In 1950, Philip and Stephanie Barber opened the Music Inn, a groundbreaking home for jazz and blues nestled among the barns and outbuildings of the Wheatleigh estate. This unlikely venue drew legendary Black jazz performers—John Lewis, Dizzy Gillespie, Max Roach, Oscar Peterson, Kenny Dorham, and others—many of whom also served as faculty-in-residence at the Lenox School of Jazz, a vital center of the genre’s avant-garde. In The Jazz Barn, author John Gennari writes that the Barbers’ vision became pivotal to public understanding of the music’s African roots, its folk properties, and its place in American life and culture. This special event combines an author talk with a performance by Ron Ramsay’s Berkshire Salon Series, exploring the history and enduring legacy of the Music Inn and Lenox School of Jazz, and the profound influence of Philip and Stephanie Barber on the cultural life of the Berkshires—and beyond. For this special performance, Ron will be joined on stage by Samantha Tallora on vocals, Benny Kohn on jazz piano, Charlie Tokarz on woodwinds, and Eileen Markland on fiddle.