The creative world is reeling in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, which has closed venues and cancelled work indefinitely for thousands of musicians. In an effort to help those financially impacted by the current crisis and to help foster communication in a time of isolation, Live From Our Living Rooms is returning with a Creative Summit & Fundraiser. Originally scheduled to run in June, the Creative Summit & Fundraiser will now run July 1 through July 12 and will include performances and daily workshops with master musicians, as well as webinars with industry professionals — within music and in other disciplines — designed to help musicians navigate this new environment.

Organized by musicians Sirintip, Thana Alexa and Owen Broder, Live From Our Living Rooms offers a platform for creative exchange, continuing to raise relief funds for musicians while providing paid performances and teaching opportunities for the music community at large. The inspiration to organize the Live From Our Living Rooms Creative Summit & Fundraiser grew from the success of their first Online Festival & Fundraiser, which concluded in April after raising nearly $60k from which performance grants were allocated to struggling NYC musicians. Referred to as “the first jazz festival for the quarantine era” by Rolling Stone, the April event featured live performances and masterclasses by a litany of top tier jazz artists such as Chick Corea, Christian McBride, Bill Frisell, Becca Stevens and more.

The upcoming multi-day event is likened to a virtual summer camp that will offer 68 instrument-specific workshops, twelve creative and industry-related webinars, two Sunday spotlight episodes, and ten evening performances. Among those leading workshops are considered masters of their instruments: Eric Harland, Orrin Evans, Kevin Eubanks, Miguel Zenon, Luciana Souza, Donny McCaslin, Jane Ira Bloom, Rufus Reid, Linda May Han Oh, Gilad Hekselman and John Clayton, among many others.

The topics of the webinars range from those that are particularly relevant to the current global situation (the state of concert booking, online brand building, streaming rights), to broader topics like cultural exchange in music, songwriting, and the art of music production. Webinar participants include Cecile McLorin Salvant, Michael League (Snarky Puppy), Steve Rodby (Pat Metheny Group), Kenny Werner, Billy Childs, Danny Melnick (Absolutely Live Entertainment), Katherine McVicker (Music Works International), Gargi Shindé (Chamber Music America), Michelle Willis (GroundUP), Inara George (Bird and the Bee), and many others. Gretchen Parlato and Alan Hampton, Rachel Z and Omar Hakim, Terri Lyne Carrington, Lionel Loueke, Jason Lindner, Ingrid Jensen, Zakir Hussain, Chris Potter and Gerald Clayton are among those slated to perform.

On July 5th and July 12th, the Project Spotlight Series will highlight some of the remarkable work being released during quarantine, featuring live-streamed conversations with project creators Sarah Elizabeth Charles & Jarrett Cherner and Ryan Truesdale, respectively.

There is a $3 minimum donation required to attend each webinar and performance, which will stream on Crowdcast. The Zoom workshops range from $30-40, and will be capped at 20 participants per session to offer an exclusive experience with some of the biggest names in jazz & beyond. In a continued effort to support our community of musicians, participating artists have agreed to share a portion of their earned revenue with the Live From Our Living Rooms Fundraiser which will go towards the initiative’s next round of relief grants. Additional donations made from the initiative’s global audience will also be allocated toward relief grants. For this round, funds will be collected and distributed by fiscal agent, American Music Lab. The next grant application cycle will be announced after the completion of the Creative Summit.

More information can be found at www.livefromourlivingrooms.com.

Register for Performances, Webinars & Zoom workshops here.

Live From Our Living Rooms Creative Summit and Fundraiser

SIMON RENTNER
WBGO
Live From Our Living Rooms, now in its third installment, is co-produced by three musicians, two of whom have recently been featured on this program: singers Thana Alexa and Sirintip and saxophonist Owen Broder. Read the full article here.

 

MIKE JEFFERS
CHICAGOJAZZ.COM
The upcoming multi-day event is likened to a virtual summer camp that will offer 68 instrument-specific workshops, twelve creative and industry-related webinars, two Sunday spotlight episodes, and ten evening performances. Read the full article here.


JAZZTIMES
The organization's Creative Summit & Fundraiser will offer workshops, webinars, and performances from July 1 to July 12. Read the full article here.

BRIAN ZIMMERMAN
JAZZIZ
"Live From Our Living Rooms presents musicians of the highest caliber in virtual performances to audiences worldwide that provide alternative revenue streams while live venues are unavailable during the COVID-19 pandemic." Listen to this interview here.

MARGIE GOLDSMITH
FORBES
"In April, Live From Our Living Rooms presented the first virtual jazz festival to raise Covid-19 relief funds for freelance musicians an event which raised almost $60,000 and distributed grants to 65 NY-based musicians." Read this full article here.

 

DC Jazz Fest from Home presented by Live From Our Living Rooms

JACKSON SINNENBERG
CAPITALBOP
The DCJF is partnering with Live From Our Living Rooms, an organization founded by three jazz musicians during the pandemic to organize and produce high-quality live-streamed music events. Read this full article here.

