Let’s be real here, Chatswood and its north Sydney surrounds have never really been associated with cool. Corporate HQs and HSC cramming colleges yes; chilled out jazz lounges for the night cats  … not so much.

But that’s been changing of late, thanks to the intimate cabaret-seated space of The Lounge at The Concourse, which has just launched a new program for 2026 – 10 concerts featuring established stars of Australian jazz, its rising ensembles and some big-band favourites.

Presented by Willoughby City Council as part of its Culture Bites program, the series has become a regular fixture on Sydney’s jazz calendar, offering audiences the chance to hear leading performers up close in a relaxed club setting.

Zela Margossian. Portrait supplied

The season opens on 26 March with the Zela Margossian Quintet, led by the Armenian-Australian pianist and composer whose music draws on Armenian folk traditions as well as jazz and classical influences – a distinctive cross-cultural sound world heard on her acclaimed album The Road. Margossian’s quintet features a stellar lineup including saxophonist...