifestyle brand
This is the best jazz podcast out there featuring the most prominent guests in the field posted by the two most preeminent interviewers, Nate Chinen and Josh Jackson. This podcast is an initiative of WRTI-FM Philadelphia.
Nominated by
Matt Merewitz onEarshot Jazz
Impact
Earshot Jazz presents or co-presents nearly 100 concerts each year
Earshot Jazz Festival: More than 250 artists presented in a month of concerts, education programs, and related events each fall
Special Concerts: by national and international touring musicians and collaborations with other arts presenters such as Nonsequitur and Cornish College of the Art
Art of Jazz: A free, monthly series presented in collaboration with the Seattle Art Museum
Jazz: The Second Century: An annual juried series presenting new, original work by resident artists in a concert setting
The Sacred Music of Duke Ellington Concert: A holiday tradition, co-presented with the Seattle Repertory Jazz Orchestra, featuring big band, gospel choir and soloists, and tap dancer, using musical scores acquired by Earshot Jazz
Earshot Jazz Magazine
Celebrating 35-years as a “Mirror and Focus” for the Seattle jazz community, the monthly Earshot Jazz publication has been described as “consistently world class” by JazzTimes, and “a model for what jazz newsletters can be” by DownBeat. Earshot Jazz surveys the scene with artist profiles, album reviews, local history, career support, and the region’s most complete community-powered jazz calendar. Each month over 6,000 copies of the magazine are distributed free of charge throughout the region.Education Programs
Earshot is proud to support and add to the many dynamic jazz education opportunities in the region. Through artist panel discussions and workshops, Earshot fosters a deeper connection to jazz’s rich cultural history. In 2019, Earshot was pleased to produce “Jazz up Jackson Street,” a benefit for Washington Middle and Garfield High school jazz programs. Each year, Earshot pairs the festival resident artist with Roosevelt High School for a unique learning opportunity resulting in a mainstage concert.Leadership
Earshot hosts the annual Golden Ear Awards to formally honor the significant achievements of area artists. These community awards celebrate jazz musicians in ten categories. Earshot Jazz also hosts a community-powered calendar of jazz events throughout the Puget Sound region online and in the Earshot Jazz magazine. New in 2019, Earshot initiated Seattle Jazz Showcase concerts during the Festival to highlight emerging regional artists and advance the art form. Earshot Jazz provides programming assistance to other area jazz programs, commissions groundbreaking works from local and international artists, and participates in national consortia work to advance the field of jazz in America.Earshot Jazz honors jazz as a vital Black American art form through live performance presentations, artist advocacy, and community engagement.
Nominated by
Lawrence Peryer onAustin Jazz Society
Impact
The Austin Jazz Society recognizes and supports jazz in many ways in Austin and surrounding Texas communities via three active concert series, (Jazz at Chez Zee, Midweek at Monks, and Jazz in Georgetown).
It also serves student jazz players through education and instruction.
A generous donor to other local jazz festivals, the organization maintains an annual Jazz Hall of Fame Award Ceremony to recognize Austin's hard-working musicians.
The Austin Jazz Society (AJS) is a 501 (c) (3) nonprofit music and service organization formed to support all jazz genres and increase awareness, appreciation and participation in the community. AJS presents educational programs, assists jazz artists, and promotes performances. We also recognize and honor the legacy of those local individuals and organizations that have made a positive contribution to the jazz art form.
Nominated by
NL Cutean onMusic Performance Trust Fund
Impact
In 2024, the MPTF Invested $1.1 Million in grants to communities to celebrate Jazz Appreciation Month. Nearly 5,000 professional musicians in 78 markets performed in 779 events across North America for appreciative audiences from Honolulu to Saskatoon to New Orleans and beyond. Events were held in parks, libraries, schools, art galleries, assisted living residences, community centers, churches, and other venues where communities gather. This includes 66 live-streamed events which were available on the MPTF Facebook page to anyone in the United States and Canada. The MPTF co-sponsored 1,769 jazz events in FY 23-24, investing $2 million in communities for these performances alone. This was part of an investment of $4.8 million to present nearly 5,000 free, live events featuring big band, chamber ensembles, concert band, country, folk, r&b, jazz, opera, pop/rock, oldies, show tunes, symphony, and world music.
The Jazz Across North America project is an event series occurring annually in April to coincide with Jazz Appreciation Month. Sponsored by the recording industry’s Music Performance Trust Fund, a leading non-profit organization enriching lives and uniting communities through the power of music, the series offers admission-free, live performances by professional jazz musicians.
