Meet Khris Dodge: Executive and Artistic Director of The Tucson Jazz Festival
Dec 31, 2025 11:00AM ● By Suzie Agrillo
Khris Dodge. Photo credit: Lucas Walker
Tucson’s vibrant jazz scene owes much to the vision and dedication of Khris Dodge, the executive and artistic director of the HSL Properties Tucson Jazz Festival. A longtime Tucson resident and accomplished musician, Dodge has helped shape the city into a destination for jazz lovers by bringing world-class artists together and nurturing local collaborations that keep the music alive year-round.
I moved to Tucson in the early ’90s to study music at the University of Arizona.
I play piano and I still play professionally a lot. I have a master’s degree in percussion performance, so I can play any percussion instrument out there, from something melodic to banging on a tin can. I spent 20 years playing as a principal percussionist for the Arizona Opera.
When did you become the director of the Tucson Jazz Festival?
Funny story. In February 2020 and one month later, the earth shook. The COVID epidemic made our work extremely challenging. The first couple of years doing this job were rough. But we persevered and have come out on the other side pretty positively.
By holding a festival and bringing the best artists to Tucson during a concentrated time frame, we attract local jazz fans as well as people who travel here from around the country. We have purposely designed the festival to be attractive to both locals and out-of-towners and we’ve seen the numbers that indicate we’ve become a legitimate destination festival.
A secondary part to that is sometimes jazz can be scary for some people who haven’t listened to it before. By exposing people to jazz, people see, hear and realize it’s just another form of expression. In doing so, the Tucson Jazz Festival has also helped birth other collaborations, like the Century Room at Hotel Congress, which is presenting jazz five days a week now. We have created a symbiotic relationship where we help each other out—a rising tide raises all ships.
Bringing people together. I love the transformative power of music. It speaks a universal language that everyone understands and it’s a unifying force. We have enough things in the world that tear us apart. Music brings the community together in a constructive way.
My mentor in college, Shadrick Blair, told me, “If you’re not part of the solution, you’re part of the problem.” He was an optimist and it’s amazing what a positive mentor like him can do for our lives.
It depends on what I want to accomplish. One of my favorites is Clair de lune by Claude Debussy, a composer from the 1800s. I also listen to everything from the jazz greats, Broadway musicals, operas and hard rocking classic rock—basically anything that’s done well, performed by great artists.
The list is too long. Of course, I like the legends like Miles Davis, John Coltrane, Ella Fitzgerald and Louis Armstrong, but I am also a big fan of the younger generation of artists today. There is no shortage of great musicians to listen to.
I conduct the Tucson Pops. These performances provide free access to music for the whole community. I do some seminar teaching when I have the time. I’m also a member of the Rotary Club of Tucson and I serve on the boards of several nonprofits.
I can say this. The festival will present a diverse mix of live jazz. All of the artists are well curated and every artist meets the highest standards—the best of the best. If you’re a long-time jazz aficionado, you’re going to love it. If you’re a first-timer and have some trepidation about going to a jazz festival, you’re also going to love it because you’re human and you have a soul. Jazz will resonate with you and open your mind to possibilities you never knew existed before.
Several come to mind: “It’s not exclusive, but inclusive, which is the whole spirit of jazz,” Herbie Hancock; “What we play is life,” Louis Armstrong; “Life is a lot like jazz—it’s best when you improvise,” George Gershwin; and “Where words fail, music speaks,” Hans Christian Andersen.
For information on the upcoming Tucson Jazz Festival, including dates, locations and tickets, visit TucsonJazzFestival.org or follow the festival on social media @TucsonJazzFest. See ad, page 8.
Suzie Agrillo is a freelance writer in Tucson and a frequent contributor to Natural Awakenings Magazine. She focuses her writing on the arts, inspirational people and the human connection. Connect at [email protected].
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