JJA 2025 Jazz Hero Ruth Griggs, president of the Northampton Jazz Festival, received her Award plaque from member Bonnie Johnson (of WICN, Worcester) in the company of 2024 Heroes Eugene Uman and Eisa Borrero (of the Vermont Jazz Center) at the Northampton fest’s headline presentation on Sept. 27 — a concert by New York Voices at the Academy of Music in Northampton, MA.

Monte Belmonte and Kaliis Smith, hosts of The Fabulous 413 on New England Public Media, talk with Ruth Griggs, President of the Northampton Jazz Fest about the 2025 festival.

Listen to the Podcast (This segment starts at 34:06)

You know your jazz festival isn’t “missing a beat” when Downbeat Magazine — considered by many as the best jazz magazine in the world — pays attention to you.

“Mention the word ‘festival’ to jazz fans and chances are they’ll first think of legendary annual events at Newport, Monterey, Chicago, Detroit, New Orleans, Montreal or Montreux. However, quality jazz festivals take place in a variety of lesser-known locales as well. Although these festivals are smaller in scale, they can pack plenty of quality musicianship into intimate, comfortable surroundings — and create memorable experiences for jazz aficionados,” wrote Terry Perkins in the introduction to her article entitled “Northampton Jazz Festival: Small Town, Big Jazz Heart.”

For local pianist Stephen Page, the Northampton Jazz Festival serves the community both artistically and culturally.

“Festivals like this are important so that people experience the vitality of jazz music. It transforms everyday reality into a creative form of conversation,” he said in a recent interview with The Republican.

New York Voices headline Northampton Jazz Fest, culminating two days of live music, Sept. 26 & 27

by Carolyn Brown September 12, 2025, Daily Hampshire Gazette

This year’s headliner will be New York Voices, a vocal jazz quartet that began as an ensemble at Ithaca College, at the Academy of Music on Sept. 27 at 7:30 p.m. After nearly 40 years together, the group is embarking on their farewell tour, “The Grand Finale,” which includes their performance in Northampton.