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ANNUAL REPORT 2025

Letter from Executive Director

Projects with our Artistic Board

Community Outreach

Some of our 2025 locations

Board Members

Some of our shows

Sponsors and Partners

Financials

Letter from Executive Director

Suzanne Waldowski

Thisyearfeltlikeabigone,inthebestway 2025 was all about making smart, intentional changes to set Jazz at the Ballroomupforwhat’snext.

Thebiggestshiftwasmovingfromasingle ArtisticDirectortoaBoardofMusic Directors.BringingtogetherBryanCarter, ChampianFulton,OliviaChindamo,and AdrianCunninghamhasbeenagame changer.Eachbringssomethingdifferent. Andtogether,they’realreadypushingour programminginexcitingnewdirections.

Flying High really took off this year. We added another album. More shows. More incredible artists, including Nicole Zuraitis, Ekep Nkwelle, and Bria Skonberg. One standout moment was recording with Buster Williams. It was truly special. And our three-night, sold-out run at Birdland was unforgettable. We’re so grateful for that partnership, and for the chance to keep building there

Beyond that, we stayed busy. We presented over 20 concerts across the country. We continued to grow our scholarship program, reaching more young artists, including in Southern California And we hosted a fantastic fundraiser in Hillsborough with The Hot Sardines. It’s been amazing to see our community keep growing.

All in all, a year of change, but the right kind. Thoughtful. Energizing. Already making a difference I’m proud of what we built this year, and incredibly grateful to everyone who made it happen. We’re heading into the future with real momentum and I can’t wait for what’s next.

Projects with our Artistic Board

It’s been another full and exciting year at JATB, with performances, new collaborations, and plenty of firsts along the way. We continued to build on our Northern California base with quarterly concerts around the Bay Area, while also expanding our reach to new audiences and venues across the country. From a holiday debut at NYC’s 54 Below to first-time appearances in Red Bank, Hilton Head, and the Mad Jazz Festival in Virginia, we had the chance to bring our music to some incredible new stages

Flying High remained a big part of our year, with Champian Fulton leading bands for eight shows and helping keep the project growing and evolving. At the same time, we were excited to begin developing something completely new: Blues & Taboos, created by Bryan Carter and Olivia Chindamo. It’s a bold, playful look at early jazz, and we can’t wait to bring it to audiences in 2026.

Beyond performances, our outreach work continued to be at the heart of what we do. We brought live music into the community 28 times this year and launched a new local student jazz concert series, helping create even more opportunities for young musicians. It’s been incredibly rewarding to see that side of our work grow alongside everything happening onstage.