Saturday March 14th - 6:00pm | VIP door 5:15pm, General door 5:45pm
Sunset Club - 1021 University Street, Seattle, WA 98101
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Join us for an unforgettable evening at the Sunset Club as we gather for the Seattle Repertory Jazz
Orchestra’s 2026 Gala Fundraiser. Enjoy a spectacular night of music, sumptuous cuisine, fine wine, and
spirited community as we raise vital support for SRJO’s next decade of artistic excellence.
This year’s gala features Seattle’s own Sara Gazarek, acclaimed jazz vocalist, educator, and member of
the Grammy Award–winning quartet SAJE. Joining Sara will be our Artistic Director and saxophonist
extraordinaire Michael Brockman leading the SRJO rhythm section. This year is especially meaningful as
we honor Michael Brockman in his final year as Artistic Director.
You’ll also hear our Jazz Scholars combo students and enjoy a curated silent auction in the elegant,
historic Sunset Club.
Last year’s gala sold out in advance—make your plans now. We can’t wait to see you there!
Parking Details: Sunset Club parking included with VIP tickets. Guests may park in the modestly priced
Virginia Mason lot across the street from the venue at Terry & University.
Guest Artist - Sara Gazarek
Born and raised in Seattle, 2× GRAMMY Award®–winning and 6× GRAMMY®-nominated jazz vocalist Sara Gazarek has become one of the most distinctive and expressive artists of her generation. The Los Angeles Times called her “a singer who may well turn out to be the next important jazz vocalist.” With collaborators that include Fred Hersch, Billy Childs, Kurt Elling, and many others, and with six acclaimed albums released by the age of 40, Gazarek has earned an international reputation for her fearless artistry and emotional depth.
She tours widely as both a soloist and bandleader, and as co-founder of the vocal collective säje, whose debut album won GRAMMY Awards® in 2024 and 2025 for Best Arrangement, Instruments and Vocals. A 2023 Chamber Music America New Jazz Works recipient, Sara also serves as a National Trustee of the Recording Academy and works as an Associate Professor of Jazz Voice at the Eastman School of Music at the University of Rochester, where she designed and now leads the school’s new jazz voice program.
Her full-length nonet project, expanding on her EP Vanity, is scheduled for release in Fall 2026.
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Photo by Lauren Desberg
Master of Ceremonies - Abe Beeson
Abe grew up in Western Washington, a third generation Seattle/Tacoma kid. It was as a student at Pacific Lutheran University that Abe landed his first job at KNKX, editing and producing audio for news stories. It was a Christmas Day shift no one else wanted that gave Abe his first on-air experience which led to overnights, then Saturday afternoons, and started hosting Evening Jazz in 1998.
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At the end of 2015, just as the campaign to save 88.5 began, Abe debuted his modern jazz show The New Cool. Saturday afternoons from 3 to 5 p.m., you can hear 21st-century jazz inspired and informed by the sounds of today: hip-hop, & funk, Electronic music and punk rock — the future of jazz has arrived.
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Abe serves on the board of SRJO and we're thankful he's returning once again as our gala Master of Ceremonies!