What is The New Jazz Archive?
The New Jazz Archive is a weekly series exploring jazz's place in the story of America. Each hour-long episode is a collection of stories, interviews, and music that relates the past, present and future of jazz to the things that shape our daily lives—from movies, television and pop culture, to important social issues, to the economy, technology, and even other forms of music.

Who is the audience?
Most of today's jazz programming assumes its audience already loves jazz. This has been the Achilles’ heel of the music and the reason why jazz audiences are now smaller and older than ever. The New Jazz Archive starts with an almost opposite premise: that when many (if not most) people hear the word "jazz," they tend to either, one, say they don't know much about it or understand it, or two, actually say they don't like it (e.g. "Those crazy saxophone solos make my head want to explode!"). This show is designed with these challenges in mind and seeks to open people's ears to jazz not just by exposing people to the music, but by contextualizing it through in-depth stories and interviews about how jazz relates to things that already matter to us. In other words, we don't just assume jazz is important—we show you why. And because we use storytelling as our approach to the music, if you're a person who likes a good story, you'll probably like this show.

Why is this show important?
Jazz programming is an endangered species on radio today and many jazz stations across the country are closing or changing formats. The timing couldn't be worse. Despite almost annual assertions that "jazz is dead,” the music couldn't be any more alive. The music itself is now at one of its most diverse and influential points in its history, coloring a wide range of music, including rock ‘n’ roll, hip hop, country, R&B, and many genres from around the world. It's also in the movies and television we watch. And it's a key part of our history as Americans. Yet that story is lost on many potential jazz lovers simply due to the way a lot of jazz programming is presented—namely, as radio playlists that are geared toward people who already love jazz. Our goal is to make sure that jazz's vitality, diversity and importance isn't lost on a new generation of listeners simply because we fail to connect it to the things that matter to people and present it in a fresh way. The New Jazz Archive addresses these challenges through a radical storytelling-based approach to jazz and has the power to build a new, diverse audience for the music like no other show has to date. In short, if your station only carries one jazz program, it should be this one.

What does the show sound like?
Hosted by longtime jazz musician and composer Jeff Haas (son of legendary classical music radio host Karl Haas, Adventures in Good Music), each hour-long episode is a fast-paced combination of interviews, storytelling, and music that relates to a particular topic for that hour. Each episode is themed: past shows include “The Science of Jazz,” “Jazz on TV and in the Movies,” and “The Jazz Roots of R&B.” For example, "The Science of Jazz" episode featured conversations with Dr. Charles Limb, a neurologist who is studying the brain science behind improvisation with both jazz and freestyle hip hop artists; Gil Weinberg, a scientist at Georgia Tech who has developed an improvising robotic musician; and Kathy Goonan, an award-winning fiction writer who blends the mediums of jazz and science fiction. Because we use storytelling as the basis for our approach to jazz, the show's tone runs the gamut from informative, to humorous, to contemplative. Music is coordinated with the content of the interviews, creating a seamless hour where listeners can experience musical examples of the topics they're learning about.

How is it formatted?
The New Jazz Archive is a weekly one-hour (59:00) show, formatted in two halves with a one-minute station break roughly halfway through the hour.

Where/when should our station air The New Jazz Archive?
Both the format and content make The New Jazz Archive a natural weekend show for majority news, majority music, or mixed format stations. Some stations are also airing it evenings during weekdays, or—because it combines both interviews and music—some mixed format stations are using it as a transition between news and music programming.

What is the cost?
Free! For the first year, that is. We're giving away a full year of programming to stations; after that, stations will pay an annual fee based on each station's budget.

How does my station get it?
You can access the program here on PRX, or by contacting the producers.
New episodes are produced weekly and are available on Mondays.
Hide full description

What is The New Jazz Archive?The New Jazz Archive is a weekly series exploring jazz's place in the story of America. Each hour-long episode is a collection of stories, interviews, and music that relates the past, present and future of jazz to the things that shape our daily lives—from movies, television and pop culture, to important social issues, to the economy, technology, and even other forms of music.Who is the audience?Most of today's jazz programming assumes its audience already loves jazz. This has been the Achilles’ heel of the music and the reason why jazz audiences are now smaller and older than ever. The New Jazz Archive starts with an almost opposite premise: that when many (if not most) people hear the word "jazz," they tend to either, one, say they don't know much about it... Show full description