Oct 13 Tuesday
Lori Matsukawa is known to most households in the greater Northwest as a longtime journalist and anchor of Seattle’s NBC affiliate, KING 5. She also has a new book "Being There: A Memoir of an Asian American Journalist", and she’ll talk about those experiences, moderated by KNKX/NPR’s Lisa Brooks. Presened by ASUPS Student Programs/Lectures. More information here.
Oct 07 Wednesday
Sponsored by KNKX. Now in its 38th year, the Earshot Jazz Festival returns in October with performances, premieres, and workshops at more than a dozen venues across the city, showcasing esteemed Pacific Northwest resident artists alongside internationally renowned masters in a celebration of Seattle’s vibrant jazz scene.
In honor of the centennial of John Coltrane and Miles Davis, this year’s festival reflects on their enduring legacies while spotlighting the artists shaping jazz today and into the future.
This year’s lineup includes Dianne Reeves and Branford Marsalis, Gary Bartz and NTU Troop, Jun Ida, Jessica Lurie, Zaccai Curtis, Julian Lage, Kiefer, Christian Sands, Warren Wolf, Sasha Berliner, Fonville x Fribush and much more!
Oct 04 Sunday
Sponsored by KNKX. October is Tacoma Arts Month, featuring a wide variety of arts and culture events, programs, and exhibits for all ages all around Tacoma, some of which are free. There is something for everyone to enjoy: music, dance, and theater performances; hands-on experiences; cultural events; visual art exhibits; literary readings; workshops; and film screenings.
All you have to do is choose what you want to enjoy. Take this opportunity to experience something new as we celebrate Tacoma’s cultural community!
Sponsored by KNKX. This festival is more than just a concert series. It is a dynamic, living conversation where sound, story, and visual art intersect. During the Festival, BIMA's Frank Buxton Auditorium transforms into a creative studio, a place where jazz musicians, storytellers, and visual artists come together to explore and celebrate the many facets of jazz. At every show, each artist brings their own unique voice, honoring jazz’s deep roots and its ever-evolving future.
Whether you attend a single event or immerse yourself in the full month-long experience, you’ll discover a vibrant tapestry of music, culture, and storytelling that showcases jazz’s timeless appeal and its power to inspire across generations and communities.
The 2026 line up:🎶Camila Ferrari| Oct 2🎶METTA Quintet | Oct 8🎶Afrocop| Oct 9🎶Jun Iida | Oct 16🎶Greta Matassa Group | Oct 17🎶Jazz with Jim: Great Musicians We All Need to Know | Oct 22🎶Pearl Django | Oct 24Family Day: Jazz Edition | Oct 25
Learn more: https://www.biartmuseum.org/events/within-earshot-jazz-festival/
About Earshot JazzEarshot Jazz dedicates itself year-round to cultivating a vibrant, diverse jazz community—championing artistic innovation, honoring the rich history and integrity of the genre, and fostering meaningful connections between musicians and audiences through the annual Earshot Jazz Festival.
Oct 06 Tuesday
Presented by KNKX. Throughout their storied 43-year history, the Yellowjackets have recorded 26 albums, won 2 GRAMMY's and received 16 GRAMMY nominations – performed countless sold-out tours, and enjoyed worldwide critical acclaim and commercial success.
The Yellowjackets formed in the late 1970’s as the backup band for guitarist Robben Ford. They recorded their first album together in 1980.
The most recent addition to the band adds Australian bass player Dane Alderson in to the mix. With his exceptional rhythmic sensibility and natural disposition toward groove, Dane brings a new energy to the band and adds a youthful approach to the music.
Their album Jackets XL with the WDR Big Band was nominated for a GRAMMY in 2021. Their latest album Parallel Motion (2022) also received a GRAMMY nomination for Best Jazz Instrumental Album and is a true testament to the longevity and resilience of a band who debuted over 40 years ago. Consistently reinventing themselves through elevated instrumentation in their signature electro-acoustic soundscape, the current lineup showcases a collective at their prime.
Sponsored by KNKX. This year’s upcoming Bellevue Jazz & Blues Music Series returns to downtown Bellevue for a five-day celebration of incredible live performances. Experience the vibrant sounds of jazz and blues as an exciting lineup of local and national talent takes the stage, bringing the community together through music in the heart of the city.
