The Jazz Museum in Harlem

List of Events

As the legendary jazz pianist/composer (and mentor to Duke Ellington) Willie "The Lion" Smith once said: "I'd rather be a fly on a lamppost in Harlem than a millionaire anywhere else." His remark still holds true today: Harlem is in the midst of a new renaissance of culture, commerce and tourism.

Outside of its native New Orleans, no community nurtured jazz more than Harlem. Duke Ellington, Benny Carter, Thelonious Monk, Charlie Parker, Charles Mingus, Count Basie, John Coltrane, Billie Holiday - all of their unique sounds reverberated throughout these fabled streets. Their legacy continues as the jazz musicians of today have also found a home in this community for their own contemporary sounds. The Jazz Museum in Harlem is dedicated to fostering this spirit -the music as a living, breathing entity that looks as far into the future as it does into the past.

Executive Director Loren Schoenberg and co-director Christian McBride currently helm the Jazz Museum in Harlem, which is still evolving to eventually include a performance center as well as a main hall for jazz exhibits. Currently the museum houses many different educational and cultural events at its 126th Street location in Manhattan’s El Barrio neighborhood. The museum also offers a visitor center, which is open from Monday to Friday from 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. In the future the museum is going to be one of most cherished and sought after locations for jazz in New York City, but until then the museum caters to the jazz fan with a room full of photographs, CDs, DVDs, and other merchandise in their visitor center. In addition, the museum also sponsors a wide variety of outdoor and indoor concerts throughout the year.