Community Calendar

We hope you'll join us in saluting Jim Wilke--legendary broadcaster, jazz ambassador, and archivist of live recordings of regional and national musicians for over 60 years—with an evening of lively music and tributes at Dimitriou's Jazz Alley. Known as "The Voice of Seattle Jazz," listeners to KPLU/KNKX know him as the host of the nationally-syndicated show, Jazz After Hours, and Jazz Northwest which featured recordings of hundreds of local artists at jazz festivals and every jazz venue in Seattle. In addition, Jim broadcast hundreds of shows from the old Penthouse jazz club in Pioneer Square on KING-FM which resulted in album releases by Ernestine Anderson, Wes Montgomery, Johnny Griffin and Cannonball Adderley. Jim has garnered many radio and jazz awards, and he was inducted into the Seattle Jazz Hall of Fame in 1992.

This very special celebration recognizes Jim Wilke for his lasting and meaningful contribution to the growth and health of the jazz ecosystem in our region and the country.

The Importance of Local Journalism is a thought-provoking evening featuring a panel of regional media experts discussing the vital role of local news in civic life, the challenges facing journalism today, and how communities can support a thriving, trustworthy press. Moderated by Brown Maloney (Radio Pacific) and featuring Briar Dudley (Save the Free Press initiative, Seattle Times), Lloyd Mullen (Port Townsend & Jefferson County Leader), and Amy Jeffries (KNKX Public Radio).

This is a free event with general admission seating in the Donna M. Morris Theater. Please RSVP at the above link. Donations are appreciated.

The Kareem Kandi World Orchestra will be presenting its 2026 Music Festival this year from April 5 to May 8. There will be many great artists performing throughout Tacoma and Puyallup and most of the performances and workshops will be free to attend. See the complete lineup here.

KNKX hosts two performances on Friday, April 24 in our Tacoma studios on Broadway:

4 p.m. to 5:15 p.m. - The Kareem Kandi World Orchestra with visiting French Artists
6 p.m. to 7:15 p.m. - Brazilian jazz with pianist Cassio Vianna

Supported by KNKX. Duende Libre is an award-winning jazz trio whose original music celebrates the connections between global rhythms from Cuba, Brazil, and the Mediterranean with the American jazz tradition. Each having apprenticed with direct descendants and master musicians of these traditions, they consider themselves disciples of their teachers. The result: A euphoric new jazz that honors its historical roots, pushing open the boundaries of genre to invoke a powerful sonic freedom.

Comprising core members Alex Chadsey (bandleader and keys), Jeff Busch (percussion), and Farko Dosumov (bass), Duende Libre is collectively influenced by the trio’s direct connections with master musicians including Marc Seales, Clinton Fearon, Dudley Nesbitt, Dave Hassel, Jesse Bannister, Chucho Valdés, Carlos Santana, Martha Gonzalez, Quetzal Flores, Joe Santiago.

The band effectively—and uniquely—calls attention to the space between contemporary jazz traditions and broader musical influences from around the globe. Informed by a cumulative century of devoted study, they answer to this with emphatic (and euphoric) sonic interpretations that effectively enrich the collective language of jazz itself.

Supported by KNKX. Listening to the abundant sounds of the Seattle-based funk & soul group, True Loves, is like walking down a favorite neighborhood street, slapping five with friends, checking up with clerks in their stores, admiring your dark sun-glassed face in their windows, ducking under flowerpots and smelling the familiar smells of your most cherished locale. The band is its own block party.

What began in 2014 as a jam session between three of the city’s best - pocket-perfect drummer David McGraw, intoxicating bassist Bryant Moore, and otherworldly guitarist Jimmy James - has since blossomed into a global force that features percussionist Iván Galvez, trombonist Greg Kramer, and saxophonists Gordon Brown and Skerik. Together, the group’s live performances have garnered them much acclaim and millions of streams on YouTube.

In 2017, True Loves recorded their debut instrumental LP, Famous Last Words which received worldwide adoration and earned them spots at coveted festivals. In 2021, the group released their sophomore album, to high praise, Sunday Afternoon.

