Madison Jazz Calendar

Your Guide to the Local Jazz Scene

Welcome to Madison Jazz Calendar, a listing of live jazz events in Madison, Wisconsin. Go directly to the calendar, or see below for features, notices, and news about jazz in Madison

  • Jazz at Five performer application

    Jazz at Five is recruiting performers for their 2022 Series and wants to present a diverse program that represents the Dane County jazz community.

    The series will be six performance dates – split between McKee Park in Fitchburg and the top of State St. in Madison. The dates are July 27th, August 3rd, and August 10th at McKee Park; and August 17th, 24th, and 31st at the top of State Street.

    Applications can be submitted directly by filling out the form on the Jazz at Five website, or by sending in an email with this pdf application. The deadline for submission is March 11th.

  • Tim Whalen’s arrangement of “Time Stand Still”

    Tim Whalen sent out an email today about the band, “Rush,” the death of Neil Pert, and his response which included arranging this tune. It’s worth reading his email before listening to the video. As a reminder, here is the original.

    By the way, Tim will be here with his Nonet on March 5th. The sound will be entirely different but no less spectacular.

    Tim Whalen’s arrangement of Neil Pert’s “Time Stand Still.” Tim is usually on piano but here he is the 2nd vocalist.

  • Rottmayer joins New Breed

    For close to 20 years the New Breed has been hosting a jazz jam in Madison, first on King Street, then at the Concourse Hotel, and at numerous places since. The lineup changes periodically, too.

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  • Showbiz Roundup

    Just a quick shoutout to Michael Brenneis for his excellent podcast, ” Showbiz Roundup.” Michael is a busy Madison drummer who’s making the time to interview many of the acts booked by Bluestem, a promoter of contemporary jazz.

    I’ve learned about musicians I never heard of, and learned facts about musicians I thought I knew well. All in an entertaining 30 minutes.

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  • Jazz Buoys Spirits at East High

    Here’s a quick feel-good story to start your week right. It’s about the positive impact of jazz at East High School, a sort of counter-weight to all the recent negative publicity for that school. Enjoy.

  • Update on Madison Jazz Jam

    Madison Jazz Jam (MJJ) is a nonprofit that runs an all-ages, twice monthly jam. Although I’m no longer affiliated with the jam, (I founded it and ran it for 7 years) I support it’s mission and follow it with interest. This year MJJ is holding two different programs:

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  • Cafe Coda taking a break

    We will be closed from 12/19 to 2/28 for a winter break. It will give us time to do some improvement and staff training. Also, hope by then the Covid situation will calm down a bit. Let’s keep our fingers crossed!

  • Bluestem and Vaccinations

    Going forward, all Bluestem shows are for the vaccinated only (per their newsletter).

  • Jazz at Five announces 2022 dates

    After having the 2021 Performance Series at McKee Park and hearing your feedback, Jazz at Five is excited to announce our new 6 date Performance Series,  3 performances at both Mckee Park and State Street. The planned dates for the 2022 Performance Series are below.

    McKee Park

    • July 27
    • August 3
    • August 10

    State Street

    • August 17
    • August 24
    • August 31