About the Hartford Jazz Society
The mission of The Hartford Jazz Society is to cultivate an appreciation of the sound, culture and love of jazz by presenting a variety of live events and other activities throughout the Greater Hartford community. We strive to accomplish these goals through offering jazz related performances, activities, education, and support throughout the Greater Hartford community.
The Hartford Jazz Society enjoys a history as rich as it is diverse. Founded in 1960 by dedicated jazz aficionados, it is the oldest continuously operating jazz society in the country. For over 40 years, the all-volunteer Society has never wavered from its founders’ goals: to promote jazz as America’s gift to the music world, and to foster in each succeeding generation an appreciation and love for jazz in all its many forms.
Sponsors
The Hartford Jazz Society would like to thank the following sponsors for their ongoing generosity and support.
The Evelyn W. Preston Memorial Trust Fund, Bank of America, N.A. Trustee, is a perpetual trust established to fund FREE PUBLIC BAND AND ORCHESTRAL CONCERTS in parks and other public places for the general public in the City of Hartford.
The J. Walton Bissel Foundation focuses its grantmaking on higher and secondary education, hospitals, youth agencies, care of the elderly, aid to the blind, and encouragement of the arts. Organizations in Connecticut, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, and Vermont are eligible to apply.
The Greater Hartford Arts Council was formed in 1971 by the corporate community of Hartford, Connecticut to support the growing non-profit arts and cultural sector with operating support grants to the five largest community institutions: the museum, the ballet, the opera, the symphony and the theatre company. Since then, the Arts Council has grown significantly to support more than 150 arts, heritage and cultural organizations across a 34-town region in central Connecticut, providing grants, programs and services designed to leverage the arts to strengthen communities, drive the economy and improve the quality of life of 1.2 million residents. Greater Hartford Arts Council’s United Arts Campaign with major support from the Hartford Foundation for Public Giving
The Sidedoor jazz club is the realisation of a long cherished dream. Ken Kitchings has always been a true fan of jazz music and brought many great artists to The Garde Theatre in New London, CT during his time there. In 2011 Ken and his wife Chris bought the beautiful, but sadly neglected, Old Lyme Inn. Once the inn became an established part of the community, Ken set his sights on an unused “side door” space attached to the inn, visualizing the perfect jazz venue: Intimate, welcoming, elegant and a quality, great sounding room that the very best jazz artists would be happy to play in! The Side Door Jazz Club has become a world renowned venue, a destination point for the best jazz artists and aficionados of jazz music.
Located on the campus of the University of Hartford, WWUH was the the first college station in New England to broadcast in stereo and one of the first to broadcast 24-hours a day. WWUH continues today to offer the community different types of music, from jazz to soul, in a noncommercial environment, to provide the University of Hartford a voice, and to act as a training ground for future broadcasters.
Black-Eyed Sally’s barbecue restaurant is a local favorite Hartford, Connecticut Downtown landmark, built in an historic 100-year-old brick building with pressed tin walls and time-worn wood floors, and is full of southern folk art and blues memorabilia. Over the years, we have built a national reputation for bringing in the best artists on the music scene. We are Hartford’s home of the best Barbecue food, Jazz, Blues, Rock & Roots music.
Founded in 1635, Hartford is among the oldest cities in the United States. It is the capital of the U.S. state of Connecticut and the historic seat of Hartford County until Connecticut disbanded county government in 1960. As of the 2010 Census, Hartford’s population was 124,775,[1] making it Connecticut’s fourth-largest city after the coastal cities of Bridgeport, New Haven, and Stamford. To recount the words of one of Hartford’s most famous residents, Mark Twain, “Of all the beautiful towns it has been my fortune to see this is the chief.”