Jazz in July kicks off with rooftop performances

The IU Art Museum was swinging on Friday with the smooth sounds of jazz.

More chairs had to be brought in to accommodate everyone who made it to the first installment of the 19th annual Jazz in July concert series.

At 6:30 p.m. every Friday in July, the Art Museum will present a different jazz ensemble to perform for free.

The festival kicked off with a performance by the Bloomington-based OffRamp Quartet, which played both classic and original songs. While all the members of OffRamp have played Jazz in July in different ensembles, this was the quartet’s Jazz in July debut.

As they prepped their set list before the show, the band was concerned about the weather.

“I’m worried about the humidity,” said Nate Johnson, OffRamp saxophone player and Jacobs School of Music alumnus.

But the humidity did not stop the band from performing a full show of acoustic jazz on the museum’s terrace. OffRamp featured a vibraphone, tenor and soprano sax, bass and drums that filled the hot summer day with jazz melodies for two sets.

The rest of the series will feature jazz ensembles from the Midwest.

On Friday, blues, jazz and swing band Craig and the Crawdads will play, and harpist Jan Aldridge Clark will perform July 24.

Bloomington musicians Monika Herzig, Carolyn Dutton and Tom Roznowski will wrap up the series July 31 with songs by Cole Porter and Bloomington native Hoagy Carmichael.  

The concerts themselves are emceed by WFIU radio hosts Joe Bourne of “Just You and Me” and David Brent Johnson, the host of “Night Lights,” both jazz music programs.

Johnson calls Bloomington a “hip jazz town.”

“This program is a venerable Bloomington jazz tradition,” Johnson said. “The Art Museum always does a great job of picking diverse and forward jazz groups.”

In addition to the concerts, the Art Museum is exhibiting a special display in Art of the Western World gallery called “Modernist Soundscapes,” a collection of visual art that was inspired by the rise of popular music in the early 20th century. The exhibit is open from 5 to 8:30 p.m. during Jazz in July Fridays.

“It’s just a great time,” Johnson said. “It’s free, out on the terrace, and, sure, it was hot, but really laid back. Really, a beautiful thing.”