Fairfax musician Mario Guarneri has been playing jazz since he began his teens. At 13 years-old, he sat in on trumpet with the great Louis Armstrong during a concert at the University of California at Berkeley. Now 71, Guarneri has made jazz his living and his lifelong passion. He has travelled the world playing with orchestras and quintets, playing on film soundtracks, and teaching others his craft as a music teacher at the San Francisco. But for all his experiences, that one life-altering day playing alongside Armstrong made all the difference.

1. Marin County Musician Brings
Jazz To The Neighborhoods

2. Fairfax musician Mario Guarneri has
been playing jazz since he began his
teens. At 13 years-old, he sat in on
trumpet with the great Louis Armstrong
during a concert at the University of
California at Berkeley. Now 71, Guarneri
has made jazz his living and his lifelong
passion. He has travelled the world
playing with orchestras and quintets,
playing on film soundtracks, and
teaching others his craft as a music
teacher at the San Francisco. But for all
his experiences, that one life-altering
day playing alongside Armstrong made
all the difference.

3. Now, as the Marin Independent Journal
reports, Guarneri is trying to give that
same type of experience to a new
generation of musicians and music
lovers through his nonprofit, Jazz in the
Neighborhood. The nonprofit looks to
pair fledgling musicians with
experienced professionals so that they
have the opportunity to “learn on the
bandstand.” It is a time-honored tradition
in jazz that Guarneri had with Satchmo,
and his wishes to pass on to young
people today.

4. Jazz in the Neighborhood is about
education, but it is also about
awareness. While the artform of Jazz is
still being highlighted in the area by big
events such as SFJAZZ, the
community-based side of the music is
being pushed out by gentrification. Local
clubs, like Jazz at Pearls, are being
forced to close their doors due to rising
rents, and Bay Area and nearby Marin
County have few places to play.
"SFJAZZ attracts name musicians from
outside the Bay Area," Guarneri says.
"They seldom involve local musicians,
who have very few opportunities to
perform in the Bay Area." This cuts into
the opportunities for musicians to play
and make a living. That is why in the 35
Jazz in the Neighborhood events that
have been held over the past few years,
the organization has been been able to
solicit donations on behalf of local

5. musicians to the tune of $20,000. While
he knows that it is not enough to pay
most musician’s bills, it is a start.