BERKELEY’S JAZZSCHOOL COMMUNITY MUSIC SCHOOL APPOINTS LISA MEZZACAPPA AS EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR

MEZZACAPPA BRINGS TWO DECADES OF EXPERIENCE AS A PERFORMER, EDUCATOR, AND NONPROFIT ARTS LEADER TO THE ROLE.

December 1, 2025, Berkeley, California — The Jazzschool Community Music School in Berkeley, CA welcomes Bay Area musician, producer, educator, and arts administrator Lisa Mezzacappa as its new Executive Director. Mezzacappa assumes the role on December 5, just in time to experience the school’s fall quarter final concerts, which will feature more than 350 students performing over two weeks as part of the Jazzschool’s Adult and Young Musicians programs. These performances are part of the Youth & Adult Student Performance Series, December 5–16, a beloved tradition that celebrates student growth and community. All concerts are free and open to the public, and offer a welcoming way to experience the music students have been working on throughout the quarter. The full schedule is available at concerts.jazzschool.org.

Mezzacappa, a Berkeley resident, brings a trifecta of relevant experience to this leadership position. She is a committed educator, an active jazz performer, bandleader, and composer, and an arts administrator with more than two decades of experience in nonprofits – working in marketing and communications, development, production, and programming. Mezzacappa has worked with Stanford Lively Arts, Cal Performances, Kronos Performing Arts, the Hammer Museum at UCLA, InterMusic SF, Oakland Ballet, Headlands Center for the Arts, New Langton Arts, and Jazz in the Neighborhood, among others. She has been on the faculty at the Jazzschool for the past five years.

“I am humbled to be chosen to lead the Jazzschool in its next chapter,” said Mezzacappa, “and thrilled to be able to deepen my commitment to this extraordinary, soulful place. The Jazzschool is a vital community hub that serves as an incubator for lifelong friendships and musical relationships. It’s a place where, connected by a shared love for this great Black American art form, people from diverse backgrounds and generations hone the skills to create as jazz improvisers—and also a place where individuals learn to lead and to listen, develop confidence in their ideas and expression, and cultivate patience and presence.”

Board of Directors Chairperson Gordon C. Brooks said, “We are very excited to have Lisa join us in the leadership role of the Jazzschool as Executive Director. Lisa is an extraordinary educator, performer and recording artist in the jazz community. In addition, her varied experience as a leader in the Bay Area nonprofit arts community will benefit our organization greatly as we expand outreach and continue to build the community music school.”

Community and collaboration are driving forces behind all of Mezzacappa’s creative and professional work. In addition to teaching at Vermont College of Fine Arts and the East Bay Center for the Performing Arts, she has maintained a private bass studio for more than a decade. She was recently featured in the November issue of Downbeat and the September issue of Jazztimes.

Mezzacappa continued, “In this complex cultural moment, where our relationships are so completely mediated by screens, AI threatens real human connection and craft, and isolation has been declared an epidemic, the discipline of learning a musical instrument with others can seem poetically old-fashioned! But people need what the Jazzschool offers more than ever, and I am very excited at the prospect of growing this community of care and creativity.”

As Executive Director, Mezzacappa follows in the footsteps of Jazzschool founder Susan Muscarella, who led the organization for 26 years, and California Jazz Conservatory’s former President Nick Phillips.

About the Jazzschool

The Jazzschool, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, was founded in Berkeley in 1997 and provides music education and performance opportunities for people of all ages and abilities. Consisting of the Adult Music Program and the Young Musicians Program, the Jazzschool operates year-round on a quarterly basis, offering an array of courses, ensembles, performance opportunities, and workshops to build all aspects of musicianship. Students are frequently featured in concert performances, free to the public. With a formidable faculty of renowned musicians and educators, the Jazzschool is a cornerstone of the Bay Area’s thriving jazz community. jazzschool.org