Aaron Barnes has always viewed himself as an artist and visionary. Even after 7 years of owning and operating The 1905, a jazz club and pizzeria in Portland’s Historic Albina District, it’s hard for him to think in terms of dollar signs. 

“I felt comfortable selling pizza and jazz,” he says. “But I didn’t have the [business] knowledge, and every time I thought I got the right information, it was maybe too late, or not enough, or we grew too fast, or sometimes put the vision ahead of the bank account, to be completely honest.” 

Local jazz artists and regulars are rallying to raise $200,000 to keep the doors open for musicians, fans, and pizza lovers. Since the fundraiser kicked off on July 30, donations of over $40,000 have poured in, and musicians have lined up to talk about the 1905. That includes storied names such as trumpet player Wynton Marsalis, leader of the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra, who sings the praises of the 1905 in an online video with Portland’s own Dominick “Domo” Branch. The 23-year-old Grant High School alumnus graduated from the Manhattan School of Music in 2022 and has played drums with acts all over the world, from Carnegie Hall in New York to Konzerthaus in Berlin. “The 1905 is Portland’s jazz home,” says Branch. To him, a place where "music is being loved" is as important as the music itself. “The 1905 has birthed a lot of people into careers, and that Portland lineage of music needs to continue.”

The 1905 is one of the few places where Portlanders can retreat for great jazz music and food most nights of the week, especially since the closure of Jimmy Mak’s in 2016. But customers' lifestyles have changed since the pandemic. “People aren’t sure if they need to go out anymore,” says Barnes. “And this music has historically been late night music. Portland is a much earlier town. ” 

The 1905 will be forced to evolve, but into what exactly? The funding will buy Barnes extra time to figure that out, and make payments on pandemic loans. Barnes plans to do a deep dive into his books, negotiate with vendors, adjust schedules and hours, and make tweaks to music programming. “The intention is to make hard choices in a timely fashion,” Barnes says. 

That raw emotion and realness from Barnes is a major reason that local jazz musicians love him, according to Branch. As a trained jazz musician himself, Barnes understands scraping by from gig to gig, and is known for putting the well-being of the acts coming through his club above his own. 

Other local artists such as Alan Jones, Michael Raynor, Doc Watkins, and Matt Sazima, as well as Portland chef Sarah Schafer, echo Branch’s sentiment. 

“For the last almost decade, the 1905 has been the primary spot for jazz musicians to come together and share art with one another,” Sazima says in a video posted to the GoFundMe page. “This space means a lot to a lot of people; it means a lot to me.” 

The last few years of running the 1905 have been a slog, Barnes says, and to see so many prominent people bolster his business "is really heartening and humbling, but it’s also embarrassing,” he says. “Without the community doing what they're doing. I don't know where we'd be,” he says. “They are definitely making a difference.”