On April 30, otherwise known as International Jazz Day, JAZZ.FM91 announced the launch of the JAZZ.FM91 Alumni Association.
This new artist outreach project will provide professional development resources to early-career jazz artists through the help of a $150,000 Resilient Communities Fund grant awarded by the Ontario Trillium Foundation in 2022. The grant has been used by JAZZ.FM91 to target two key strategic areas: investment in digital redevelopment, and investment in support for early-career artists.
“I’m glad to hear JAZZ.FM91 received the Resilient Communities Fund grant,” said Chris Glover, MPP for Spadina-Fort York. “Employing innovative ways to unite local communities is incredibly effective. Employing a common love for jazz while providing programming to underserved communities and creating an alumni mentorship association is very exciting.”
The JAZZ.FM91 Alumni Association was announced during the station’s International Jazz Day celebrations, which also included a volunteer appreciation mixer and a performance by the JAZZ.FM91 Youth Big Band. The performance also featured several established professionals — trumpeters Dave Dunlop and Marie Goudy, and trombonists Nick Forget, Don Laws and Angela Pincente, three of whom are JAZZ.FM91 alumni — playing alongside the young musicians, further demonstrating JAZZ.FM91’s commitment to intergenerational mentorship on a day that celebrated the past, present and future of jazz.