The New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Foundation purchased 1225 N. Rampart Street – the former Tharp-Sontheimer-Laudumiey Funeral Home – in 2008. After extensive planning, the foundation determined to use the space as the first permanent home of its free education program, the Don “Moose” Jamison Heritage School of Music, which has operated on local university campuses since its inception in 1990. The building will house many of the Foundation’s other programs while also serving as a community arts center.

The Jazz & Heritage Center is named in honor of George Wein and his late wife Joyce, the pioneering festival producers who helped to launch the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival. Read about George and Joyce Wein.

We expect this facility – which is located at the gateway to the Tremé neighborhood – to give a major boost to the cultural and economic development of not only Tremé, but to our entire city.

Don Marshall, Executive Director, New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Foundation

After nearly two years of renovations, the building features seven classrooms (including dedicated labs for piano and drums) and a 200-seat performance hall. All rooms are wired to a central control room for audio and video recording. The building also has interactive video projection for distance learning and special presentations.

The nearly $9 million project was funded with more than $3 million in contributions from various sources – including George and Joyce Wein, the Goldring Family Foundation, ArtPlace (a consortium of major national foundations), the Louis Prima and Gia Maione Prima Foundation, the Ella West Freeman Foundation, the Helis Foundation and the State of Louisiana. A large number of individuals, local and national foundations also contributed to the Foundation’s Capital Campaign. The remainder of the project’s costs were self-financed by the Foundation.

Musical equipment makers donated large numbers of instruments and other gear for the facility, including: Fender (bass guitars, bass amplifiers and guitar amplifiers), Shure (microphones), Yahama (drums), Casio (keyboards), Zildjian (cymbals) and D’Addario (strings).

Renting The George and Joyce Wein Jazz & Heritage Center

The George and Joyce Wein Jazz & Heritage Center is our education and performance facility. We make the Center available for rent to outside groups for events on a limited basis, when they do not conflict with our own programming.

 If you would like to rent the Jazz & Heritage Center for an event, please complete our Venue Request Form. We will review the information and will let you know if we can accommodate your event and the rental fee.