Alan Segal, whose inspirational story of survival from brain cancer just may be unique among jazz musicians, will be performing Sunday, Nov. 15, 2 p.m. at The Church of St. Alban, 500 Fairthorne Ave. in Roxborough.

The concert of “Jazz & Joe” will feature The Jazz Sanctuary Quintet, consisting of James Dell’Orefice (piano), Eddie Etkins (saxophone), Leon Jordan Sr. (drums), Segal (bass) and Randy Sutin (vibes).

Founded in 2011 by Segal, 85, The Jazz Sanctuary, a nonprofit performing arts group, has become a familiar presence in churches, community centers, senior residences and other gathering places in the greater Philadelphia area. Through its popular “Jazz & Joe” performances, the organization offers professional live jazz in welcoming community settings without charging admission or requiring contributions.

For Segal, an accountant, investment banker and management consultant for decades, learning to play bass was instrumental to his recovery after a life-altering, 13-hour brain surgery in 2006. He had been diagnosed with a brain arteriovenous malformation, a tangled, enlarged mass of blood vessels that occurs due to abnormal connections between arteries and veins.

“When I came out of surgery, I could not talk and had no hand-eye coordination,” Segal said recently. “A vein broke in my brain, and blood came into my brain, so the headache was insufferable. I would have been dead had they not fixed it.”

For Segal, learning to play bass helped to restore his hand-eye coordination, mental acuity and psychological well-being. But that is not the only physical challenge he has had to overcome. In November 2025, he suffered a fractured hip and again had to undergo months of rehabilitation, but he has returned to performing alongside the colleagues who have helped build The Jazz Sanctuary into a regional institution.

Despite additional physical challenges, Segal recently returned to the stage for a performance lasting approximately 90 minutes, a meaningful step in his recovery and a reflection of his determination to continue doing what he loves.

“I’m working hard at rehabilitation, and although I won’t be as I was, it’s my wish that I’ll be more so,” Segal wrote in a recent letter to supporters. “I intend to keep playing as long as I am able.”

As of October, The Jazz Sanctuary had completed 978 performances, with 11 additional events scheduled before the end of the year. The organization has also recorded nearly 37,000 audience visits through Oct. 8.

Segal has also played with some of the area’s leading rock & roll groups and country bands, including Jim Six and the City Limits and the Marie Lallie Band. He formed the Jack Alan Band (12-piece country band), which toured the tri-state area in the late 1980s.

“Our Jazz Sanctuary audiences are responsive, warm and welcoming at every event,” Segal said. “The audience has become part of my extended family.”

Segal emphasized that individual contributions remain essential to keeping the organization’s performances accessible to everyone. Each two-hour performance represents approximately $750 in musician compensation and operating expenses, with Segal continuing to perform without compensation. The organization does not charge admission or require donations from its audience or host venues.

“The support from my band mates and you, our audience, has been exceptional,” Segal wrote in his letter to supporters, reflecting on the encouragement he has received during his recovery.

With nearly 1,000 performances to its credit in its 15 years and another year of free community concerts on the horizon, The Jazz Sanctuary remains committed to the simple idea that has guided its work since its founding: “Live music should bring people together, and everyone should have an opportunity to experience it.”

As part of the band’s mission state, Segal says, “I love to play music because I lose myself to the beat, to the harmony and to the breathing of the other musicians. I’ve learned, literally, to play well with others, as my mother used to admonish me.”

“The best music is made when the players breathe together,” he added, “or as George Sinkler [pianist] tells it, we dance together. There is simply not a better feeling.

“I close my eyes, and I am one with the other players and the audience. We all feel and know when we have reached that inner space together. We glow in mutual applause. That’s why we have music; at least that’s the ‘why’ for me. Jazz, the only American invention in music, has become an integral part of our life and the lifeblood of music in our lives. My wish is to bring this feeling, this togetherness and this community to as many people as possible. This is my goal.”

Jim DeLorenzo contributed to this article. For more information, visit thejazzsanctuary.com. Len Lear can be reached at lenlear@chestnuthilllocal.com.