A new jazz series is underway this month in Congress Heights, bringing some of the most buzzed-about young musicians from around the DMV — and beyond — to the Sycamore & Oak development on the former St. Elizabeths Hospital East campus.

Jazz in the Heights kicked off earlier this month with a performance by Brandon Woody, and continues this Sunday, Sep. 29, when Baltimore-raised sibling power duo Ebban and Ephraim Dorsey take the stage in the series’s second installment.

Sycamore & Oak, a mixed-use community hub, shopping center and food court that opened last year, has partnered with the Howard Theater to present this five-part series, which will continue every Sunday through the middle of October.

Sycamore & Oak has already hosted concerts by go-go bands like New Impressionz, Junkyard Band and Sirius Company. Jazz in the Heights makes a significant addition to the DMV music community, bringing improvised music (albeit temporarily) to a neighorhood that has not had a consistent jazz venue in recent memory.

Award-winning saxophonist and educator Brent Birckhead is among the artists set to perform during the series. His setlist will include songs from his recent album, Cacao, a collection of original tunes inspired by musings and breakthroughs that he experienced over the past few years.

“The bandstand is a place of trust – or should be – so we don’t feel limitations,” Birckhead told CapitalBop.“There are moments in performances where we have to get out of our own heads because it limits the places that we can go. My goal with everybody on stage is to be limitless.”

Sycamore & Oak is supported by investments from the Emerson Collective, a combination venture capital and philanthropy firm, and the venue represents a collaboration between philanthropic partners, developers, local leaders, businesses, area residents and artists. This community-centric investment was established to support the local economy. The venue’s resources include incubator programs for developing businesses, aiming to promote economic vitality and the re-circulation of resources within the Congress Heights area. Job opportunities for residents are meant to further support local talent for a stabilized workforce. Designed by architect Sir David Adjaye’s firm, Sycamore & Oak provides an airy space that promotes engagement between performers, students and patrons.

Dr. Chelsey Green, an accomplished violinist, violist and educator, will headline Jazz in the Heights’ Oct. 13 show. Green came up playing on the U Street corridor and the go-go scene, at Bohemian Caverns and alongside D.C. legends like Mambo Sauce and the NE Groovers. She noted that Sycamore & Oak’s partnership with Howard Theater, with its historical significance to the city, was doubling her excitement to bring her Green Project to the venue. “When they called and asked if I wanted to participate with Sycamore & Oak, it was an absolute yes,” she said.

“That’s a core part of our history,” she said of the Howard.

Jazz in the Heights concludes on Oct. 20 with a performance by accomplished drummer, producer, composer and beat scientist Makaya McCraven. A widely renowned force on the Chicago scene, his impressive catalog includes a collection of memorable albums including In the Moment (2015), Highly Rare (2017), Universal Beings (2018) and most recently In These Times, all of which have garnered him widespread praise as one of the major innovators in improvised music.

The wide array of partnerships supporting Sycamore & Oak – over a dozen individual partners including Mayor Bowser’s office and local fashion powerhouse The Museum – aids in bringing multi-faceted feedback and shared ideas from diverse stakeholders. And Sycamore & Oak is laying new groundwork for connectedness in the District, which like countless places around the world experienced significant losses — personal, professional, financial and emotional — during and after the pandemic.

“Even now, I feel a level of gratitude whenever I’m playing with other people (post-COVID),” Ephraim Dorsey said. “I remember when that was taken away. Now I’m approaching this as something that shouldn’t be taken for granted. That impacts the music as well, because you come with more of a positive and grateful energy when you’re playing. And the audience can feel that too.

Sycamore & Oak is located at 1110 Oak Drive, SE, across the street from Congress Heights Metro. Jazz in the Heights shows will continue every Sunday through Oct. 20. Shows start at 5 p.m. Admission is free; more information and a pre-registering link is available at sycamoreandoak.com.

Correction: A previous version of this article misstated the role of Emerson Collective in the Jazz in the Heights series. Emerson Collective is an investor in Sycamore & Oak, but was not directly responsible for organizing the Jazz in the Heights series, which was in fact organized by the Sycamore & Oak team.

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