Sarasota Jazz Club wants a building of its own

This year’s Sarasota Jazz Festival has three mainstage events from March 12-14 at the Sarasota Municipal Auditorium. It’s a slimmed-down affair compared to some previous years. But don’t read too much into that observation, because festival producer Jazz Club of Sarasota is in expansion mode.

During the 2025-26 season, the Jazz Club will host no less than 70 affordable events from Labor Day to Memorial Day, at venues such as Florida Studio Theatre’s John C. Court Cabaret, the Sarasota Art Museum and Unitarian Universalists of Sarasota.

In August, the Jazz Club hired veteran Sarasota arts administrator Danielle La Senna as its first development director. That in itself was an announcement of sorts. In addition, the Jazz Club recently moved into new offices at 2000 Webber St.

A recent visit to the well-appointed space outfitted by the previous tenant found office manager Jane Doernberg manning the phones, La Senna updating her database and Jazz Club President Ed Linehan working on the next five-year plan, for 2027-32.

When we first spoke with Linehan in 2024, the retired school administrator from New Haven, Connecticut, had announced his plans to retire as Jazz Club board president, a volunteer position, after five years in the post. But life had other plans.

After stepping away from Jazz Club activities to care for his wife, noted jazz singer Synia Carroll, who died in March 2025 at the age of 67, Linehan has decided to stay on as president, with the support of his board.

During a recent speech at an Arts Advocates luncheon at the Sarasota Yacht Club, Linehan revealed that the Jazz Club’s next five-year plan includes acquiring or building a permanent home for performances.

It seems like every arts organization in Sarasota wants a building of its own. The nonprofit Jazz Club, founded in 1980 to support and preserve jazz in Sarasota, is no different.

“We want to have more control over our schedule. Right now, we can only play FST’s Court Cabaret on Monday because that’s the dark night. We usually sell out right away because there are only 100 seats. Don’t get me wrong. We’re grateful to FST, but we need our own venue,” Linehan says during the interview.

At the Jazz Club’s monthly Jazz at SAM series on the Michael and Marcy Klein Plaza at the Sarasota Art Museum, artists perform al fresco in front of audiences that approach 500, with 160 seated and 300 standing. But some patrons seated in the VIP area often talk during performances, Linehan notes.

That wouldn’t have happened during one of Carroll’s shows. “Synia knew how to get people to stop talking,” Linehan says about his late wife, who spent many years as a teacher. “She would walk over to their table, look into their eyes and make them feel like they were at the only table in the room,” he says.

In honor of Carroll’s significant contributions to the Sarasota jazz scene, a donor has stepped up to endow a scholarship in her name that will be awarded by the Jazz Club to a young musician.

Carroll’s passing isn’t the only loss recently sustained by Linehan and Sarasota jazz fans. One of the last gigs master clarinetist and sax player Ken Peplowski played before he died at age 66 on Feb. 2 was presented by the Jazz Club of Sarasota at Holley Hall.

In the Sarasota jazz world, one is always conscious that this may be the last chance to see a concert featuring one of the greats. 

Still, this generation has staying power. Dick Hyman, a celebrated jazz pianist who has long been associated with the Sarasota Jazz Festival, recently turned 99.

As he eyes opportunities for expansion, Linehan is conscious, as are his peers in other live arts such as opera, ballet and classical music, of the pressing need to cultivate the next generation of patrons. Oddly enough, some think the rise of AI and digital overload could remind us of the value of experiencing art in person with fellow humans.

With the young crowd in mind, Linehan makes a pitch to spread the word about the high caliber of the Florida All State High School Jazz Band, which is performing at the Sarasota Jazz Festival.

The band is on a double bill on Thursday, March 12, with trumpeter Terell Stafford, the Sarasota Jazz Festival’s music director and director of Jazz Studies at Temple University. “These kids are really great, for musicians of any age,” Linehan says.

In addition to the March 12 concert, there will be two other mainstage concerts at the Sarasota Auditorium during the jazz fest. On March 13, the John Pizzarelli Trio and Sammy Figueroa share the bill while Arturo Sandoval and the SRQ All Star Band light up the stage on March 14.

Whether it was during his career as a school administrator or his retirement job as an arts administrator, Linehan has spent a lot of time thinking about attendance. The Municipal Auditorium, where seats are temporarily arranged in rows, isn’t ideal, he says. Also, there’s no alcohol, which can be a deal-breaker for jazz fans who want to sip a cocktail while they groove with the band.

Having to deal with such restrictions is another reason Linehan wants a dedicated venue. That won’t be possible without a generous donor, which is why La Senna was brought on board. 

But in a town where donors get their names inscribed on buildings, printed in concert playbills and broadcast at performances, Linehan wants to be sure volunteers get recognition too.

Jazz Club of Sarasota’s jam-packed season wouldn’t be possible without volunteers, Linehan says. “These are the people who make it happen and we’re grateful to them,” he says.

Of course, for most Jazz Club volunteers, checking in patrons is a labor of love. They get to see jazz for free.

Who are these local luminaries? There are too many to list, but Scotty Wright, Mauricio Rodriguez, Michael Ross, Eddie Tobin, Stretch Bruyn, Barbara King, Hot Club SRQ, Thomas Carabasi and La Lucha are just some of the regulars.

These performers can be seen for as little as $15 if one is a Jazz Club member, often with no food or drink minimum. The $60 ticket price for the Sarasota Jazz Festival’s mainstage concerts may be daunting for some, but Linehan promises good bang for the buck.