GRAMMY-winning Soul provider Nigel Hall is an artist who needs no introduction. Throughout his career, he’s built a mighty foundation of funk, onstage and in the studio, proving himself to be a true student of the music. His unique sound, built upon pages torn out of the golden-ages of R&B, funk and soul, have made him the musician he is today; an accomplished vocalist, keyboardist, studio musician, and member of the GRAMMY-nominated funk-jazz-soul-hip-hop-psychedelic-jam-experimental titans Lettuce. Legions of fans are already well in the know about Hall’s copious keyboard chops and powerful vocal style.

Sun Ra's elaborate costumes and interstellar visions often overshadowed the fact that he was an extraordinary composer and musician. From the 1940s to the 1990s, his compositions transported listeners on sonic journeys through space and time, challenging conventional jazz boundaries while inspiring generations of musicians with his visionary artistry. Guest director and pianist Orrin Evans leads SRJO in The Sun Ra Suite, which was originally premiered in 2013 by Evans and his Captain Black Big Band at Dizzy's Club Coca Cola in Lincoln Center, honoring the centennial year of Sun Ra's birth. Selections include Sun Ra's Space is the Place, The Hour of Parting and Rocket Number Nine. Other concert selections include favorite big band works reflecting Orrin's background in the music scenes of New York City and his childhood home, Philadelphia.

The 37th Annual Best of the Northwest Spring Show returns to Hangar 30 at Magnuson Park on April 11-12 with original, handmade work from over 100 Pacific Northwest artists - painting, sculpture, ceramics, jewelry, glass, fiber, and more.

Beyond shopping for one-of-a-kind work, there's plenty to experience: watch artists work live through the Artists in Action demos, explore a special exhibit and live carving demonstrations by the Northwest Stone Sculptors Association, and cheer on two debut Emerging Artist Program winners making their first show appearance. Free youth soapstone carving workshops are available for ages 5–17 (pre-registration recommended). Local food vendors, indoor dining, and a community art project round out the weekend.

Advance tickets $5 / $8 at the door. Kids 12 & under free - entry valid both days. Free parking, ADA accessible.

Supported by KNKX. The Highway 99 All Stars came into existence with the opening in Seattle of the award-winning Highway 99 Blues Club in 2004. Since then the All-Stars have played numerous shows in and around Seattle at its namesake club, fairs, festivals and special events. The line-up for their shows features players from Seattle and the greater Northwest. While some of the players have done multiple shows over the years, the line-up is a roving cast of "all-stars" bringing solid rhythm and blues and deeply rooted blues music to the stage. For the upcoming Jazz Alley shows, the band will feature six musicians from Seattle, Portland, Phoenix, and Los Angeles. With three different singers; harmonica, guitars, bass, keys and drums, the show will feature solo spots, duo turns and the full band.

Supported by KNKX. Multifaceted American jazz pianist and composer, Emmet Cohen is one of his generation's pivotal figures in music and the related arts.

Leader of the Emmet Cohen Trio and creator of the Masters Legacy Series, Cohen is an internationally acclaimed jazz artist, a dedicated educator, the winner of the 2019 American Pianists Awards, and a finalist in the 2011 Thelonious Monk International Piano Competition.

Cohen headlines regularly at Jazz at Lincoln Center, the Village Vanguard, and Birdland, and has appeared at the Newport Jazz Festival, Monterey Jazz Festival, and North Sea Jazz Festival among other renowned festivals.

His artistry has taken him to venues and festivals in over 30 countries. Cohen's entrepreneurial energies led to his developing "Live From Emmet's Place," a live-streamed "Harlem rent party" that unites a worldwide audience via tens of millions of internet views.

Besides leading the "Emmet Cohen Trio," Cohen has appeared regularly with Ron Carter, Benny Golson, Jimmy Cobb, George Coleman, Jimmy Heath, Tootie Heath, Houston Person, Kurt Elling, Billy Hart, and Brian Lynch, among others.

