Blending the musical style he grew up with in Chicago with flavors of Texas and New Orleans, Jonathan Doyle is a roots jazz musician in the land of tall trees.

Doyle, who now resides in Port Townsend, said he got into jazz when he was about 12 years old. “I’m not from a musical family, but for some reason it caught my ear,” he said. “I thought the saxophone was cool and interesting.”

As an adult, Doyle said he is drawn to acoustic instruments.

“They seem magical to me. The idea that a person is creating a sound in a room and working with other people to create this texture and feeling is just amazing to me.”

Traditional jazz and swing especially are fascinating and appealing because of their balance of the intricate and the accessible, Doyle said.

There is also a mix of class and grit, he said.

“Public opinion of jazz and all of its various offspring has always been as varied as the bands that played and play it. They certainly haven’t always been seen as clean cut.”

Doyles considers Duke Ellington the classy end of the spectrum, but notes that even the Ellington Orchestra harbored a range of players and textures, from Johnny Hodges to Juan Tizol and Cootie Williams.

“I feel like the good bands really tried to speak to all tastes. Maybe they’d contrast a smooth soloist with a more gritty one,” Doyle said. “I really like that contrast. It gives everything context, to my ears.”

Doyle performs a mixture of original tunes with classic covers, a variety that will be on display during two upcoming shows in Jefferson County.

Doyle said he is programming for fun. “Stage diving,” he said. “Lots of stage diving. And some quality music.”

The first show will be at 7:30 p.m., May 4 at the Laurel B. Johnson Community Center, 923 Hazel Point Road in Coyle. Entry to this all-ages event, part of the ongoing Concerts in the Woods series, is by donation. Complimentary cookies and coffee will be available at intermission.

The second show will be at 6 p.m., May 5 at the Keg & I, 1291 Chimacum Road in Chimacum.

For both shows, Doyle will be joined by Noah Hocker on trumpet and Jake Sanders on guitar.

Hocker grew up in Portland, Oregon, and was a regular attendee of Port Townsend Jazz Camp, according to a news release.

Sanders is a guitarist, bandleader and arranger, whose musical career began in New York City. He is a member of The Fat Babies, a hot jazz band which continues to perform weekly at Chicago’s Green Mill Cocktail Lounge. His last album with the group, “Solid Gassuh,” made DownBeat Magazine’s “Best of 2017” list.

“This particular concert stands out because Doyle has these two other great players from out of town joining him to make a trio,” said Norm Johnson, founder of the Concerts in the Woods Series. “I’m really excited to hear this one.”

Johnson said he grew up listening to music from the Swing Era on a “Hi-Fi” system that his father built from mail-order components.

“Because it was my parent’s music, I discounted it up until about 10 years ago,” Johnson said. “I realized I knew that music and now suddenly I liked it. In fact, I loved it.”

When Johnson discovered Doyle lived in Jefferson County, he said he could not wait to sign him up for a show.

“This next concert in Coyle is going to be one not to miss for swing lovers,” Johnson said.

Always in style

While swing may often be associated with the Greatest Generation of the 1930s and 1940s, it has come into vogue several times in the decades since, including a fad in the 1990s he was a part of, Doyle said.

“There was a boom for sure. But I feel the dance and music scene is stronger than ever these days all around the world.”

While swing may not be mainstream, there’s more often a depth to it that wasn’t present back in the 90s, when bands like Squirrel Nut Zippers, The Cherry Poppin’ Daddies and Big Bad Voodoo Daddy were touring heavily, Doyle said.

“I’m really curious and excited to see how these communities continue to grow and juggle tradition and change.”

No matter the decade, Doyle will continue to play jazz standards to new audiences, along with other American music from the past century such as blues, country, western swing and jug band.

“Most of my original material tends to be very rooted in swing, but I am interested in writing music that feels honest to the swing tradition but isn’t beholden to it,” Doyle said.

That includes exploring western swing, which Doyle was exposed to after moving to Texas.

“It certainly continues to have an impact on my musical thinking,” he said. “My last album features several songs with twin guitar parts. Also, I am in the process of organizing an eight piece group for the Puget Sound Traditional Jazz Society and I chose to put together a Milton Brown style rhythm section — guitar, banjo, piano, and bass.”

Doyle has also been affected by the street style he learned while busking in New Orleans, he said.

“Just the amount of music on the street is so impressive and inspiring. Many folks are really working on making music that has depth and meaning that is rooted in many American music styles.”