American Jazz Museum

At America’s Jazz Crossroads at 18th and Vine, Kansas City stood as one of the four major stops along the earliest jazz portals, alongside New Orleans, Chicago, and New York. During the Golden Age of jazz, the 18th and Vine Jazz District thrived as the “Paris of the Plains” and helped groom major pioneers of Kansas City jazz, including Charlie Parker, Bennie Moten, County Basie, Mary Lou Williams, and Andy Kirk. The musical foundation laid by the fathers and mothers of Kansas City jazz fostered preservation of the heritage and history of Kansas City jazz and the 18th and Vine District. Through the efforts of civic leaders, the City of Kansas City, Missouri committed resources to develop the American Jazz Museum, the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum, and the renovated Gem Theater, joined by the Horace M. Peterson III Visitor Center. The American Jazz Museum celebrates and exhibits jazz through performance, education, exhibitions, and research, has presented thousands of world-class performances through its Jammin’ at the Gem series, Rhythm and Ribs Jazz and Blues Festival, and Blue Room jazz club, and continues to offer exhibits, educational programming, collections, and community events that expand the influence and knowledge of jazz throughout Kansas City and the world.

Kansas City, Missouri · United States