5 D.C. jazz picks for December 2025
Happy Holidays!
It is at last the end of one of the more turbulent years in D.C.’s recent history. If there are any current or former federal workers, contractors or folks swept up in the chaos of Washington, I hope you are staying strong and that some well-deserved holiday cheer is headed your way.
The holiday-music concert calendar is already in full swing, and there are plenty of highlights this month. Two classic big band affairs will be the Smithsonian Jazz Masterworks Orchestra’s holiday blowout on Dec. 13, and D.C. jazz elder trombonist Bobby Felder’s annual holiday show on Dec. 20 at Wesley United Methodist. If you want to branch out to variations on the holiday theme, I would look to Amy K. Bormet’s “Holiday Freak Out!” with her trio on Dec. 16 at Blues Alley. Heidi Martin is also promising “A Jazzy Father Christmas” with her ensemble at the Kennedy Center’s Millennium Stage on Dec. 27. And annual traditions abound, like Herm Hopkins “Frosty the Soulman” ode to wintertime specials on Dec. 15 and Veronneau’s annual “Snow Time” residency on Dec. 18 and 19 (all happening at Blues Alley).
Those looking to dig out of the crush of tinsel and snow-themed tunes have plenty of options too. Howard alumna Shacara Rogers takes the stage at Songbyrd for an all-too-rare-these-days headline show on Dec. 14. Bela Fleck and the Flecktones are in town at Strathmore that same night, bringing their particular mix of improvisation rooted in bluegrass, jazz and everything in between. For those seeking other angles of the music, there’s the duo of Mark Cisneros and Nik Francis — billed as “Space-Fire-Truth” at Rhizome on Dec. 15. Enterprising saxophonist and bandleader Brad Linde is back at Rhizome a week later with his Bleak Midwinter Ensemble, with the duo of Zoë Jorgenson and Parker Speirs opening.
Finally, keep a look out for CapitalBop’s annual year end list highlighting the best jazz albums to come out of D.C. musicians in 2025. For all your live jazz needs, consult the full D.C. jazz calendar and have a happy holidays and Happy New Year. We’ll see you back here in 2026.
DREAM FEEDER
Sunday, Dec. 7, 7:30 p.m.
Palisades Hub (tickets)
[view on calendar]
Dream Feeder is a still relatively new trio of saxophonist Brad Linde, a master of arrangement and imagination, guitarist Nelson Dougherty and drummer Keith Butler Jr. (the latter two of the much-praised ¡Fiasco!). The group focuses on original, ambient-tinged compositions contributed by each member. They released a debut album, everything at once, in 2024 and are preparing a second release for 2026.
The trio will preview music from its forthcoming second album at this show.
CATALYTIC SOUND FESTIVAL
Sunday, Dec. 14, 6 p.m.
Rhizome (tickets)
[view on calendar]
Catalytic Sound is a creative music cooperative that aims to build economic sustainability for musicians through its artist-owned streaming platform and music festival. Featured artists at the D.C. edition include:
Silt Remembrance and Angelica Sanchez – Bassist Luke Stewart is a force to be reckoned with. He is constantly seeking ways to draw new sounds out of the upright bass, making it scream and squeal and march with power, precision and fluidity. In his Silt Remembrance Ensemble he brings together members from his Remembrance Quintet (Jamal Moore on reeds and percussion and Daniel Carter on alto saxophone and trumpet) and Silt Trio (Brian Settles on tenor saxophone and Chad Taylor on drums). The product is a synthesis of Silt’s more avant-garde, post-bop sound and Remembrance’s dreamy and meditative experimental approach, exemplified in their 2025 album, The Order. They’re joined by avant-garde pianist Angela Sanchez.
Alex Hamburger – Alex Hamburger grew up in D.C., playing with friends and bandleaders in the mid-2010s. After some time away, the flautist, vocalist and composer returned to the District in 2021. Her original music is always full of emotional weight, yet remains immediate and approachable. Her 2021 debut quartet album And She Spoke pays homage to forebears that pioneered space for other women in the arts while her 2023 album What If? channels her contemporary bop style through airy Flora Purim-esque melodic sensibility and the palette of modern electronic jazz.
Disclosure: Stewart is CapitalBop’s artistic director and Hamburger is our managing director. Neither had any input into the writing or selection of this listing.
SARAH HUGHES
Saturday, Dec. 20, 7 p.m.
Takoma Station Tavern (tickets)
[view on calendar]
Saxophonist and multi-instrumentalist Sarah Hughes has an expansive sound that floats between blues, modal and free jazz. A potent improviser with ears that amplify her creativity, Hughes is as likely to light up a club with serious swing as she is to delight audiences with thunderbolts of free expression. Her comfort across styles makes her music rare and exciting.
Here, she makes her Takoma Station debut as a bandleader.
BEN WILLIAMS
Sunday, Dec. 25, 8 p.m.
The Hamilton Live (tickets)
[view on calendar]
Bassist and composer Ben Williams is one of the District’s star ex-pats, often appearing on bandstands with New York City’s elite (think Pat Metheny, Terence Blanchard, Stefon Harris … the list goes on). Williams’ own sound as a leader is always evolving, and finds him showcasing new combinations of traditional and contemporary strains of jazz with his impressive instrumental facility and confidence.
While Williams started out in more traditional jazz realms, over his last two albums – 2020’s I AM A MAN and this year’s Between Church and State – he’s expanded his musical voice, not only singing, but also incorporating elements of electronic and contemporary jazz similarly embodied by the electrified soul of Robert Glasper’s Black Radio projects and Terrace Martin’s hip-hop jazz fusions.
Here, he performs his annual birthday bash and holiday concert.
THE COOKERS
Wednesday, Dec. 31, 7 and 9 p.m.
Kennedy Center – Terrace Theater (tickets)
[view on calendar]
This septet is mostly comprised of what you might call musicians’ musicians: pianist George Cables, saxophonists Billy Harper and Donald Harrison Jr., trumpeters Eddie Henderson and David Weiss, bassist Cecil McBee and D.C. native drum master Billy Hart. Each member is a veteran of the hard-bop scene, and all are considered legends in their own rights. But somehow, public prominence has escaped them. The Cookers is a group that in recent years has tried — and generally succeeded — to restore their place in the public eye.
The group anchors the Kennedy Center’s annual “Jazz New Year’s Eve” programming.
Some text based on new calendar listings by Tait Manning and previous calendar listings by Giovanni Russonello.
DC, DC jazz, jazz, Washington
