Conversations with Steve Maun

Today we’d like to introduce you to Steve Maun.

Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
Jazz in Arizona, Inc. is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization formed in 1977 to build a jazz community in the Valley and promote jazz, America’s original art form. In 2012, we opened The Nash as a jazz performance venue and jazz education facility. We program performances at The Nash Thursday through Sunday with addtional peformances periodically on other weeknights. The perfomances include national and international jazz artists as well as local performers. We present more than 3oo performances a year.

In 2024 The Nash was closed for four months while we completely renovated the venue. We added a bar, food service, more relaxed seating and a larger stage to enhance the patron’s experience. We opened the renovated club in September 2024.

The Nash education programs focus on jazz instruction through small combos so that students can learn the skills of improvisation which is a conerstone of playing jazz music. Our programs our unique in the Valley becasue very few schools offer small group ensembles as part of the school music program. In 2024 we opened the John Dawason Jazz Education Center at The Nash, a 3,200 square-foot facility across the parking lot from the venue. The new facility was supported by a generous grant from the John Dawson Foundation. It has three ensemble rehearsal rooms. We currently have 11 student ensembles and The Nash Big Band rehearsing weekly in the Education Center. We have more than 100 students enrolled in our programs this fall, which is an increase of more than 300 percent in the past three years. The jazz club along with donations from individuals and various grants support our education and outreach programming.

Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
The evolution of The Nash has been similar to many small nonprofit organizations. We are continually seeking sufficent funding from grants and donations that supplements our earned revenue from the venue to build our capacity and become a sustainable organization. This challenge is ongoing. Obviously, the most significant recent obstacle was the Covid-19 pandemic during which we closed the performance venue for 16 months. We survived this period by relying on many government programs and generous support from the Virginia G. Piper Charitable Trust as well as support from many individual donors.

Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
I started at The Nash in August 2018 and was new to working in the nonprofit sector. Previously, I was a banking and securities regulatory and transaction lawyer for 15 years and then a commercial real estate developer for 15 years. At the time I started, The Nash was evaluating whether to renew its lease or look for a new location. My previous experience was helpful. However, our decision was deferred due to the pandemic until last year when we made the committment to our current location, rennovated the club and opened the new John Dawson Jazz Education Center. My experience with financing transactions and real estate were useful throughout the pandemic and the expansion and rennovation or our facilities.

Any big plans?
We have just completed big changes with the rennovation of the club and expansion of the Education Center. Our plans are to continue to grow our education enrollment and our outreach programming. We also want to expand our performance programming at the club. We have added Thurday Jazz Casual shows currently featuring Charles Lewis and His Trio for only $10. We added Late Night, No Cover on Friday and Saturday nights from 10 pm to midnight featuring rotating trio. Admission to the Late Night shows is free.

We are actively evaluating and pursuing upgrading our liquor license so we can offer a full bar with spirits. We currently offer wine, beer and cocktails made with low alcohol by volume products.

Pricing:

• We offer a 50% discount to all shows for studnets 25 and under

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.thenash.org
• Instagram: https://instagram.com/thenashjazz
• Facebook: https://facebook.com/thenashjazzclub
• Twitter: https://x.com/thenashjazz
• Youtube: https://youtube.com/@thenashjazzclub8432