A CALL FOR HELP FROM NEW ORLEANS

Since a Stay At Home order was declared in Louisiana, Preservation Hall Jazz Band’s Ben Jaffe has been performing “Keep Your Head Up” every evening and filming it on Instagram Live. While the song encourages resilience, the truth is the band’s musicians could use a little help.

Jaffe, who is also Preservation Hall Foundation’s creative director, says, “The doors at Preservation Hall are closed for the foreseeable future and our 60-member Musical Collective is facing great uncertainty. We’re focusing all of our attention towards caring for our musicians in helping them weather the crisis.”

The Legacy Emergency Relief Fund will provide grants to the Hall’s Musical Collective to help with living expenses resulting from loss of work due to the coronavirus.

The Musical Collective performs more than 1,500 concerts at Preservation Hall, serves over 30,000 students through numerous education and community engagement activities and performs globally at major music festivals, theaters and performing arts centers throughout the year.

In New Orleans, Jaffe has been encouraging his neighbors to to participate in the daily “Keep Your Head Up” performances by opening windows, hanging out on porches and backyards, and making musical sounds.

Last summer, Preservation Hall Jazz Band did a version of “Keep Your Head Up” with the rapper Pell.