The Bop Stop, a discrete private jazz club owned by Ron Busch and Anita Nonneman just down the street from the West 25th and Detroit Ave intersection in Cleveland Ohio. The first Bop Stop was located at East 40th and St Clair Ave and moved to West 6th St in 1995. The club closed in 2000 and plans were in the makings to purchase an old warehouse on Detroit Avenue. Originally an old warehouse building, plans to restore the newly acquired building came to a halt when the ground beneath the old warehouse was discovered to be unstable. Restoring was not an option and rebuilding in that location required the lot to be dug out. A new building and a new beginning of the Bop Stop occurred on March 7, 2003 when Ron and Anita opened the doors to their beautiful jazz club.

Built entirely around acoustics and musical performance staging, the new Bop Stop offered unobstructed views to the stage from all areas. No poles to obstruct vieiwing, tiered seating, along with amazing acoustics helped make the Bop Stop one of the best Jazz clubs in the area.

Ron and Anita’s perseverance and love for music has been a true gift for those who were lucky enough to enjoy the resonance of jazz melodies at the Bop Stop. In late 2013, Ron and Anita decided to pass the legacy of the greatest jazz club in Cleveland to The Music Settlement. The 4,100 square foot Bop Stop was donated to The Music Settlement, a University Circle institution that offers music therapy, early childhood education and music instruction.

The Music Settlement's first performance at the Bop Stop occurred on Sunday, February 23rd with two of the best jazz fans in attendance, Ron Busch and Anita Nonneman. Performing on stage were students who receive scholarships from funds contributed from donors who were also in attendance. Like every Music Settlement performance that I have attended, the music that their students play is nothing short of AMAZING. It is one thing to appreciate and enjoy the melodies from a skilled performer who has been practicing their art for decades, but to hear a child perform with unbelievable musical skills is simply jaw dropping.

Listed below is a few photos that I captured during The Music Settlement’s President’s Endowment Luncheon and Recital at the Bop Stop. I have also added a video/slideshow that has many more photos. You can watch the slideshow here: The Music Settlement at the Bop Stop Slideshow.

Many more photos can be viewed in a slideshow that I created. You can watch this video by clicking on the video icon listed to the right.