Jazz Isn’t Dead, It Just Has a Dominican Accent

Jenn C 04/21/2025

Chandler Jazz Festival

I just got back from my first jazz festival in Arizona, five full days of live music, good vibes, and a crowd that was just as immersed in it as I was. Jazz hits different in so many ways. It’s not just music you dance to or casually listen to, it’s a language that makes you slow down and pay attention. While popular music often moves in the background, jazz demands your focus. It invites you to listen deeply, to appreciate each instrument, and the years of dedication it takes for musicians to master their craft. It’s about the concentration required to create harmony, while still letting each artist’s personality and style come through the music.

Somewhere between a sax solo and a standing ovation, I found myself asking that familiar question: Is jazz really dying? But as I stood there, surrounded by people enjoying the local bands and closing their eyes to block out distractions and focus on the sound, the answer became clear. Jazz isn’t dead—it just speaks different languages now. And in that moment, I could hear one that sounded a lot like home.

The Soundtrack of My Roots

Growing up in the Dominican Republic, jazz wasn’t exactly blasting at the colmado (neighborhood grocery store). We had merengue, bachata, palo… music made for dancing, music that moves through your body like a heartbeat. But the deeper I dive into music (especially now, living in Arizona) the more I realize jazz has always been there. Not loud and flashy, but in the roots of our rhythm.

Guys like Michel Camilo mixed jazz and merengue like they were made for each other. Even Juan Luis Guerra, in all his romantic bachata glory, sneaks in jazzy chords and swing that you can feel more than hear. That blend? That fusion? That’s jazz living and breathing through Dominican music.

Jazz Travels—Just Like Us

Jazz was born in New Orleans, but it never stayed in one place. It was nomadic—moving through Cuba, Brazil, Africa, Europe, and yeah, the Dominican Republic too. Just like me. Just like so many of us... And honestly, that’s why I relate to it so much. Jazz adapts. It listens. It blends. It survives. It’s improvisation and heart. It’s what we do as Dominicans living abroad—carrying our roots while learning to move to a new beat.

Living in Arizona is wild sometimes. The desert feels nothing like the island. But at the jazz festival in Chandler, I felt connected in a way I didn’t expect. The music didn’t just remind me of home—it reminded me that home is layered. Sometimes it sounds like a güira. Sometimes it sounds like a trumpet solo. And in that moment, I realized jazz didn’t die. It just took a detour through the Caribbean, picked up some sabor, and kept it moving.

✈️ My Nomadic Roots

This is why I started MyNomadicRoots.com. To share how I experience the world as a Dominican living in a place that couldn’t be more different from where I started. And to find the little things—like music—that remind me we’re all more connected than we think.

Jazz is alive. And sometimes, it even speaks with a Dominican accent.