Northampton Jazz Hero
Massachussetts
Ruth Griggs is the Executive Director of the Northampton Jazz Festival, a non-paying gig that she claims is “hands down, the best job I ever had.” A native of Northampton. She spent 30 years as a marketing whiz in New York City before moving back to her hometown, where since 2017 she’s helped rejuvenate the fest in ways adding vitality to this vibrant, artistically engaged community.
Ruth’s strategic vision is closely tied with that of the Northampton Jazz Workshop – she works hand in hand with its programming guru, pianist Paul Arslanian, an influential decision- maker on the Festival board. Activities of the Festival are intentionally inclusive and feature a wide range of age groups, demographics, and stylistic options. The Northampton Jazz Festival emphasizes outreach to local schools and attracting audience members who could benefit from unfettered access to the arts.
Ruth sees herself as a “consensus builder” and this comes shining through in the way that the organization is run. She trusts the “wise people who have experience,” and strategically molds the Festival as “a democratic organization where everyone’s voice matters.” The Fest relies on dozens of volunteers, its board of directors and a separate advisory board. Programming includes a Jazz Strut featuring local talent, a Jazz Film Night, a Jazz Artists in the Schools (JAITS) program, a high school art competition that generates posters promoting the Festival, and numerous free events where jazz music is integrated with local culture. It all culminates in a ticketed concert with world-class headliners such as Ron Carter, Anat Cohen, Camille Thurman and Sullivan Fortner.
Griggs is a serious music aficionado – she was raised in a home surrounded by jazz. Her mother was a jazz vocalist, and her husband Rich Fontana, who passed away in 2010, was a gigging jazz pianist. Making the Northampton Jazz Festival a red letter occasion that unites her community through the lens of the music’s message and legacy, Jazz Hero Ruth Griggs and her cohort honor, preserve and advance the jazz spirit.
— Eugene Uman
2024 JJA Jazz Hero
Vermont Jazz Center
