A Jazz Scene Unseen: The Cantab Lounge

Monday, April 4, 2011

The Cantab Lounge

"Down Home Dive"

Price: Cheap ($5 cover charge)
Age restriction: 21+
Location: Cambridge
Accessibility: All ages that apply are welcome.

Your average local dive bar, the Cantab Lounge's pretty 40's style awning truly shows off the clubs age. Established in the 1930's, Cantab has always been know for its cheap cash bar and great live music. Like many of the older jazz clubs in Boston, Cantab is small in size but large in musical pleasure.

Cantab is the spot for college students who want a few drinks and excellent live music. The music acts vary from local jazz and bluegrass musicians to funk bands and the occasional Berklee School of Music student gigs. There are two levels of the Cantab Lounge, the main floor is where the cash bar and regular nightly entertainment take place while the basement is used for private parties and poetry slam nights. A very versatile venue, Cantab hosts various themes each night. Poetry slam nights, Bluegrass night (Cantab's specialty), Afrikaans night (Berklee kids), and other great live acts on the weekends.

The only thing missing at Cantab is food, there is no food served at Cantab, in fact, the club encourages its guests to "BYOF," Bring Your Own Food.

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Project Thesis

For our project, we chose to profile the Boston Jazz Scene "unseen" and restricted to a major demographic in Boston: college students. Our original idea had been to profile an authentic historically significant jazz club but we found that we would not be able to do so given that it was a 21 and over institution. We then looked to other places and again were restricted by an age limit. And it was not just the age restrictions that act as barriers of entry to the Boston Jazz Scene for college students. It is also accessibility defined by prices of food/drink, tickets, cover charge, and location. We began our research profiling individual institutions to piece together the Boston Jazz Scene; investigating as to what a venue has to offer including but not limited to elements such as ambience and exposure to jazz music. After research, we then compile these individual profiles to communicate to everyone (though particularly geared toward college students) information that may pique their interest in visiting these characteristically individualized places in order to experience the Boston Jazz Scene.