Herbie Mann: An Amalgamation of Everything
[Flauist Herbie Mann was often ahead of the trend with his wide explorations into sounds from everywhere. When I asked him in this 1978 interview where music in general was heading, he talked about a broad mix--"an amalgamation of everything"--which might be a good way to describe Mann's overall career, except that it doesn't account for ...
Sachal Vasandani: A Deep Thinking Jazz Singer
Even with a few albums behind him, vocalist Sachal Vasandani is still considered a member of the younger generation of jazz musicians. What sets him apart from many of his contemporaries or predecessors is his keen intellectualism when it comes to his musicality and career aspirations. He does not just get by with a gorgeous tone ...
Take Five With Eric Hofbauer
Meet Eric Hofbauer:
Known as “a crucial instigator in Boston's DIY avant-jazz scene" (Jon Garelick, Boston Phoenix), Eric Hofbauer has been one of the city's most active musicians and organizers for the past decade. When not documenting his own distinctive approach as a solo guitarist, or leading his working quartet, The Infrared Band, he ...
Ron Carter: The Right Notes, Alright
There can't be any jazz musician or jazz listener who doesn't know Ron Carter and his standing as one of the most successful and influential bass players in the history of music in America. He's a musician of the highest order, with a rich, immediately identifiable sound that has resonated in the jazz world for some ...
[ 1 ]
John Pizzarelli and Tessa Souter: Classical Mashups
The improvisatory nature of jazz provides a myriad of ways to enhance and tweak both the arrangement and performance of the music's canon. One approach being tried is the interpolation of one harmonically or rhythmically related song into another. Guitarist/vocalist John Pizzarelli and vocalist Tessa Souter have produced just such projects in their recordingsDouble Exposure and ...
Take Five With Ric Harris
Meet Ric Harris:
An article in Guitar Player magazine about the Old Town School of Folk Music caused me to leave North Carolina and move to Chicago. I caught Ira Sullivan and Joe Diorio at the Jazz Showcase one night and moved to Los Angeles to attend the Guitar Institute of Technology a few ...
A Delightful Twofer from University of Arts in Philadelphia
University of Arts in Philadelphia boasts a premier school of music that is devoted to educating the next generation of innovators in jazz and other modern musical styles. Its dual 2010 releases show that it is indeed succeeding at its mission.
UARTS Z Band
University of the Arts Big Band
Self Produced
2010 ...
Various Artists: Fukushima!
Various Artists
Fukushima!
Presqu'ile Records
2012 Okay, please sit up and pay close attention. This is an album that you really should not ignore. Fukushima! is a double CD consisting of ten tracks by renowned improvising musicians from across the globe--almost two hours of music altogether. All proceeds from its sales will go ...
Take Five With Tanya Balakyrska
Meet Tanya Balakyrska:
A singer-songwriter, originating from the Ukraine and residing in Russia. Tanya's music style is quite difficult to distinguish: indie, minimalism, some bits of jazz, pop, lounge and sympho-fusion are mixed in it, depending on a particular lineup chosen. Tanya performs at various international jazz and contemporary music festivals in CIS and ...
Wishbone Ash: Live Dates II / Elegant Stealth
One of the most underrated bands to emerge from Britain in the late 1960s to early 1970s, Wishbone Ash achieved a fine balance between progressive and blues-rock. Its original material made prominent use of tandem lead guitars, mirrored by equally uplifting group harmony singing. These virtues distinguish the sound of the band to this day, as ...
Lewis Nash All-Stars with Wynton Marsalis, Phoenix, AZ, April 11, 2011
Lewis Nash All-Stars with Wynton Marsalis
Musical Instrument Museum
Phoenix, AZ
April 11, 2012 An evening of bebop, swing, Latin and blues celebrated acclaimed drummer Lewis Nash and raised funds for youth programs of Jazz in Arizona. The 35-year-old nonprofit jazz-support organization recently opened The Nash, a performance and youth education center established ...
Take Five With Moksha Trio
Meet Moksha Trio:
Neighborhood sounds. Conceived by experienced musicians, Moksha Trio has created an acoustic exemplar--intense and well-designed. “Moksha," from Sanskrit, means freedom, liberation, and diversion. It represents what the musicians seek musically, specifically “a fusion of jazz characteristics and contemporary classical music elements, having Brazilian-Afro rhythmic structures as support." Using these three pillars, ...
Part 25 : Ben Zabo: It's a Blinder - But It's Not Afrobeat
Ben Zabo
Ben Zabo
Glitterhouse Records
2012 The extraordinary success of the musical Fela!, and the resurgence of interest in all things Fela Kuti, has made “Afrobeat" a popular buzzword among label publicists. The invocation is often fanciful; albums claiming to be Afrobeat releases regularly land at Afrobeat Diaries which have little, if ...
[ 2 ]
Tierney Sutton Band at Dazzle
Tierney Sutton Band
Dazzle
Denver
May 6, 2012 Most attractive female singers with long blonde hair simply market themselves under their own name. Not so Tierney Sutton. She's not a solo act. She's part of the Tierney Sutton Band. Sure, she's the focal point onstage (a long blonde mane will do that), but ...
