Jazz Articles about Dan Block

Andy Farber and His Orchestra: Early Blue Evening

by Jack Bowers
October 5, 2021

Saxophonist Andy Farber's New York-based orchestra came together and cut its teeth as the onstage band for three hundred performances of After Midnight, a Broadway revue that paid tribute to Jazz Age nightclub luminaries from Duke Ellington, Jimmie Lunceford and Count Basie to Harold Arlen, Dorothy Fields and Jimmy McHugh. As one might presume from the orchestra's provenance, echoes of Ellington and Basie can readily be discerned on its first recording since After Midnight closed in 2014--but Farber, who wrote ...

Dan Block: Duality

by AAJ Italy Staff
December 11, 2012

Sembra un album manifesto, questo del sassofonista Dan Block, come i Duets di Lee Konitz con musicisti dall'origine musicale disparata, da Ray Nance a Karl Berger. Block si diverte allo stesso modo sia che suoni standards, originals o la musica di Dimitri Shostakovich. Impressionante quello che riesce a fare! Si parte con uno standard di Jerome Kern in duo con il pianista Ted Rosenthal per poi passare ad un brano di Tin Pan Alley meno famoso, in duo con il ...

Dan Block: From His World to Mine

by AAJ Italy Staff
March 29, 2011

From His World to Mine, “dal suo mondo al mio" è la traduzione letterale del nuovo lavoro di Dan Block, sassofonista e clarinettista sconosciuto ai più ma già con Charles Mingus, Gerry Mulligan, Toshiko Akiyoshi, Maria Schneider e molto attivo sulla scena di Broadway. Scoprendo però che il personaggio in questione è nientemeno che sua maestà Duke Ellington l'affermazione potrebbe suonare perlomeno ardita. Ma niente paura, nessun tentativo di emulare/interpretare/rivisitare un patrimonio musicale inestimabile, semplicemente una dichiarazione d'intenti. Tra gli ...

Dan Block: From His World To Mine: Dan Block Plays The Music Of Duke Ellington

by Woodrow Wilkins
January 17, 2011

Stevie Wonder referred to him as “the king of all"--him, being Duke Ellington, a master bandleader from the golden era of big band jazz. Dan Block pays tribute to Sir Duke with From His World to Mine. Block is a saxophonist, clarinetist and composer who has associated with such artists as Clark Terry, Linda Ronstadt, Michael Feinstein and Rosemary Clooney. He has appeared numerous times on television's A Prairie Home Companion and has been heard on commercials and ...

Dan Block: From His World To Mine: Dan Block Plays The Music Of Duke Ellington

by Edward Blanco
January 16, 2011

Bandleader and accomplished reed man Dan Block is an exponent of traditional and swing jazz, and pays homage to the music of Duke Ellington with From His World To Mine: Dan Block Plays The Music Of Duke Ellington. The repertoire's avoidance of the usual Ellington standards and classics makes this a unique project unlike other tributes to the master--there is no “Satin Doll," “Sophisticated Lady," “Caravan," or “Take the A Train"; instead, lesser-known but equally impressive tunes from the '30s ...

Dan Block: From His World To Mine: Dan Block Plays The Music Of Duke Ellington

by Bruce Lindsay
December 21, 2010

Dan Block is an exceptionally talented reed player, a stylish arranger and composer, a skilful bandleader and a valued sideman. He's worked with Michael Feinstein, Rosemary Clooney and Clark Terry, among others, and has also performed for Broadway shows and Hollywood movies, but he has never achieved the widespread recognition his talent deserves. From His World To Mine: Dan Block Plays The Music Of Duke Ellington should change that. It is, quite simply, gorgeous. Block has drawn ...

Dan Block: Solid Sideman

by Ken Dryden
September 5, 2009

The Andrew Scott Quartet Meets Jon-Erik Kellso & Dan Block Nostalgia Sackville 2009 Marty Grosz Hot Winds, The Classic Sessions Arbors 2009

Dan Block has worked in a variety of musical settings during his long career and has been a sideman in bands led by Charles Mingus, Gerry Mulligan and Toshiko Akiyoshi, currently working with Jerry Dodgion's Joy of Sax and the Sultans of ...