On Saturday, Indiana University Jacobs School of Music’s Student Jazz Ensemble’s music echoed through the halls of the First Congregational Church of Ann Arbor, marking the start of the two-day-long 2025 A2 Jazz Fest. The event, held at multiple venues, was free to the public and consisted mostly of Michigan-based jazz musicians and groups.
Founded in 2016, the jazz fest aims to celebrate the Ann Arbor jazz community and help cultivate musical education. On Saturday, Sean Dobbins, Jacobs School of Music music professor, led a free student workshop with help from bassist and Michigan State University junior Laura-Simone Martin. On Sunday, Rob Bickley, Ann Arbor jazz musician and private music lesson teacher, led a second student workshop. Those who attended either workshop could perform what they learned in front of a live audience.
In an interview with The Michigan Daily before the festival, Dave Sharp, Blue LLama Jazz Club artistic director and A2 Jazz Fest founder, said their team strives for community-based educational opportunities and giving people the chance to perform in front of a live audience.
“I’m looking forward to continuing the educational programs and involving more (members of) community of all ages,” Sharp said. “I’m also looking forward to giving groups an opportunity to play to a living audience. Which is kind of one of the main things we try to do — to have it be where people are listening to the music and it’s not in the corner, it’s not a background thing.”
The First Congregational Church of Ann Arbor hosted the student workshop and the first three performances of the A2 Jazz Fest: the student ensemble from Jacobs School of Music, the Laura-Simone Quartet and the Rick Roe Trio. The rest of the Saturday night performances, the Kenji Lee Fortune-Teller Quartet, the Aya Sekine Group and Arnold/Jassi/Kramer were held at The Ravens Club.
On Sunday, the Jeff Haas Quintet and Theo Croker played at the church, while Jesse Kramer, a local Ann Arbor musician, closed the festival with a jam session at the Ravens Club.
In an interview with The Daily, Martin said she first learned about the festival through fellow musician REDWOOD.
“My freshman year I had a gig here, in Kerrytown,” Martin said. “My friend and pianist, REDWOOD, had her band and she called me for it and that’s when I met everybody here at A2 and I was like, ‘Wow, that’s so cool. I would love to play here!’ And now, two years later, I’m lucky enough to headline.”’
Martin said community is fundamental to jazz.
“Jazz is community, really,” Martin said. “It’s all an oral tradition that’s only possible by learning from others and teaching people and passing it on. This music wouldn’t even be a thing if there wasn’t a community, and there wasn’t that communal yearning for growth and expressing yourself.”
Martin said serving as a mentor to youth interested in music, both in an internship and at the A2 Jazz Fest, was incredibly rewarding.
“It’s honestly inspiring, because just a couple years ago I was in their exact shoes,” Martin said. “So it’s cool to now be on the other side and help them and encourage them. Like I said before, that’s what jazz is all about. Each one, teach one. Passing on everything that you learn and everything your teachers told you.”
Engineering sophomore Alain Zhou decided to attend the festival after walking by the church. Zhou told The Daily he enjoyed watching the mentorship from professional music educators during the student workshop.
“I think this music event is different because there were the workshops,” Zhou said. “It was interesting to see the professor interacting with the students and giving pointers, and also it’s a way for non-jazz listeners to understand a little bit more. It’s not just the students who are learning, but also the audience learning with the students.”
In an interview with The Daily, Anna Gersh, administrative director of the A2 Jazz Fest, said the A2 Jazz team has been working to enhance their educational offerings by forming partnerships with the Ann Arbor Hands-On Museum, the Michigan Firehouse Museum and the Refugia Festival. Gersh said she believes gathering with others to experience a shared interest is the most valuable aspect of community events.
“It’s really important for us to gather around something that we all can appreciate and have a meaningful human connection to.” Gersh said. “I believe these kinds of localized community opportunities help people desire those kinds of things.”
Similarly, Martin said it is more crucial now than ever to be part of events like this one.
“I think what we need now more than ever is community,” Martin said. “(We need) other humans spreading joy and being happy and being together in a positive light.”
Daily Staff Reporter Mya Weiss can be reached at [email protected].
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