What is Metuchen Jazz


Metuchen Jazz is a program of Friends of Metuchen Arts (FOMA).  But it is really more than that.  It includes people planning jazz events for the people of Metuchen and surrounding areas and volunteers who help make it happen. Metuchen Jazz becomes all-inclusive as it involves those people who attend the events and support them.  This may be done by making a donation or becoming a member of Friends of Metuchen Arts.

In 2017, Lynne Mueller and Bob Diken began the journey of adding live jazz events to the programming of Metuchen Arts Council and building a jazz fan base in Metuchen Borough. It started with a jazz concert at a Junebug Art Festival when Conrad Herwig Quintet performed. This led to the Jazz Festival at Metuchen High School with Arturo O’Farrill and the Afro Latin Jazz Orchestra being the headliner.  Thereafter, jazz brunches at The Greek on Main restaurant were presented periodically, and the Cornerstone Series began as Sunday afternoon once-a-month concerts at the Old Franklin Schoolhouse.  These concerts are now presented at the Metuchen Library in association with the library.  The name Cornerstone was used to evoke the memory of the Cornerstone Restaurant in Metuchen which was known as a respected jazz club in central New Jersey where many great jazz artists performed in the 80’s until it closed in the late ‘90’s.

The annual jazz festival has continued each year.  In 2021, it was moved from the Metuchen High School to the Plaza in downtown Metuchen and became the Central Jersey Jazz Festival – Metuchen, joining with other central Jersey communities, including New Brunswick, Somerville, and Flemington.

In 2021, during the time of the Covid pandemic, a live streaming Jazz Education Series was coproduced with New Jersey Jazz Society.  Speakers included Ricky Riccardi, Sandy Josephson, Frank Basile, Will Friedwald, Tammy Kernodle and David Hajdu.  Separately, also as a jazz educational piece, saxophonists Peter and Will Anderson created a superb video about Louis Armstrong -- partially funded by a grant from Middlesex County Board of Commissioners to Metuchen Arts Council. All these videos are available for viewing in the Metuchen Jazz archives.

In 2022, International Jazz Day was celebrated with the Mike Lee Quartet performing in the Community Room of the Metuchen Library and was co-produced by Friends of Metuchen Arts (FOMA) and Metuchen Library.  This association between FOMA and Metuchen Library has continued to grow.  A concert honoring Metuchen High School Band Director John Messenger and his Quartet was held outdoors on the Library grounds in June and in November, Scott Robinson Quartet performed as part of the Cornerstone Jazz Series in the Library. A new event “Jazz Night in the Parlor at Hailey’s Harp and Pub” at 15 Station Place provided jazz in an intimate setting reminiscent of “speakeasy” days.  Harry Allen Trio performed.

In 2023, the year began with a showing of the Great Day in Harlem Jazz Documentary film at the Metuchen Public Library and included an interview of bassist Kenny Davis who worked for Art Farmer, one of the musicians in the photo and also the movie. For year 2023, the Metuchen Public Library and Metuchen Arts Council applied for and received grant funding for a series of 4 concerts from the Middlesex County Board of Commissioners through a grant award from the Middlesex County Cultural and Arts Trust Fund.  As part of this grant funding, Kenny Davis Quartet performed in a concert on March 12.th. Another outstanding jazz event was presented by the Parlor at Hailey’s when the Anderson Brothers Quartet performed on Valentine’s Day to a full house.   NEA Jazz Master and Drummer Billy Hart Quartet is scheduled to perform at the Library on April 30, International Jazz Day as the second of the four concerts funded by the Middlesex County Board of Commissioners.

The amazing performers who have performed as part of Metuchen Jazz are really an all-star lineup of both local and international talent:

Conrad Herwig Quintet, Gene Bertoncini Trio, Arturo O’Farrill and the Afro-Latin Jazz Orchestra, Mike Neer Steelonius Band, Metuchen High School Jazz Ensemble, Metuchen High School Jazz Band, Jerry Weldon Trio, Alexis Cole Trio, Terell Stafford Quintet, Andrea Brachfeld and Insight, Westerhoff School of Music Jazz Band, New Brunswick Brass Band, Don Braden Quartet, Winard Harper and Jeli Posse, Nicki Parrott Quartet, Matt Kane Quartet, Bruce Harris Band, Akiko Tsuruga Quartet, Mark Gross Quartet, Sylvia Cuenca Quartet, Marcus Printup Quintet featuring Riza Printup, Bobby Sanabria and Ascensión featuring Jennifer Jade Ledesna, Mike Lee Quartet, John Messenger Quartet, Harry Allen Trio, Alejandro Ataucusi & Forbidden Tropics, Scott Robinson Quartet and Kenny Davis Quartet.

METUCHEN JAZZ TEAM

  • Lynne Mueller

    Lynne Mueller is a jazz event planner who, with more than 30 years of jazz event and concert production experience in New York City, enjoys bringing great jazz to the Metuchen community. Since 2017 she has been at the forefront of planning jazz festivals and concerts in Metuchen, including Metuchen Jazz Festival, Central Jersey Jazz Festival – Metuchen, the Cornerstone Jazz Series, as well as, Jazz Brunches at the Greek on Main, the virtual Jazz Education Series and the new “Jazz Night at Hailey’s Parlor.” She currently serves on two Boards in Metuchen: Friends of Metuchen Arts - where, as a founding member, she is Vice President and Secretary and responsible for “Metuchen Jazz” and Friends of the Metuchen Library. Lynne is a long-time resident of Metuchen and a member of St. Luke’s Church. Her first career was at Colgate-Palmolive Co., in research and development and project management. She has a B.S. degree in biology from Valparaiso University.

  • Bob Diken

    Bob has been a long time resident of Metuchen where he resides with his wife Joann. Prior to his retirement, Bob was a managing Director at Marsh & McLennan Companies in NY. After retiring Bob became interested in pursuing his interests in the arts, both on a personal and at the civic level, with a desire to engage with the community on projects which would make an impact on in the Borough. He currently serves on the Metuchen Arts Council as an Advisor. As an artist Bob creates paintings and ceramic sculpture and is the owner of Basecamp Studio & Gallery. Bob received his BA in Economics from Kings College in Wilkes-Barre, PA.

  • Noel Cohen

    Born in Rochester, New York, Noal Cohen has spent his life involved in both science and music. He earned a B.S in Chemistry from the University of Rochester and a Ph.D. in organic chemistry from Northwestern University. After 27 years as a research chemist at Hoffmann-La Roche, Inc. in Nutley, New Jersey, he retired in 1994 and since then has devoted his time to studying and documenting jazz.

    In 1997, in collaboration with musician, librarian and archivist Michael Fitzgerald, Cohen began a book project involving the saxophonist, arranger and composer Gigi Gryce. This effort led to the publication in 2002 of “Rat Race Blues: The Musical Life of Gigi Gryce” (Berkeley Hills Books) which won the 2003 award for Best Research in Recorded Jazz Music from the Association for Recorded Sound Collections. An updated second edition of the book was published in 2014 under the Current Research in Jazz imprint (www.gigigrycebook.com).

    Cohen also became involved in discography and publishes the detailed discographies of many notable jazz musicians which are available at www.attictoys.com. He contributed to the discography of the noted trumpeter Art Farmer found at www.artfarmer.org.

    Cohen has written liner notes for albums and contributed articles to several jazz journals. He has participated in educational residencies in New York City and elsewhere.

    Although a longtime resident of Montclair, New Jersey, Cohen has recently served as a consultant to Friends of Metuchen Arts regarding jazz events.