Hartford's Monday Night Jazz Festival

The Monday Night Jazz Series has brought world famous musicians and local aspiring artists together in downtown Hartford for free concerts during July and August for more than 40 years. These concerts provide access to the arts for audiences of all ages in central Connecticut, help sustain jazz as a living art form, and invigorate the cultural community by promoting quality, diversity and economic growth.

In 1967 jazz bassist Paul Brown founded Monday Night Jazz (then called the Hartford Festival of Jazz).  Festival performances took place on Monday nights, initially in Hartford's North End at the Garden Area Center.  To accommodate the ever-increasing number of fans, the concerts were moved to a succession of outdoor locations in Hartford, finally finding their permanent home in historic Bushnell Park.

In May 1999, the Monday Night Jazz Series was recognized as a New England Legacy and is now recognized by the Library of Congress as the oldest continuously-run free jazz festival in the nation.

Since 2008, Monday Night Jazz has been produced by the Hartford Jazz Society.  For more information, including this year's line up, visit the Hartford Jazz Society's website.

The music track is "The Nile" from the album "The Gathering" composed by Maurice D. Robertson and performed by People of Goodwill.  Used by permission.  (Thanks!)