About
Our History
Penn Jazz was formed in the fall of 1973. There had been various jazz groups on campus for the first half of the 20th century, but the first official jazz band at Penn was part of Penn Band. This incarnation was the spiritual predecessor to Penn Jazz. After its dissolution the University of Pennsylvania Jazz Ensemble--Penn Jazz--was formed.
Our Mission
Penn Jazz is the premiere jazz big band at the University of Pennsylvania. We are entirely student-run and led with the assistance of musical director Dean Schweiger. We provide performances and services for the community of the University of Pennsylvania, for entertainment as well as education.
Our Future
We hope to continue to perform with various jazz legends such as Dizzy Gillespie, McCoy Tyner, the Count Basie Orchestra, Wynton Marsalis, and Christian McBride. We aim to embody the ethos both contemporary and historical jazz performers and composers and to serve our community at Penn and Philadelphia for years to come.
Photo Gallery
Booking
Let us provide the perfect entertainment for your event!
Our musicians have extensive experience performing for a wide variety of functions, from corporate events and parties to large conferences, weddings, and concerts. Whether you need relaxing background music to set the perfect ambiance for your gathering, or an exciting performance group to put on a show for your guests, PennJazz can provide exactly what you're looking for.
Our clients are always 100% satisfied with what Penn Jazz adds to their events. We maintain a large network of highly satisfied recurring clients that frequently book us whenever they need entertainment. Check out the the testimonials below to see what people are saying about Penn Jazz.
Penn Jazz offers the best rates around. You might be wondering how we can offer such professional, experienced musicianship at a lower price than everyone else. We can because Penn Jazz consists of college students who play jazz not as a means of making a living, but as a passion that we thoroughly enjoy. And this fact takes nothing away from our members' musical talent - The exceptionally high standards of Penn Jazz's audition process ensure that our musicians are highly capable of entertaining and impressing your event's attendees.
Interested in booking or want to find out more? Send us a message through our contact section below!
Sax solo at Chris' Jazz Cafe