Neighborhood News: Chicago celebrates International Jazz Day on April 30
“I’m excited that Chicago, my hometown, is hosting International Jazz Day 2026. It was in my Chicago high school auditorium that I discovered jazz, an event that sparked a lifelong passion and commitment to this powerful art form. Jazz opened doors to creativity, self-expression and freedom.”
HERBIE HANCOCK, Chicagoan, Grammy and Academy Award winning jazz musician
DID YOU KNOW…that April is International Jazz Month? And that the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) officially designated April 30 as International Jazz Day?
Chicago Jazz History : “Born in New Orleans, grew up in Chicago”
Herbie Hancock owes his own estimable legacy to predecessors like Louis “Satchmo” Armstrong and Dizzy Gillespie.
According to Wikipedia sources, the “Chicago style” of jazz originated in Southern musicians moving North after 1917, bringing with them the New Orleans “Dixieland” or sometimes called “hot jazz” styles. Dixieland largely evolved into Chicago style in the late 1910s and the new style was popularly called that name by the early 1920s.
Chicago became a global jazz capital in the 1920s through the Great Migration. Key artists like Armstrong, his mentor, Joe “King “ Oliver, and Jelly Roll Morton transformed hot jazz into a solo-driven, polished style, centered in Bronzeville and, in Uptown, at the Green Mill Cocktail Lounge. White musicians, or “alligators”, attended Oliver’s performances in order to learn how to play jazz. Louis Armstrong’s recordings with his Chicago-based Louis Armstrong and his Hot Five and Hot Seven band came out in the years 1925 to 1928 and were popular with both black and white audiences.
These recordings marked the transition of original New Orleans jazz to a more sophisticated type of American improvised music with more emphasis on solo choruses instead of just little solo breaks
In the 1920s, the clubs, lounges, and theaters that lined State Street on Chicago’s South Side jumped with the uptempo sound of jazz music. This fusion of African and European musical traditions started in the Southern United States, but it flourished in Chicago and turned the Windy City into the jazz capital of the world.
As WTTW noted, music lovers also listened and danced to the jazz greats who played in Chicago such as Earl “Fatha” Hines, Erskine Tate, Fats Waller, and Cab Calloway. Louis Armstrong’s recordings with his Hot Five and Hot Seven bands between 1925 and 1928 set the standard for modern jazz, emphasizing individual solos over ensemble playing.
This emphasis on solos, faster tempos, string bass and guitar (replacing the traditional tuba and banjo) and saxophones also distinguish Chicago-style playing from New Orleans style. When Chicago musicians started playing four-beat measures, they laid the foundation for the swing era. The Lindy Hop was originally danced to four-beat Chicago style jazz and went on to become one of the iconic features of the swing era.
Into the Modern Era
From the 1930’s tothe 1950’s, Chicago’s style continued to evolve to include big band swing. Major venues such as the Regal Theater and Sunset Café showcased artists like Benny Goodman.
From the mid 1960s to the present day, the Association for the Advancement of Creative Musicians has nurtured “Great Black Music: Ancient to the Future”.
Jazz Clubs and Celebrations Today
Today, Chicago’s jazz scene includes the annual Chicago Jazz Festival, which has its origins in the 1970s. The Chicago Jazz Festival is a free, annual music festival held over Labor Day weekend in Millennium Park, featuring jazz legends, modern masters, and new talent on multiple stages, including the Pritzker Pavilion and the Chicago Cultural Center.
Festival performers have included the modern masters of bebop, smooth, Dixieland and progressive jazz, including Miles Davis, Sonny Rollins, Ornette Coleman, Benny Carter, Ella Fitzgerald, Anthony Braxton, Betty Carter, Lionel Hampton, Chico O’Farrill’s big band, Jimmy Dawkins, Von Freeman, Johnny Frigo, Slide Hampton, and Roy Haynes.
In the South Loop, The Jazz Showcase, 806 S. Plymouth Court, is the oldest historic jazz club in Chicago, founded in 1947 by Joe Segal, now owned and operated by Wayne Segal (Joe Segal’s son). The greatest names in Jazz have played here, including Gillespie and Count Basie. There’s a show seven days a week, including their family-friendly matinee on Sundays when kids get in free.
In River North, as Choose Chicago notes, Andy’s Jazz Club has been packing the house since 1977. Whatever day of the week, you can find music lovers enjoying live music, craft cocktails, and Cajun-inspired fare. If you’re here on a weekend, then stop in for brunch between 10:30 a.m. and 1:30 p.m. when admission is free.
Plus, the Green Mill remains a top club, retaining its 1920s and 30s feel with low lighting, murals, and a classic bar, making it a popular spot for both locals and tourists.
Alison Moran-Powers and Dean’s Team Chicago
