Jazzresistance

Some of you probably remember how at the end of 2020 we told you about the birth and formation of our beloved 32 Jazz Club? However, a lot has changed since then, hasn’t it? Our club, together with you, survived not only a terrible pandemic, but also plunged into a new and terrifying reality of war. So now it’s time to tell our new story, gradually recalling all the important things that happened to us recently.

It is our team’s personal pride that we were able to fully restore operations just 2 months after the start of a full-scale invasion! Already on April 23, 32 Jazz Club held its first concert under new conditions! Since that day, every month we transfer 20% of the profit from the tickets sold by us to well-known and reliable charitable funds – “Return Alive” and “Serhiy Prytula Charitable Fund”. For the sake of you and our victory, we relentlessly continue to do our work and are infinitely grateful to everyone who helped us in this and continues to do so!

And here it is impossible not to mention the incredible charity concert of Arigato Japan, which gathered more than 30 talented musicians in the cozy walls of 32 Jazz Club in the spring! In the same period of time, we hospitably met our distant friends from Germany – Uli & Alexandra Hanke. From both beautiful concerts, all the money was transferred to support the army! It was undoubtedly a significant event that we will remember for a long time.

When thinking about supporting our activities, a unique offer from the Jazz Foundation of America that we received in the fall immediately comes to mind. By the way, this is the first time in the entire history of the existence of this fund, when they decided to support someone outside the USA! So from now on, they will directly help turn our dreams into reality, which means even more attention to the Ukrainian jazz scene!

But the war continues, and this story will continue with it. For example, right now an important battle is being fought on the cultural and informational front! Of course, we are talking about the online auction from the Stockholm Women’s International Jazz Festival, which takes place until the end of February! The painting “Peace” by Jenny Svenberg, which is also the official image of this year’s festival in Stockholm, was exhibited to raise funds for the support of our culture. We are extremely grateful to our partners for such an initiative and invaluable help!

Of course, none of us dreamed of ever finding ourselves in these life conditions. But we certainly all believe in the best! So, in conclusion, I would like to recall the words from the music of the Cameroonian artist Etienne Mbappe, which came from the smiling mouths of the visitors of the New Jazz In Kyiv Band concert last week. “Musango Na Wa” literally translated from the Zulu language – “Peace be with you”! To be continued…