For the fifth year in a row, Natixis Global Asset Management is helping to bring one of Boston’s best jazz events – the Berklee Beantown Jazz Festival – to the historic South End. The all-day, free outdoor event takes place on September 26 and features world class music, great food and a variety of family activities.

Boston-based Natixis, one of the world’s largest asset managers, is a presenting sponsor of the festival and will also present a $5,000 George Wein Jazz Ambassador Scholarship to a local high school student musician.

Natixis is a longtime supporter of Jazz and has launched the Jazz Ambassador Project, a series of events that celebrate jazz and give back to local communities. Earlier this summer, Natixis served as the presenting sponsor of the Newport Jazz Festival and awarded two scholarships to young jazz ambassadors. Natixis also partnered with the Boys & Girls Clubs in Newport and the Berklee College of Music in Boston so that 100 local children could experience a full day of Jazz and meet a performer at the Newport Jazz Festival.

The Jazz Ambassador Project is part of Natixis’ broader Ambassador Program, a community involvement initiative that supports fundamental social services that play a vital role in enhancing the quality of life in Boston. The goal is to increase collaboration between Natixis and the nonprofits it supports by building deeper relationships, sharing resources and providing strategic guidance to generate new ideas and improve outcomes.

The Beantown Jazz Festival is Boston’s biggest block party – drawing up to 80,000 music fans each year. The 15^th annual festival takes place from noon to 6 p.m. on September 26 at Columbus Avenue between Mass. Ave and Burke Street.

Each year the Beantown Festival is the place to be, drawing music lovers with its unique combination of jazz, funk, Latin, pop and soul acts. The Natixis Family Park also offers a great way to introduce children to music through KidJam – a unique event featuring singing and sound exploration. It also gives kids the opportunity to play rhythm instruments and create, listen and respond to music.

This year’s Beantown Festival theme is “Jazz: the Voice of the People.” John Hailer, Natixis’ president and CEO, calls it a fitting tribute, as “jazz is a universal language that unites cultures and brings communities together.”

During the Festival, Natixis will present the George Wein Jazz Ambassador Scholarship, which enables a graduating high school senior to attend Berklee College of Music’s five-week summer performance program. This award was named in recognition of one of the original jazz ambassadors who spent his life working to bring people together through the power of jazz.

For more information on the Beantown Jazz Festival and a full schedule of events, please visit https://www.berklee.edu/beantownjazz.