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Imagine Jazz

Imagine Jazz empowers young musicians to explore and create avant-garde music through performances and collaborative opportunities, fostering innovation in the jazz genre and supporting local composers.

Join Imagine Jazz for &ldquo;An Evening with John Stowell,&rdquo; at the Spokane Public Radio performance studio!&nbsp; An close-up concert with one of jazz guitar&rsquo;s most thoughtful voices 🎶. Experience the conversation between player and instrument as John explores standards, originals, and spontaneous moments. The evening will open with a solo guitar set, followed by a collaboration with the Imagine Jazz Quartet featuring Rachel Bade-McMurphy, Brendan McMurphy and Josh Skinner.&nbsp; About the artist:&nbsp;In 1983, John joined flutist Paul Horn, bassist David Friesen and Paul&#39;s son Robin Horn for a historic tour of the Soviet Union. This was the first time in forty years that an American jazz group had been invited to play public performances in Russia. In 1993, 1995, 1998 and 2012 John returned to Russia, playing in numerous cities. Two sold-out performances in Kursk may have been the first appearances there by an American jazz musician. With bassist David Friesen, John was featured of the soundtracks of two Academy Award Nominated short films (Will Vinton Studios, Portland, OR, and Bosustow Studios, Los Angeles, CA). &quot;Through the Listening Glass&quot; with David Friesen was chosen of the &quot;Ten Best Jazz Albums of the Decade&quot; by the Los Angeles Examiner.&nbsp; John was featured in Japan&#39;s &quot;Swing Journal&quot;, &quot;The Jazz Guitar&quot; (Ashely Mark Publishing, England), and the Biographical Encyclopedia of Jazz (Leonard Feather and Ira Gitler).&nbsp; John had several appearances on BET Jazz Discovery and Guitar Series television shows.&nbsp; Recording/Performance Credits: Milt Jackson, Lionel Hampton, Art Farmer, Conte Condoli, Herb Ellis, Bill Watrous, Mundell Lowe, George Cables, Billy Higgins, Billy Hart, Richie Cole, Paul Horn, Tom Harrell, Don Thompson, Dave Liebman, Golden Delicious (Inner City, 1977), Through the Listening Glass with David Friesen (Inner City, 1978), Other Mansions with David Friesen (Inner City, 1980), Somewhere (Seraphon, 1995), Picture in Black and White with Uwe Kropinski (Acoustic Music, 1997), Elle (Jardis, 2000), Scenes (Origin, 2001), The Banff Sessions (Origin, 2002), Listen to This with Frank Haunschild (Acoustic Music, 2004), Resonance (Origin, 2005), Solitary Tales (Origin, 2009), Shot Through with Beauty with Michael Zilber (Origin, 2011), New York Conversations with Kendra Shank (TCB, 2013), Italian Conversation with Michele Campobasso and Viz Maurogiovanni (Terramiamusic, 2014), Anytime with Tomas Sauter (Catwalk, 2016), Cosmology with Rolf Jardemark (Guitarlandrecords, 2016), Night Visitor with Ulf Bandgren (Origin, 2017), Petite Fleur with Dave Liebman (Origin, 2018),&nbsp;Rain Painting (Origin, 2021).&nbsp; John maintains a robust live performance schedule touring in the Pacific Northwest, the United States, Europe, and Asia.About the Organization: Your registration helps celebrate&nbsp;jazz heritage and nurture creative progress through Imagine Jazz performances, workshops, and outreach in schools and community spaces 🎷. Reserve your seat, bring a friend, and be part of a growing jazz community.

An Evening with John Stowell

Moyer Family Relief Concert Saturday, June 27 &middot; Doors at 6:00 PM Hamilton Studio &middot; 1427 W Dean Ave, Spokane $20 Suggested Donation &middot; 100% of Proceeds Benefit the Moyer Family On June 16, 2026, the Upriver Fire devastated the Spokane home of Chris and Andren Moyer. The Moyers are a family whose generosity, artistry, and deep roots in this community have touched countless lives. With only minutes to escape, they lost nearly everything: their home, a vehicle, and the professional musical instruments and recording equipment that represent both their livelihood and their life&#39;s work. The Spokane music community is answering the call. Join us for an evening of live music featuring some of our city&#39;s finest ensembles: MasterClass Big Band, Imagine Jazz Collective, The Dues Big Band, Members of the Hot Club of Spokane, and special guests, united in support of a family that has always shown up for others. Chris is a beloved music teacher who has given years of his life to mentoring young musicians. Andren is a tireless community servant, a legal aid provider, charity board member, and 30-year member of Sweet Adelines International. Their sons are the next generation of that legacy, and all three lost instruments and equipment essential to their futures and education. Among what was lost: an entire recording studio, university instruments, drums, an upright bass, guitars, keyboards, a piano, saxophones, and professional audio gear. Music gave the Moyers a way to give back to Spokane for decades. Tonight, we give back to them. A $20 suggested donation gets you a night of extraordinary live music. Every dollar goes directly to the Moyer family. To make an additional contribution, visit their relief fund at givesendgo.com/moyer-family-fire-recovery.