 

JAZZTIMES
The festival has teamed with Live from Our Living Rooms to present live performances from Marcus Strickland, Warren Wolf, and many more via Crowdcast. Read this full article here.

 

BROADWAY WORLD
Announcement article. Read it here

MIKE WEST
WASHINGTON CITY PAPER
"But the dauntless artists-turned-entrepreneurs known as Live From Our Living Rooms are stepping into the void. After mounting an entirely online festival in April based on the titular conceit—performers livestreaming music from their homes—LFOLR is taking the show on the road by teaming up with the jazz impresarios of our fair city." Preview here

JACKSON SINNENBERG
CAPITALBOP
The DCJF is partnering with Live From Our Living Rooms, an organization founded by three jazz musicians during the pandemic to organize and produce high-quality live-streamed music events. Read this full article here.

 

MATT MICUCCI
JAZZIZ
The Week in Jazz. Read it here

EVA HERSCOWITZ
HILL RAG
"Presented by Live from Our Living Rooms, DC JazzFest’s nine days of musical performances and programming are going online." Listing here

RON SCOTT
AMSTERDAM NEWS
"The NYC team of artists known as Live From Our Living Rooms were so successful with their first online jazz festival and fundraiser of the COVID-19 pandemic they are expanding beyond the Big Apple to partner with the DC Jazz Festival for nine days of in-home performances by an eclectic group of jazz musicians." Article here

Live From Our Living Rooms Festival and Fundraiser

MICHAEL RICCI
ALL ABOUT JAZZ
Read the full interview here.

JD CONSIDINE
DOWNBEAT
Perhaps the most ambitious online concert series is “Live from Our Living Rooms,” a weeklong festival and fundraiser running from April 1 through April 7. Organized by singers Sirintip and Thana Alexa, along with saxophonist Owen Broder, and presented in conjunction with the nonprofit MusicTalks, the series will offer concerts, afternoon master classes, and special music performances for children every day for a week. Read full article here

HANK SHTEAMER
ROLLING STONE
"The first jazz festival of the quarantine era will take place next week. An impressive lineup of A-list names in the genre will come together virtually for Live From Our Living Rooms, an online music festival and fundraiser." Read the full feature here.

MIKE HOBART
FINANCIAL TIMES
"At one point, Lovano likened gigs to an act of congregation, when band and audience are one and musicians experience the power of “filling the room with the joyous feeling of music”. That feeling is unique to live performance, and this festival plays a welcome part in keeping that going." Read full feature article here

MORGAN ENOS
FORTUNE MAGAZINE
"Like artists of all stripes, jazz musicians are resourcefully taking to live-streaming, as on Live From Our Living Rooms, an online festival that ran from April 1 to 7, featuring heavyweights like keyboardist Chick Corea, guitarist Bill Frisell, and bassist Linda May Han Oh, and offering viewers the chance to donate directly online." Read full article here

MARTIN JOHNSON
WALL STREET JOURNAL
"The festival’s 23 concerts and five workshops will be archived at the site though April 15 and warrant investigation. Ms. Oh and Mr. Almazan’s joint performance was dazzling." Read full article here

LARS GOTRICH
NPR
A List Of Live Virtual Concerts To Watch During The Coronavirus Shutdown. See full listing here

SIMON RENTNER
THE CHECKOUT/WBGO
A Word with Thana Alexa, Who Turned a Lost Tour Into 'Live From Our Living Rooms'. Listen to full podcast here

MATT MICUCCI
JAZZIZ
The Festival Guide. Read full article here.

IVAN HEWETT
THE TELEGRAPH
"The most ambitious is the week-long “Live from our Living Rooms” jazz festival set up to support New York musicians, with a very starry line-up including Chick Corea, Joe Lovano, Christian McBride and many others (livefromourlivingrooms.com)." Read full article here

MATTHIAS KIRSCH
GINA LOVES JAZZ
Read news piece here

SEBASTIAN SCOTNEY
THE ARTS DESK
"This is the most co-ordinated initiative resembling a festival over the next seven days." Read full article here

TSF JAZZ
Read French news piece here

MAC RANDALL
JAZZ TIMES
Read news piece here

MICHAEL RICCI
ALL ABOUT JAZZ
All About Jazz To Broadcast Live From Our Living Rooms: An Online Music Festival And Fundraiser. Read news piece here

KEVIN WHITLOCK
JAZZWISE
Read news piece here

BROADWAY WORLD
Read news piece here.

MIKE WEST
JAZZTIMES
"Live from Our Living Rooms drew 22,000 unique accounts, logged over 140,000 views, and ultimately raised and awarded more than $56,000 in grants. It also forged what might be a longer-term partnership for Sirintip, Alexa, and Broder." Article here

EDDIE MYER
JAZZWISE
"...the feast of talent in offer made this a memorable musical event as well as a worthy fundraiser." Read the full festival review here

BBC
Listen to the full program here.