It’s a festival with everything between international headliners and relative unknowns, intricately-plotted compositions and completely free improvisation, high-concept one-offs and bands shaped over decades. See photos from the nine-year-old marathon of new bands and repertoires in New York.
Henry Thomas is literally a link to an earlier time. Born in 1874, his music is a patchwork of blues, rags and folk songs. His use of quills, or pan-pipes, is a relic of a nearly vanished African American tradition. Listening to Henry Thomas gives a glimpse of what music might have sounded like before [...]
Blind Willie Johnson was a bluesman and a preacher. His lyrics were spiritual, and his music was blues. Though he only made 30 recordings, his work is a lasting part of the blues legacy. Early players like Son House and Fred McDowell played his tunes, and his influence reached people like Bob Dylan and Led [...]
Elling’s commanding, richly grained baritone voice is the perfect vehicle for jazz songs, whether reworked classics or original compositions. Fusing jazz and poetry, Elling performs a series of Ornette Coleman poems with freeform accompaniment by host Marian McPartland.
The highest federally supported awards for jazz artistry are presented to singer-songwriter Mose Allison, alto saxophonist Lou Donaldson, club owner Lorraine Gordon and pianist Eddie Palmieri. On Monday, Jan. 14, watch a webcast of the ceremony live from Jazz at Lincoln Center in New York.
Unpredictability is the key ingredient of the annual New York showcase, which often emphasizes new bands or projects. Here’s a preview of five groups who will present unreleased music, featuring musicians like Lee Konitz, Brandee Younger and Jason Lindner.
The new year’s major releases so far feature a few living legends and a lot of drummers in charge. Here’s a preview of some records which will be talked about by jazz aficionados, including new efforts from Chris Potter, Darcy James Argue and Wayne Shorter.
Not long ago, when musicians needed good charts, they called Melba Liston. Now, saxophonist Geof Bradfield and his Chicago ensemble offer the radio premiere of a suite commissioned by Chamber Music America. The work traces Liston’s remarkable life story.
By Kevin Kniestedt As we head into the new year, I decided to take a look back at some of the things I saw dominate discussion as it relates to jazz over the last year, and I must say, I have no issue with many of them never being discussed again. I know [...]
Starting around the 1960s, the music’s advocates increasingly turned to institutions of higher education. Within a few decades, college campuses became an unavoidable part of the modern jazz world, training generations of musicians, providing employment and shaping the future audience.
In an archival session from 1991, the vibraphonist gets together with host Marian McPartland for a performance of his own standard, “Bags’ Groove.”
Marsalis joins host Michael Feinstein to discuss the music that has affected him most, including a duet with his father and a recently discovered recording of Louis Armstrong’s last known performance.
“I believe I’ll dust my broom” is an old saying meaning to make a new start. With that catchy phrase, and a distinctive guitar riff Robert Johnson created an important piece of blues history when he recorded “I Believe I’ll Dust My Broom” in 1936. True to Johnson’s form, it synthesized existing musical elements in [...]
Hammond B3 organ master Dr. Lonnie Smith leads his trio through a soulful set before a sold-out house at the Kennedy Center Jazz Club in Washington, D.C. The good doctor turns 70 this year, and he’s still a leader and innovator on his instrument.
The eclectic electric guitarist left college about 40 years ago, and judging from the success of his career to date, it wasn’t a bad decision. Berklee welcomes Scofield back to perform new tunes and old repertoire from his raucous, electronic-infused Uberjam songbook.
The New Year’s Eve party at Dizzy’s Club Coca-Cola featured two institutions of New York jazz: the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra and the Nighthawks. They count down to midnight with their interpretations of Louis Armstrong’s monumental Hot Fives recordings.
The legendary trumpeter, now 92, was in good spirits and excellent form as 1989 became 1990. In this archival Toast of the Nation concert, he leads a band featuring his long-time friend, saxophonist Red Holloway, in a program of Ellingtonia and other favorites.
An impromptu bongo beat became a full-on tribute to James Brown, and suddenly a band had an all-new repertoire. A powerful and versatile vocalist, Alexander and her Evolution Arkestra address the legacies of Jimi Hendrix and the Godfather of Soul from the South Side of the city.
The large jazz orchestra, brassy and slick, powers through Goodwin’s charts from the main stage of the historic jazz festival, celebrating its 55th year. Included is a performance of the Grammy-winning arrangement for George Gershwin’s “Rhapsody in Blue.”
On New Year’s Eve, NPR Music and WBGO present a live jazz broadcast from venues coast to coast. Wynton Marsalis, Dee Alexander and John Scofield are scheduled to perform; plus, hear concerts from Chicago, New York and the Monterey Jazz Festival.
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