Saturday,
September 26th
Metuchen
5:30pm to 9:45pm
Festival is FREE – no advance registration is required.
Join us for a fun evening! Doors open to Metuchen High School at 4:30pm.
For More Information
Metuchen Jazz (team) presents jazz events once a month (except July and August) for the people of Metuchen and surrounding communities.
Metuchen Jazz is a Program of Friends of Metuchen Arts.
Friends of Metuchen Arts (FOMA) is organized to present events, offer programs and provide financial support for the growth of art in all its forms…..a non profit 501 (c)(3) corporation operating exclusively for art and educational purposes.
FOMA gallery / office is located at 315A Main Street in Metuchen and is open on Wednesdays from 6 to 8 PM and Sundays from 1 to 3 PM. Come visit!
To learn more about Metuchen Jazz and Friends of Metuchen Arts, please visit http://www.friendsofmetuchenarts.org. Become a member! Volunteer!
Metuchen Arts Council is a Commission of Metuchen Borough at 500 Main Street, Metuchen and supports/produces arts projects in Metuchen.
Both Metuchen Arts Council and Friends of Metuchen Arts (FOMA) have contributed to help make Middlesex Jazz Festival 2026 in Metuchen successful.
Grant funding has been provided by the Middlesex County Board of County Commissioners through a grant award from the Middlesex County Cultural and Arts Trust Fund.
Our Approach
Our approach to the jazz festival in Metuchen is one of “community inclusion. The Festival in Metuchen starts with “A Celebration of the 75th Anniversary of Peanuts Comic Strip” presented by Metuchen Dance Center and the Metuchen High School (MHS) Jazz Combo. This is followed by Metuchen High School Jazz Ensemble (big band) with Band Director John Messenger. The Metuchen High School Chamber Orchestra conducted by Chris McEwan joins them. Then the 7 – piece band “AAPI Jazz Collective led by trombonist Peter Lin” is next. The headliner event is “Sherrie Maricle and The DIVA Jazz Orchestra” with 15 musicians.
The jazz festival in Metuchen is a collaborative effort between Friends of Metuchen Arts (FOMA) and Metuchen Arts Council (MAC). MAC is a Commission of the Metuchen Borough and, every year, MAC receives a limited budget from the Borough for its events. FOMA is a 501 (C) 3 nonprofit organization which fundraises for all kinds of arts events and also produces events on its own, specifically Metuchen Jazz and has recently started Metuchen Classical. FOMA helps provide additional funds to Metuchen Arts Council for its projects and to other arts organizations and individual artists through a Grant Program. Friends of Metuchen Arts (FOMA) has its home with art gallery at 315A Main Street in Metuchen across the street from the Forum Theatre. FOMA open hours are Wednesday from 6 to 8 PM and Sunday from 1 to 3 PM.
You are invited to Metuchen! Experience great jazz, fabulous restaurants and small-town friendliness. It’s been called the “Brainy Borough” since the 1900’s in recognition of all the artists and writers who have called Metuchen “home.” Metuchen was honored to receive the “Great American Main Street Award Winner in 2023. Yes – a Big Deal! Come and see why!
Saturday’s Schedule
Visitors to the Middlesex County Jazz Festival – Metuchen may enter the Metuchen High School building at 4:30 pm and enjoy something to eat in the Cafeteria. Auditorium seating begins at 5:00pm. The Festival is scheduled to begin at 5:30pm and end at 9:45pm.
| 5:30 – 6:00pm | Welcome and Metuchen Dance Center Celebrate Jazz Tap |
| 6:00 – 6:45pm | MHS Jazz Ensemble (Big Band) with John Messenger, Director and MHS Orchestra with Christopher McEwan, Director |
| 7:00 – 8:00pm | Dave Schumacher & Cubeye 7 Piece Band |
| 8:15 – 9:45pm | Mingus Big Band based in New York City |
