Preservation Hall Music Outreach Program

Another aspect of Preservation Hall’s ongoing mission to preserve and perpetuate New Orleans’ rich musical heritage is EDUCATION.

To donate to this wonderful cause, please click the "Donate" button below. You will be taken to the Jazz and Heritage Foundation's website. Under "Area of Support", please select: "Preservation Hall Education Initiative."

As with all great musical traditions, New Orleans Music is passed from generation to generation, often to children at a young age:

“From the day I was born, I have been in the company of musicians. My father Allan was a tuba player and my mother Sandra played piano. It was their appreciation for New Orleans Jazz that first brought them to New Orleans in 1960. They found a community that embraced family, a unique cultural history and diversity. In 1961, they converted a small art gallery in Preservation Hall, a space where local retired and aging musicians could play; it became a natural extension of New Orleans – it became its own neighborhood. Here, musicians, artists and patrons often brought their children and grandchildren to receive the same love and respect they would amongst their own family members. As a child, I felt like I had dozens of grandparents watching over me, answering my questions, reprimanding me when I was bad and teaching me an appreciation of music and life. We wish to SHARE that sense of community, life and music that is an inseparable part of New Orleans and integral part of Preservation
Hall. “ -Ben Jaffe, Creative Director

Developed in 1997, the Preservation Hall Music Outreach Program is an ongoing program for qualified music students under the age of 18. Student musicians are required to take private one-on-one lessons on their respective instruments with Members of the Preservation Hall Jazz Band. These musical Mentors teach the students the fundamentals of the New Orleans Jazz Tradition with an emphasis on group improvisation, rhythm and repertoire. This unique program affords serious music students the opportunity to witness and experience the mechanics of being a professional musician in an environment, which encourages and prioritizes the living Tradition.

For more info on The Preservation Hall Music Outreach Program, please email us outreach@preservationhall.com