Richard Thompson’s musical influence cannot be overstated. Having co-founded the groundbreaking group Fairport Convention as a teenager in the 60s, he and his bandmates invented the distinctive strain of British Folk Rock. He left the group by the age of 21 which was followed by a decade long musical partnership with his then-wife Linda, to over 30 years as a highly successful solo artist. In 2011, Thompson received an OBE (Order of the British Empire) personally bestowed upon him by Queen Elizabeth II at Buckingham Palace. The Los Angeles Times called him the finest rock songwriter after Dylan and the best electric guitarist since Hendrix and Rolling Stone has named him one of the Top 100 Guitarists of All Time. He has received lifetime achievement awards for songwriting from Britain’s BBC Awards, the Americana Music Association, and was awarded the prestigious Ivor Novello Award. His song “1952 Vincent Black Lightning” was named one of TIME Magazine’s “100 Greatest Songs Since 1923.” A wide range of musicians have recorded Thompson’s songs including Robert Plant, Elvis Costello, R.E.M., Sleater-Kinney, Del McCoury, Bonnie Raitt, Tom Jones, David Byrne, Don Henley, Los Lobos, and many more. His massive body of work includes many Grammy nominated albums as well as numerous soundtracks, including Werner Herzog’s Grizzly Man. Thompson’s genre defying mastery of both acoustic and electric guitar along with engaging energy and onstage wit continue to earn him new fans and a place as one of the most distinctive virtuosos and writers in Folk Rock history.

The University of Puget Sound AI & Human Values Initiative is pleased to invite you to the Puget Sound Symposium on AI & Privacy

This one-day symposium brings together scholars, practitioners, technologists, and policymakers to examine the rapidly evolving challenges and possibilities at the intersection of artificial intelligence and privacy. Registration is required.

Featuring: Keynote address by Nita Farahany, Duke University: “The Battle for Your Brain: Mental Privacy in the Age of Brain-Sensing Technology.”

Join us as we hear from experts in the field, and together explore essential issues such as:

How artificial intelligence is upending and reshaping longstanding privacy concerns -- from biometric and biological data to the creative and cultural domains of our lives.

Privacy-by-design, technical solutions or forms of resistance, to governance models spanning self-regulation, government-centered, and hybrid regulatory approaches.

Interactive sessions will investigate emerging privacy risks, shifting social norms, and the ways AI is transforming what counts as private, knowable, and controllable.

The Symposium takes place at the University of Puget Sound campus. All sessions other than the keynote address are in Trimble Hall, Trimble Forum. The keynote address and reception are in Thomas Hall, Tahoma Room. The art exhibit is in Kittredge Hall Media Space.

Olympic BirdFest takes place each April, timed perfectly to capture the overlap of wintering birds and spring migration. Species such as Harlequin and Long-tailed Ducks, seabirds, and winter songbirds are still present, while spring arrivals like Rufous Hummingbirds return from Mexico alongside the blooming red-flowering currants.

Expert-led field trips explore some of the region’s most iconic birding locations, including Sequim Bay, Port Angeles Harbor, Dungeness Bay, Ediz Hook, Dungeness Spit, and the Elwha River. Additional outings venture through forests, fields, and prairies to seek out a variety of songbirds. Beyond the field trips, BirdFest offers engaging presentations, workshops, and a Saturday night banquet featuring a special guest speaker and raffle.

Registration is open! For more information and to secure your spot for events, please visit olympicbirdfest.org. For questions and registration assistance, please call the Dungeness River Nature Center at 360-681-4076.

Inspired by the mystery and allure of a hidden speakeasy, join us for an unforgettable evening behind closed doors where live jazz fills the air, cocktails flow, and art takes center stage. An after party follows.

Every dollar raised supports Tacoma Art Museum’s exhibitions, programs, and events. Your support ensures art is accessible for all.

Slip past the velvet rope and enter the party. Speakeasy attire encouraged; password required. Toast the night with bubbles, daring cocktails, and unexpected delights at four themed bars. Bid discreetly on treasures that tempt the eye and stir the soul. Savor a culinary masterpiece inspired by the galleries that surround you. Raise your paddle for best-of-show items during the live auction led by our Emcee Saint Bryan and Auctioneer Jim Dever. Give generously to ensure art remains for everyone- because creativity deserves a stage.

Sponsored by KNKX. T-D Victoria International JazzFest, with 8 stages, 50 performers and over 200 musicians, including Pink Martini, Kokoroko, Miles Electric Band: M.E.B. – Celebrating 100 Years of Miles Davis, Béla Fleck, Edmar Castañeda & Antonio Sánchez: BEATrio, Brandon Woody’s Upendo and Sharan Blues Group etran de l’aÏr.

Full lineup at- https://jazzvictoria.ca/jazzfest-home/jazzfest-line-up/