April is Jazz Appreciation Month
April 2009 marks the 8th Annual Celebration of Jazz Appreciation Month (JAM)! The Smithsonian Institution’s National Museum of American History has led this nationwide effort to draw public attention to jazz as a living and historical treasure and will kick off this year’s celebration with a donation ceremony featuring jazz artist Chuck Mangione on April 2nd.
This year we also celebrate the centennial of Benny Goodman’s birth, and in September, the release by Smithsonian Folkways Records of Jazz: The Smithsonian Anthology, a comprehensive musical history and 140-page book with photos chronicling jazz from its roots to its current place in global music.
Any organization can participate in Jazz Appreciation Month by sponsoring a performance, lecture, exhibition or any other activity during the month of April. Events can also be submitted for inclusion on the Smithsonian’s National JAM calendar. Just send an email to jazz@si.edu with the date, place and time of your event The calendar lists events state by state and is updated weekly.
For more information on Jazz Appreciation Month and to access lesson plans and other online materials please check the JAM website
