“Keeping the music of Duke Ellington and Billy Strayhorn alive and swinging…” Novel Jazz is a group of Maine-based musicians with over two centuries of collective musical experience performing swinging jazz from the Great American Songbook. This year, 2025, marks the 21st anniversary of the band. Through regular trips to the Duke Ellington Collection at the Smithsonian Museum as well as the Strayhorn Collection at the Library of Congress, Washington, D.C., the band has collected and arranged selected works from these two prolific composers. Concerts include both the music plus the rich history behind each piece and Novel Jazz audiences include jazz lovers of all ages, dancers, classical music enthusiasts, big band/traditional jazz lovers, and people interested in the history of jazz. Come support some of Maine’s finest musicians tonight! The band is under the leadership of Barney Balch.