Jazz Appreciation Month

In 2002, the Smithsonian Institution announced the observance of Jazz Appreciation Month (JAM) in April. Since then, on August 15, 2003, President George W. Bush signed Public Law 108-72 strongly endorsing jazz and declaring that April will be recognized annually as Jazz Appreciation Month. Although launched by the Smithsonian, JAM is a collective effort by various institutions such as the National Endowment for the Arts, BMI, the National Association for Music Education, the Ella Fitzgerald Charitable Foundation, the U.S. Department of Education and the Grammy Foundation.

JAM is intended to draw the public’s attention to the glories of jazz as both a historical and a living treasure. Its purpose is three fold: 1) to draw greater public attention to the extraordinary history and heritage of jazz; 2) to stimulate the current jazz scene and 3) to encourage people of all ages to participate in jazz–to study the music, attend concerts, listen to jazz on radio and recordings, read books about jazz and support institutional jazz programs.