Articles by AAJ Staff
Michael Ricci: The Heart Of All About Jazz
by AAJ Staff
This AAJ @ 30 article by Juan Carlos Abelenda first appeared on Toma Jazz in 2006 and was translated from Spanish. During the 38th Barcelona Jazz Festival, a series of conferences complemented the main events, offering deeper insights into jazz-related topics. One standout session was led by Michael Ricci, titled “All About Jazz: An Adventure Bridging Jazz and New Technologies." Michael Ricci, the founder of the American jazz portal allaboutjazz.com, has created a website widely recognized as a ...
Continue ReadingTake Five with Pianist Irving Flores
by AAJ Staff
Meet Irving Flores From his early beginnings as a child prodigy leading Orchestra Tamalipas to victory at the tender age of ten, to becoming a nationally treasured artist in Mexico, Irving's journey has been nothing short of legendary. Now based in San Diego, California, Irving continues to push musical boundaries and innovate within the jazz genre, contributing richly to its evolution and reaching new audiences through his performances and recordings. Irving's career is marked by notable collaborations and ...
Continue ReadingTake Five with Bassist Phil Ravita
by AAJ Staff
Meet Bassist Phil Ravita One of the Mid-Atlantic's most versatile and sought-after bassists, Phil Ravita leads Ravita Jazz and appears with many other jazz and classical ensembles and orchestras. He is also host of a weekly radio program on WMTB 89.9 FM. Tune in on Mondays at 8 PM EST. He has shared the stage with music legends Joe Coleman, Jimmy Heath, Bobby Shew, Claudio Roditi and Ruby Glover, appearing in countless clubs, concert halls, and festivals. He can be heard ...
Continue ReadingTake Five with Trumpeter Gregory Haubrich of Butter And The Genre
by AAJ Staff
Meet Gregory “Butter" Haubrich Gregory “Butter" Haubrich is a lifelong musician, songwriter and arranger whose sound bridges the soulful roots of jazz with accessible melodies and spontaneous storytelling. A trumpet player with a deep emotional range and a background that includes keys, harmonica and vocals, Butter brings both grit and grace to every performance. From rural Minnesota to the U.S. Navy School of Music, his journey has always revolved around creating music that moves people, whether on stage or through ...
Continue ReadingTake Five with vocalist Diana Hamilton
by AAJ Staff
Meet vocalist Diana Hamilton I'm an instinctive artist--meaning, I didn't choose to be a singer. Singing chose me. It began during a moment of deep torment when my three-year-old son, Nairobi, was subjected to racism at a daycare in France. I had never experienced such cruelty growing up as a Black child in the Bahamas. I wasn't prepared for the brutality of what I witnessed--not in a country where I had chosen to raise my child. One day, ...
Continue ReadingBest Jazz Albums of 2025: All-Star Break Edition
by AAJ Staff
As we hit the halfway mark of 2025, All About Jazz has adopted Major League Baseball's All-Star break approach but swapping homers for albums. Our team of 55 writers convened to name their top three albums of the year so far, with Mary Halvorson's About Ghosts (Nonesuch) emerging as the clear favorite and an early contender for album of the year. Her collaboration with Sylvie Courvoisier (Bone Bells, Pyroclastic Records), also earned spots on a few lists. Other notables include ...
Continue ReadingTake Five with pianist, composer Itamar Dahan
by AAJ Staff
Meet Itamar Dahan Itamar Dahan is a Brooklyn-based jazz pianist, composer, and producer originally from Israel. Known for his deeply lyrical style and bold harmonic language, he has performed with legendary artists including NEA Jazz Master Reggie Workman, Billy Hart, Omer Avital, and David Broza. A graduate of The New School's Jazz program on a full scholarship and a multiple-time recipient of the prestigious America-Israel Cultural Foundation (AICF) award, Itamar has quickly established himself on both the performance and production ...
Continue ReadingMeet Jack Bowers
by AAJ Staff
This article was first published on All About Jazz on September 5, 2020. I currently live in: Albuquerque, New Mexico I joined All About Jazz in: 1997 Why did you decide to contribute to All About Jazz? I had been writing about jazz, primarily big bands, for a number of years for various magazines, and AAJ presented an excellent opportunity to continue doing that after I retired from my “day job" as a newspaper ...
Continue ReadingTake Five with Saxophonist/Singer/Guitarist Vanessa Collier
by AAJ Staff
Meet Vanessa Collier Vanessa Collier's sixth album Do It My Own Way was recently released on Phenix Fire Records. Recorded on analog gear with the musicians largely in one room, Do It My Own Way is sonically inspired by the classic Memphis soul sound of Stax and Hi Records, especially that of the Staples Singers. The second single “Wild As a Rainstorm," which dives deep into soul territory, powerfully gives advice to women and people who feel left out to ...
Continue ReadingTake Five with Singer, Guitarist and Pianist Martina Fiserova
by AAJ Staff
Meet Martina Fiserova Martina Fišerová is a New York-based singer, guitarist, songwriter and lyricist. Born and raised in Bohemia, Czech Republic, she graduated as a vocalist from the jazz-focused Jaroslav Ježek College, in addition to studying anthroposophical music therapy. She has performed alongside a number of prominent artists at music festivals and venues throughout Europe, as well as in Taiwan and Vietnam. Martina's debut release Clearing Fields (Blue Season, 2012), with her interpretation of jazz standards, originated from ...
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