Common Chord and the Bix Beiderbecke Jazz Society are excited to announce a merger of the two organizations. After years of close partnership, Bix Society programs will officially join Common Chord’s suite of programs. The historic Bix Jazz Festival will benefit from Common Chord’s capacity and staff, as well as broadening the Festival’s reach to the more than 50,000 community members Common Chord serves annually and to the untapped audiences of the Quad Cities community.
The merger will preserve the core mission of the Bix Society—“to perpetuate the music and memory of Bix Beiderbecke and music of the traditional jazz era”—while joining Common Chord’s broader mission to improve the Quad Cities through the power of music. The programs will be guided by the newly formed Bix Society Advisory Board, a committee of volunteers who are passionate about building a strong future for the Bix Jazz Festival and Youth Band.
“This partnership ushers in an exciting new era for Bix’s legacy, traditional jazz, and the Quad Cities community,” said James Beiderbecke, board member of the Bix Jazz Society and great-grandnephew of Bix Beiderbecke. “Uniting with Common Chord allows opportunity to explore new programs, events, and ambitions for a bright future. Together, we will fulfill our mission to an even greater extent. Bix Lives!”
“Common Chord is delighted to provide a new home for the Bix Jazz Festival and Bix Youth Band,” said Tyson Danner, Executive Director of Common Chord. “Through our close partnership, we have found perfect alignment in our missions. We are eager to bring Common Chord’s skills to the table to carry forward the proud history of the Bix Jazz Society.”
The organizations extend a special thanks to The Cultural Trust, a core mission supporter of Common Chord which is providing support for this special collaborative effort. “For nearly two decades, The Cultural Trust has invested in deeply-rooted institutions like Common Chord because we believe in the power of experts doing what they do best,” said Jen Lewis-Snyder, President & CEO of The Cultural Trust. “When we strengthen the people and places already trusted by the community, we don’t just preserve what’s worth saving, we build the systems that keep it thriving. Innovative solutions like this are perfect examples of how our Legacy Partners think creatively, creating more impact in our community while dissolving barriers that otherwise might hold the Quad Cities back from being the creative capital of the Midwest we know it can be.”
Please visit CommonChordQC.org/bix for more information. We will report on the 2026 Bix Fest in upcoming issues of TST. – from press release
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