Jazz Lab Dinner Sessions

Jazz Lab KC is back on the Rock Island Bridge East Patio on Monday, October 19, from 6 PM to 8 PM. It's part of the Rock Island Live series, and the format is exactly what the name says: the Dinner Sessions. You get about two hours of live jazz from the Jazz Lab KC players paired with dinner and drinks on the patio, with the Kansas River flowing right below.

If you aren't familiar with them, Jazz Lab KC is the community jazz program run by the historic Mutual Musicians Foundation. It's an open-door kind of setup where players of every skill level work up standards and arrangements alongside some of Kansas City's top jazz musicians and educators. That's the core of the whole thing—the community side of the city's jazz tradition, with newer players learning on the stand from the veterans. When they play these sessions, you're hearing that mix in real time.

The Dinner Sessions format is built around that: the music runs for around two hours, and you can eat and drink while it's going. It's an outdoor spot on the East Patio of the bridge, so you've got the river as the backdrop for the set. It's a low-key way to spend a Monday evening in the city.

Admission is free, and the music runs from 6 PM to 8 PM on Monday, October 19, at the Rock Island Bridge East Patio.