Meet the organizations receiving $4 million of critical grants in order to continue their work of preserving and progressing of jazz culture

In an essay for Time Magazine, Mellon Foundation President Elizabeth Alexander noted that, “Jazz is often thought of as a ‘playing’ art, but actually it is a ‘listening’ art.”

As what many consider to be the first art form conceived in the US, jazz celebrates the freedom to express who we are and where we’ve come from, the power of innovation and creativity, and the connection we have with the people around us because of (not despite) our differences.