Jazz Appreciation Month at the BMHC

The Bronx Celebrates Jazz History Month!

April is Jazz Appreciation Month, and what better place to celebrate jazz culture than here in the Bronx, where hundreds of jazz’s most renowned musicians have come to gather and jam? From legendary jazz venues like Club 845, to the contributions of artists like Maxine Sullivan and Thelonious Monk, the Bronx is alive with the footprints of its rich jazz history. To celebrate, WHEDco’s Bronx Music Heritage Center (BMHC) is hosting a series of exciting events throughout the month – including a performance by The Lowdown Brass Band and a conversation about the contributions of master women musicians like Helen Merill.

WHERE: BMHC Lab | 1303 Louis Nine Blvd. Bronx, NY

Saturday, April 8: 7pm (discussion, music)

Enjoy Bronx Rising! Maxine Sullivan Women in Jazz series: Conversations with the Masters — a conversation and concert featuring Helen Merrill, a world renowned Bronx jazz vocalist who began her career at 845 Club in the Bronx and has performed and recorded with the likes of Chet Baker, Gil Evans and Stan Getz, among many others. The event will also feature a music performance by acclaimed Serbian jazz vocalist Alma Micic and her quartet.

Sunday, April 9: 4-6pm (music)

Catch The Lowdown Brass Band featuring a performance and presentation of 2nd Line: Our living Legacy, where The Lowdown Brass Band takes the audience on a journey through time. Hailing from Chicago, the LDB is a horn-driven tour de force that breaks the barrier between audience and performer with their live show, which features dynamic vocals, Rapper Billa Camp, and body movement.

Sunday, April 30: 7pm

Swing the night away with the New School Afro-Cuban Jazz Orchestra, directed by multi-Grammy nominated percussionist and BMHC’s Co-Artistic Director, Bobby Sanabria. This ensemble celebrates the rich legacy of jazz and Afro-Cuban music, with a repertoire that takes us on a journey through the past, present, and future of the genre.
Cost: $10 (all proceeds go to the students)

Exhibit on view all month: Fridays & Saturdays, 2-5pm

Black Is Beautiful: A Tribute to Elombe Brath, a multimedia exhibit curated by Bob Gumbs and Cinque Brathwaite that pays tribute to Elombe Brath, a Pan-African activist, artist, and jazz advocate who grew up in Hunts Point, Bronx. The exhibit features Brath’s work with the Jazz Art Society, and includes Kwame Braithwaite’s photos of Thelonius Monk and Abby Lincoln. Members of the Elombe Brath Foundation will be in attendance during some of the gallery hours to talk to visitors about the exhibit.

For more info, CLICK HERE!