Northern California’s Wine Country is about to lose one of its small but increasingly important places to hear live jazz.
The final night will be a Sonoma Jazz Jam Session — a fitting send-off for a room that helped give local musicians and visiting players a place to perform, listen and sit in with one another.
In a farewell announcement, Parkside said it had spent its run “pouring wine, sharing food and creating a space where people could come together and enjoy live music.”
“We are especially grateful for our partnership with Sonoma Valley Jazz Society for providing the best of the best music acts,” the Parkside team wrote.
The nonprofit has presented jazz in Sonoma Valley since 1989, with a broader calendar that also includes concerts at Sonoma Plaza, Sebastiani Theatre and its seasonal Jazz at the Barn series.
The closing comes just as Parkside was expanding its role in Sonoma’s music ecosystem.
Earlier this month, the venue launched a new artist-in-residence program with Sonoma State University’s jazz studies program. The series was designed to give student musicians opportunities to lead their own groups and perform in front of a live audience.
The Parkside closure is also part of a changing North Bay live music landscape.
Last year, Blue Note Napa ended its nearly decade-long run at the Napa Valley Opera House, closing on New Year’s Eve 2025. The 150-seat club had become a destination for jazz and soul artists including Chris Botti, Kenny G., Carlos Santana and Stanley Clarke before moving on from its longtime downtown Napa home. Blue Note’s operators said they were pursuing a new venue in San Francisco while continuing larger outdoor concerts in Napa Valley.
Oso, the Sonoma restaurant next door to the Parkside, is also scheduled to close that day after 12 years.
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