The Moyer Family Relief Concert at Hamilton Studio

Join us for an intimate evening with trumpeter and composer Ralph Alessi 🎺 at the Hamilton Listening Room, presented by Imagine Jazz. Experience his music up close in a space built for deep listening and conversation. Your registration supports Imagine Jazz&rsquo;s mission to celebrate jazz heritage while nurturing today&rsquo;s creative voices. Reserve your seat to be part of a growing community where jazz can evolve, connect, and thrive 🎶 Ralph Alessi will be joined by with Matt Mitchell, John Hebert and Tim Angulo Jazz Times magazine says Alessi has &quot;drop-dead trumpet chops&quot; and calls his music &quot;as clean and airy and sophisticated and disciplined as post-modern progressive jazz gets.&rdquo; Ralph Alessi was born in San Francisco, California. Rafael, the son of classical trumpeter Joe Alessi and opera singer Maria Leone. (Brother Joe Jr. is principal trombonist of the New York Philharmonic, and Ralph himself freelanced as a classical player as he was coming up through the ranks.) But after taking degrees in jazz trumpet and bass&mdash;he studied under the legendary Charlie Haden at CalArts&mdash;he lit out for New York, where he swiftly became an ubiquitous presence on the downtown scene. He&#39;s been a frequent collaborator of such notable musicians as Steve Coleman, Don Byron, Ravi Coltrane, Uri Caine, Fred Hersch, Drew Gress, Dafnis Prieto and Jason Moran&mdash;most of whom have also played and recorded in Alessi&rsquo;s own groups. Alessi has recorded five albums of originals which draw on everything from post-bop to neo classical. Jazz Times named This Against That&#39;s debut outing one of the ten best recordings of 2002, while All About Jazz dubbed its 2007 follow-up &quot;Look&quot; &ldquo;an outstanding work of intellect and fire.&rdquo; Ralph will release 2 new CDs in 2010, a quartet record featuring Jason Moran and another This AGainst That record.

Ralph Alessi at Imagine Jazz Spokane (Hamilton Listening Room)

The first full-length concert by the Imagine Jazz Big Band! Seventeen musicians performing new and experimental music by local composers. &nbsp;The Imagine Jazz Big Band exists to provide young musicians the opportunity to write and create avant-garde music. &nbsp; Join us at the Jam Pods - a new venue that specializes in practice space for bands and ensembles. &nbsp; Chair numbers are limited.&nbsp;&nbsp; Pre-purchase ticket-holders will get a reserved chair at the event. &nbsp; Tickets are available at the door, but once chairs are taken, remaining capacity will be standing room.&nbsp;

Imagine Jazz Big Band at the Jam Pods

Join Imagine Jazz as a member and help keep this music alive, heard, and evolving. 🎷 Your membership supports live performances, artist workshops, and school outreach that introduce jazz to new ears. As a member, you&rsquo;re part of a growing jazz community that connects musicians, long-time fans, and curious newcomers. Together we celebrate the history of jazz while giving emerging artists room to explore new sounds. 🎶

Join Imagine Jazz as a member and help keep this music alive, heard, and evolving. 🎷 Your membership supports live performances, artist workshops, and school outreach that introduce jazz to new ears.As a member, you’re part of a growing jazz community that connects musicians, long-time fans, and curious newcomers. Together we celebrate the history of jazz while giving emerging artists room to explore new sounds. 🎶

Imagine Jazz

Past events

Past events

An Evening with John Stowell

The Moyer Family Relief Concert at Hamilton Studio

Ralph Alessi at Imagine Jazz Spokane (Hamilton Listening Room)

Imagine Jazz Big Band at the Jam Pods

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