Headliners:JAZZ OVERHAULFriday, October 9 at 7:30 p.m.Meydenbauer Center Theatre
Lady ASaturday, October 10 at 7:30 p.m.Meydenbauer Center Theatre
Established in 2008, the Bellevue Jazz & Blues Music Series is a cultural and community event that attracts national artists, showcases regional talent, and draws diverse audiences. Headlining artists are selected in collaboration with John Gilbreath, executive director of Earshot Jazz.
Past featured artists include Branford Marsalis, Booker T. Jones, Shemekia Copeland, Poncho Sanchez, Dianne Reeves, Bill Frisell, Charles Lloyd, Terence Blanchard, Hubert Laws, Mingus Big Band, Spanish Harlem Orchestra and Seattle Repertory Jazz Orchestra.
Oct 09 Friday
Join our always-entertaining, 6'7" (in heels!) Austrian host Manuela Horn for three days of authentic German food, ice-cold German beer served in traditional steins, lively oompah music and dance, and family fun! Plus, when the sun goes down, the Pacific Northwest's top party bands keep the Festhalle rocking.
From the ceremonial keg tapping and Wiener Dog Races to the Stein Dash 5K and late-night singalongs, there's something for everyone. Whether you're a longtime fan or experiencing Oktoberfest Northwest for the first time, there's never been a better year to join the celebration.
Prost to 21 years in Puyallup—we'll see you in the Festhalle!
The Dungeness Crab Festival is dedicated to celebrating the cultural heritage and maritime traditions of the Dungeness region. Our mission is to foster community engagement, support local businesses, and provide an enriching, educational, and enjoyable experience through our annual festival and related events. We strive to promote sustainability, economic growth, and a sense of unity within our community, honoring the legacy of the Dungeness crab and the natural beauty of our region.
CrabFest is a free, three day event held in downtown Port Angeles, Washington each October. Our festival is always held the same weekend as Canadian Thanksgiving, which falls on the second Monday of October. CrabFest hosts approximately 12,000 visitors each year, with about 4,000 coming across on the Black Ball Ferry Line from Victoria, British Columbia.
The event is a mostly outdoor festival, held rain or shine - and it can get a little damp on the Washington coast in October! It's a great weekend to pack your favorite rain boots. Festival activities include free live music, a vendor market showcasing 75+ amazing artisan and resale vendors, fun activities for the kids, a live Search and Rescue demonstration (Saturday afternoon, schedule permitting), free tours of a United States Coast Guard boat, beer and wine garden, and of course - food! We sell a festival crab dinner, which is the favorite for visitors, but also host many local restaurants with their best seafood specialties for sale as well as a few food trucks and other outdoor food vendors.
Oct 10 Saturday
Sponsored by KNKX. One Ticket, Fifteen Venues, Sixteen Bands - One night of outstanding Americana music!
Featuring: Greenwood Music Collective, Steve Aliment, Annie O'Neill, Nathan Kolke, Dean Snavely and the Haystack Hootenanny, Reggie Garrett, Christine Gunn, Chase Rabideau, Great American Trainwreck, Everlovers, Abby K., Chris Klimecky, jean mann, Michael Bauer, Greg Ensminger, Willow & Wood, Amy Laybourn Band, Casey Freedom, Jake Bergevin, EJ Bergevin, Ranger Sciacca, Dave Stewart, Mike Sciacca, Mick Nicholson, Jeffrey Moose, Birch Pereira and the Gin Joints, and more!
Presented by KNKX. A pioneering force in contemporary jazz. With influential albums like Sonic Creed (named Jazz Album of the Year by WBGO – the world's #1 jazz station) and Urbanus (GRAMMY-nominated), Stefon Harris & Blackout showcase a dynamic interplay of intricate arrangements and soulful improvisation, solidifying their status as trailblazers in the modern jazz landscape. Their performances promise an electrifying fusion of tradition and innovation, leaving an indelible mark on audiences and further shaping the evolving narrative of jazz expression. They recently released Sonic Creed II: Life Signs (Motema Music), which is the highly anticipated sequel to their critically acclaimed album, Sonic Creed.
