Jazz Art Association is a non-governmental organization dedicated to supporting and promoting jazz music. Founded in 2009 in Podgorica, the capital of Montenegro, the Association gathers together music educators and musicians and scholars experienced in promotion, communication, and education in the field.
Jazz Art aims to provide students with opportunities to acquire new knowledge and skills in the domain of jazz, and also to present this art form to broad audiences.
Starting in May 2009, the Association organized a concert series entitled “Karver Jazz Art,” drawing on Podgorica’s local jazz scene and involving young musicians from Montenegro and abroad. A total of 15 concerts were staged by the end of 2009.
An important part of Jazz Art’s work is education. Three workshops (followed by concerts) were held in 2009 with prestigious jazz educators and artists from Europe and the United States: Alma Micic (voice) and Rale Micic (guitar) from the U.S. in August; Cecile Broche (violin) from Belgium and Etienne Boyer (saxophone) from France in September; and Denise Jannah (voice) and Wolfgang Martini (guitar) from the Netherlands in October.
The above-mentioned projects were carried out in cooperation with the following partners: the French Cultural Center in Podgorica; the Netherlands Embassy in Belgrade; ZAMTES (Montenegrin Office for Scientific, Educational, Cultural and Technical International Cooperation) in Podgorica; the Art School for Music and Dance “Vasa Pavic’’ in Podgorica; the Cultural-Information Center “Budo Tomovic” in Podgorica; the “Karver” Bookstore in Podgorica; and other Montenegro-based individuals and organizations.
Starting in 2010, the Jazz Art Association has been given the honor of coordinating the annual “Jazz Appreciation Month” (JAM) held in April in Montenegro.