Jazz News: Jazz heroes Church and Lewis; CO events on Intl. Jazz Day; Prime screens Omar Sosa doc; CO ranks 8th most “art friendly”
This is Jazz News, a look at what’s news in jazz, music, and the arts.
My visit to The Muse Performance Space in Lafayette during last week’s Denver Jazz Fest was like sitting in someone’s living room – original art on the wall, hardwood floor, self-service drinks in the frig at the back. (And a great set from the Ken Walker Sextet, by the way.)
Proprietors Clare Church and Pete Lewis are music educators and working musicians themselves, and they were just named “Jazz Heroes” in 2025 by the Jazz Journalists Association. Peter Poses’ nomination saluted their community support, as well as the variety of genres booked by the non-profit organization: jazz, Latin, Middle Eastern and a variety of global rhythms; bluegrass, Americana, country and roots; modern rock, indie, and pop. Congrats to jazz heroes Clare Church and Pete Lewis and Long live The Muse!
(SOURCE: JJA Jazz Awards / 2025 Jazz Heroes: Clare Church & Pete Lewis
This month, Jazz Appreciation Month update: Venues around the world are posting their events for International Jazz Day at JazzDay.com. April 30 listings from Colorado include Kneebody playing at Dazzle and Victor Mestas performing a Gift of Jazz show at The Muse Performance Space in Lafayette.
(SOURCE: Jazz Day.com)
Omar Sosa, who wowed his Dazzle audience at last week’s Denver Jazz Fest, also has a film streaming on Amazon Prime. Called “Omar Sosa’s 88 Well-Tuned Drums,” the film by Atlanta-based director Soren Sorensen has mostly been on the film festival circuit. There’s a soundtrack album, too.
(SOURCE: Omar Sosa's 88-Well-Tuned Drums)
With World Art Day coming up on April 15, and approximately 5.2 million Americans employed in the arts, the non-profit organization SmileHub released a report Best States for the Arts in 2025. Sixteen key metrics include the share of adults who create art to the average salary of fine artists, to the quality of graduate art programs. Colorado ranks eighth overall on the “Art Friendliness” scale.
(SOURCE: Smile Hub / Best States for the Arts); picture courtesy of Mental Floss)
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