A ‘Singer’s Singer’ Takes the Hinton Hall Stage: MTSU’s Jazz Artist Series Opens Oct. 22
Some of the best live music in Murfreesboro happens in a room many residents have never visited: Hinton Music Hall, inside the Wright Music Building on the MTSU campus. On Thursday, October 22, at 7:30 p.m., the university's School of Music opens its 2026-27 Jazz Artist Series there with pianist and vocalist Jody Nardone.
Who is playing
Nardone arrives with the kind of resume that makes other musicians nod. He is known in jazz circles as a singer's singer and a first-call player, and he has worked with Brian Setzer, Jackson Browne and Larry Carlton, among others. He has played the Grand Ole Opry with The HercuLeons, has led his own trio for two decades, and is the newest member of the Alison Brown Quintet, a group that appeared on a Steve Martin album that topped the Billboard bluegrass chart in 2025. He has also just joined the MTSU School of Music faculty, which makes this something of a hometown debut.
He will be backed by MTSU jazz faculty: Don Aliquo on tenor saxophone, Miles Damaso on drums, Jack Aylor on bass, and Jamey Simmons, the university's director of jazz studies, on trumpet. Simmons called Nardone a local treasure with a national reputation, and said that putting faculty on stage shows students what a creative life in music can actually look like.
Tickets, parking and a free warm-up
Tickets are $10 for the public and free for MTSU students, faculty and staff with university ID. Area band students and music educators can ask the jazz studies office about discounts. The hall is at 1439 Faulkinberry Drive, and the university posts a campus parking map for evening visitors.
🎟 Reserve tickets to Jody Nardone at Hinton Music Hall »
If you want to hear how the music is made before you hear it performed, Nardone is giving a free public masterclass at 4:30 p.m. on Monday, October 19, in Room 101 of the Saunders Fine Arts Building, 629 Normal Way. Masterclasses are aimed at students, but curious listeners are welcome, and they are one of the best free cultural hours in town.
The rest of the season
The series continues on February 15, 2027, with guitarist Nir Felder, and builds to the MTSU Illinois Jacquet Jazz Festival on April 3, 2027, a full day of school and university ensembles, jam sessions and clinics capped by an evening headline concert. The festival is dedicated to the memory of tenor saxophonist Illinois Jacquet.
For a city that often looks up the interstate for its night out, a $10 seat for faculty-level jazz is a strong argument for staying put. It fits neatly alongside the Tennessee Philharmonic's 45th season and the roots music coming out of MTSU's own radio station. For more ideas, see our local's guide to things to do in Murfreesboro.
Details are from MTSU's School of Music as of October 10, 2026; check the university's jazz series page before you go.
Image: illustrative, AI-generated – not the actual location.
