Jazz Lives in Rochester
Jazz is still alive and swinging in and around Rochester, New York, a city with a long and vibrant jazz history.
Every June, downtown Rochester hosts the Rochester International Jazz Festival—one of the world’s premier jazz festivals. With its world-class programming and creative use of venues, it attracts top artists and audiences from everywhere. But jazz doesn’t stop when the festival ends. You can find live jazz in clubs, restaurants, concert halls, and community spaces all year long — 356 other nights of it.
The Mission of JazzRochester
I started JazzRochester in 2005 to connect the dots between musicians, venues, and listeners — helping keep the live jazz scene thriving across our region. The mission is simple:
- Share listings for upcoming live jazz in and around Rochester (and sometimes Buffalo or Syracuse when local musicians are performing there).
- Cover the Rochester International Jazz Festival before, during, and after it happens.
- Promote local jazz concerts, venues, and artists.
- Highlight recordings and projects from Rochester jazz musicians.
- Advocate for more opportunities to hear live jazz across all of Rochester’s communities.
- Connect audiences with jazz resources and stories from Rochester and beyond.
Each Wednesday evening, I publish a post listing the week’s live jazz events and, below the “fold” looks out about 2 months so you can plan.
About the Publisher
I’ve been publishing JazzRochester — in one form or another — for nearly two decades.
In April 2021, I was named a 2021 Jazz Hero by the Jazz Journalists Association for my work over the years in helping to build a community around live jazz where I liver and using JazzRochester to try to keep jazz alive during the pandemic
I’m not a journalist—just a longtime jazz fan who wants to make sure the live jazz in Rochester and its musicians are heard. If you see me out at a gig or at the Jazz Festival, come say hello!
Stay Connected
You can follow JazzRochester on your favorite platforms, currently including via email (see the button in the heading), X, Facebook, Instagram and Reddit (see the footer for links to these channels). On these platforms, I share information about upcoming live jazz, jazz venues, images from gigs I’m at, news about the local scene, and notifications when new posts go live.
Got feedback or a gig to share? Use the Contact Us link at the top of the page—I’d love to hear from you.
A Few Ground Rules
JazzRochester is a personal project, not a commercial listing service. While we are the most comprehensive source for live jazz around Rochester and do our best to include as many gigs as possible, we sometimes miss one (it happens) or make an error. If a gig isn’t listed or something’s wrong, let me know — I’ll fix it or add it as soon as possible.
I also reserve the right not to post some announcements. It’s never personal—just about keeping the site manageable and focused. I’m not here to be the “jazz police.” I try to cover the broad spectrum of live jazz in Rochester’s diverse communities and hope this space helps amplify voices that don’t always get heard elsewhere. Help me with this by letting me know about what I’m missing.
Comment Policy
Feedback on a particular post can be added in the Comments field below the post. We encourage thoughtful, respectful conversation about jazz and live music. Comments may be removed if they:
- Are off-topic or purely promotional
- Contain personal attacks, hate speech, or discrimination
- Are profane, inflammatory, or unrelated to the post
- Include spam or irrelevant links
Let’s keep it civil, inclusive, and focused on the music we all love.
Legal & Listings Notes
If you believe an image or logo was used in error, please contact us—I’ll fix it quickly.
Sometimes I include affiliate links (for example, to ticketing or music sites). If a link may earn a small commission or in-kind benefit, it will be clearly disclosed next to the link.
I strive to keep listings accurate, but dates, times, and locations can change. Always check with the venue before heading out—live music is unpredictable, and yes, I occasionally make mistakes! There are links to many of the venues in the right panel.
For our policy on cookies, please see this page.
© 2006–2025 JazzRochester and Gregory V. Bell, except where otherwise noted or used with permission.
Mailing Address:
JazzRochester
c/o Gregory V. Bell
Thanks for reading, for supporting live jazz, and for being part of this community.
— Greg Bell, Publisher