Dear Jazz Family, I am reaching out to you as a lifelong historical preservationist of our rich jazz heritage here in Philadelphia and the Delaware Valley. Over the past 30 years, I have had the honor of filming, documenting, and archiving these great musicians who built and sustained one of the most vibrant jazz communities in our nation. Many of these extraordinary artists our mentors, our innovators, our cultural ambassadors have now transitioned. But today, we have both the ability and the responsibility to keep their spirit alive 100 years from now and beyond. Before they left us, I made them a promise: That their genius, their sound, and their stories would never be forgotten. Since then, I have been keeping that promise. We need your support. We need your photos, your flyers and posters, your stories (etc.). It would be great for the world to see these great musicians perform 100 years from now. It would be even greater to have the backstory about their era like the liner notes on the back of an album cover. We are preparing a new digital project that will broadcast and showcase video segments featuring these remarkable musicians those who gave their lives, talent, and spirit to this music and to all of us. Through social media and online platforms, we will share performances, interviews, and rare footage capturing the heartbeat of our jazz legacy. This project is not only a tribute; it is a living archive dedicated to giving these artists the immortality they earned. Philadelphia’s jazz scene has always been powerful, rooted in neighborhood block parties and jazz clubs like Natalie’s on 40th & Market St., Top Shelf on 46th & Market St., The King’s Rook on Church Lane and Old York Rd., Charlie B’s on Stanton and Johnson St., the Philadelphia Clef Club on Broad & Catherine St., and many more. From weekend matinees to late-night jam sessions, these musicians carried forward the spirit of bebop, swing, and hard bop the legacy of early innovators who shaped America’s only art form recognized around the world. This amazing musical improvisation was created by enslaved African Americans during a time when nothing good was said about us. I have been working on and developing this archive of Philadelphia classical jazz music from its roots to the present day and beyond as part of preserving our American classical music. We need your support. We need your photos, your flyers and posters, your stories (etc.). It would be great for the world to see these great musicians perform 100 years from now. It would be even greater to have the backstory about their era like the liner notes on the back of an album cover. Many of the artists we recorded grew up paying just $4 or $6 to hear legends like Duke Ellington, Count Basie, and Dizzy Gillespie all in the same night. Those early experiences fueled their passion, and we have captured that passion on videotape for the world to learn from and enjoy 100 years from now and beyond. But now, time is threatening this priceless collection. Our original videotapes are deteriorating, and without immediate resources, we risk losing these priceless performances a history and cultural memory that can never be replaced. We urgently need financial support, grants, foundation backing, and community contributions to convert and preserve these recordings into lasting digital files. We also need funding for a librarian/archivist to help log, organize, and preserve this cultural treasure for future generations. This project should be as significant as the United Way, the Red Cross, and all those other initiatives deemed important. This is correct Philadelphia cultural history at its finest. We need your support. We need your photos, your flyers and posters, your stories (etc.). It would be great for the world to see these great musicians perform 100 years from now. It would be even greater to have a backstory about the era like the liner notes on the back of an album cover. LiveJazzAndBlues.com, founded March 5, 1998, was the first website of its kind, offering instant access to live jazz and blues swing, bebop, hard bop, straight-ahead, inside, outside all captured at its finger-snapping best. With your support, we can protect this living history and continue sharing crystal-clear performance videos, newsletters, and timely updates for the entire arts community. We invite every jazz lover, musician, and supporter to join our network. You will be notified when we release and post new “Jazz Legacy Stories.” Your encouragement, your memories, your photos, and your participation will help us keep our musicians’ history, spirit, and brilliance alive. They gave us everything they had. Now we have the responsibility and the privilege to honor them. It’s here. It’s live. It’s all livejazz.com. Let’s preserve the sound of our jazz culture forever. With respect and dedication, www.livejazz.com We need your support. We need your photos, your flyers and posters, your stories (etc.). It would be great for the world to see these great musicians perform 100 years from now. It would be even greater to have a backstory about the era like the liner notes on the back of an album cover. The great African ancestors inspired those musicians to create jazz music. It was during an era when everywhere and everything through mass media was designed to put down the genius of the kidnapped Africans and to make all Americans believe we had nothing to offer but hard, back-breaking labor, as if we were incapable of rational thought. Yet, the ancestors inspired those first jazz notes Africans coming together musically, creating something of undeniable genius so that the world would know and never forget the brilliance of the great African people and their ancestral homeland. From the late 1200s through the 1600s, our beautiful ancient African homeland was recognized by the rest of the world as a center of scientific learning. The sophistication of our ancestors and their contributions to humanity are undeniable. Great ancient Africans invented and created medicine, cataract eye surgery, chess, university cities, advanced chemistry and science, agriculture, wind, string, percussion, and reed instruments—over 26 musical instruments along with neurosurgery, astrology, art, and music.