Kansas City Jazz Orchestra

Riff Generation is a 10-member ensemble that spends their year-long residency collaborating and creating new jazz tunes based on a riff in the Kansas City Style. This ensemble has allowed more performance opportunities for more musicians, including musicians who may not have been trained in the common Euro-Centric style. This series allows KCJO to engage more local musicians and develop new audience members. Musicians audition for a one-year residency and perform these works for audiences. Beginning in the 2024-2025 Season, Riff concerts will be performed at KC PBS through our new partnership.

The Kansas City Jazz Orchestra firmly believes that familiarity and understanding are the first steps to love and appreciation. We offer a variety of educational events and materials, created and led by our incredible musicians and our guest artists. Groove N' Learn is an engaging and interactive way for elementary-middle school students to learn about, and develop a life-long love for jazz music. A trio of KCJO musicians play fun tunes during school lunches through Jazz Cafe as a way to bring jazz music into kids' everyday life. KCJO musicians also go into schools to teach individual or groups of music students about jazz and/or their instruments. The last three summers KCJO has partnered with local summer camps. In summer 2024, we visited 19 locations and reached an estimated 2,000 students.