Stefon Harris is also an educator, app developer, and thought leader. He has taught at universities throughout the world, led curriculum development at the Brubeck Institute, served as a part of the jazz faculty at New York University, and formerly served as the Associate Dean and Director of Jazz Arts at Manhattan School of Music. He is currently Artistic Advisor of Jazz Education at the New Jersey Performing Arts Center (NJPAC), the Director of the Harmony Lab at Express Newark, and a tenured Associate Professor of Music at Rutgers University, Newark.
Harris has been heralded as "one of the most important artists in jazz" (Los Angeles Times) and is a recipient of the prestigious Doris Duke Artist Award and the Martin E. Segal Award from Lincoln Center. He has been named Best Mallet Player eight times by the Jazz Journalist Association and Best Vibes Player in DownBeat Magazine's Critics Poll. Harris currently tours with his Grammy-nominated band, Blackout, and has released eleven albums as a leader. He has also recorded and performed with The Classical Jazz Quartet, Kenny Barron, Ron Carter, Lewis Nash, the SFJAZZ Collective, Joe Henderson, Wynton Marsalis, Milt Jackson, Lionel Hampton, Herbie Hancock, Wayne Shorter, Bobby Hutcherson, Cassandra Wilson, Diana Krall, Max Roach, Chaka Khan, Kurt Elling, Buster Williams, Dianne Reeves, Common, and Pablo Zeigler.
Oct 15 Thursday
Supported by KNKX. The combination of the Delvon Lamarr Organ Trio (DLO3) and powerhouse saxophonist Karl Denson (leader of Karl Denson's Tiny Universe) is a dream pairing of pure, unadulterated soul-jazz, funk, and vintage groove.
Delvon Lamarr Organ Trio, or as it is sometimes referred to, DLO3. Specialize in the lost art of "feel good music." The ingredients of this intoxicating cocktail include a big helping of the 1960s organ jazz stylings of Jimmy Smith and Baby Face Willette; a pinch of the snappy soul strut of Booker T. & The M.G.'s and The Meters; and sprinkles Motown, Stax Records, blues, and cosmic Jimi Hendrix-style guitar. It's a soul-jazz concoction that goes straight to your heart and head makes your body break out in a sweat. Live, the band's fiery and intuitive chemistry is unstoppable, brimming with improvisation, instant composition, imaginative takes on classic tunes, and a booty-shaking back catalog of soulful gems.
Joining Delvon Lamarr as a special guest is Karl Denson (leader of Karl Denson's Tiny Universe). Who just celebrated their 25th anniversary as a band.
KDTU has electrified audiences around the world from the fields of Naeba in Japan at the infamous Fuji Rock Festival to the hallowed stage of Madison Square Garden where they previously joined the Dave Matthews Band and The Godfather of Soul, James Brown. From performing as Sexual Chocolate (Karl was in the original band in the movie Coming To America and its sequel) at the Outside Lands Music festival in San Francisco, to being the first late night act at the inaugural Bonnaroo festival, KDTU have been a dominating force in music for the past 25 years.
Oct 19 Monday
Sponsored by KNKX. From the author of Demon Copperhead and The Poisonwood Bible comes a new novel about the choices that shape a life—and the ones we spend a lifetime trying to outrun. Join Barbara Kingsolver for an evening about love, art, the long reach of the past, and Partita—her new novel.
In Partita, Livia Cable has made her peace with her marriage and modest livelihood in the farm country where she grew up, until a shocking phone call from an old lover shakes her to the core. Decades earlier, this man knew her as Livia Bohusz, a music conservatory student estranged from her home and family, uncertain of anything except her passion for music and promise as an extraordinary pianist. His request, now, to see her again stirs up ghosts she’s kept at bay for a lifetime.
Shifting between past and present, Livia’s decision to meet or reject the reunion means confronting step by step, in memories framed as musical dances, the experiences of childhood loss, abandonment, self-immolating passion, and perilous attachment to a man who broke her belief in love and ruptured the course of her life.
With razor-sharp acuity and deep affection, Pulitzer Prize winner Barbara Kingsolver’s unforgettable new novel reflects on class barriers, the risks of ambition, and the timeless power of art and how it can transform a life.
