Jazz Articles

like 1,017

Sarah Manning: Shattering The Glass Ceiling

by David A. Orthmann
June 14, 2010

Listening to Sarah Manning speak at length is nearly as absorbing as her music. She's intelligent, direct, witty, and serious-minded. As Manning waxes eloquent on topics ranging from the impact of three special mentors, to the benefits of being a well-rounded person, to issues surrounding woman's empowerment, you realize that she relishes every aspect of her life. The alto saxophonist and composer is the leader of the New York City-based band Shatter the Glass. Both on and off the bandstand, ...

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Christine Tobin / Liam Noble: Tapestry Unravelled

by Chris May
June 14, 2010

After seven, mostly self-penned albums on the Babel label, Tapesty Unravelled is something of a departure for the Irish-born, UK-based singer Christine Tobin: all but one of the tunes are covers, and, for the first time, the setting is stripped down to a duo. But as on the earlier albums, Tobin weaves her signature mix of jazz and folk influences, while pianist Liam Noble ensures a high degree of “pure" jazz content.

As some will already have surmised, ...

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Matt Marantz: Offering

by Mark F. Turner
June 14, 2010

Saxophonist Matt Marantz's Offering is a splendid debut; echoing, in part, the lyricism and verve of three of his influences--Charlie Parker, Cannonball Adderley, and Phil Woods. It's interesting to note that the young New Orleans based saxophonist is a tenorist--whose intrepid lines and phrasings are honed from practice and performance--with an alto-like tonality that is less throaty than players such as Chris Potter, and purposed with its own individuality. Proving himself to be an astute writer on ...

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There's No Such Thing as a British Jazz Scene

by Bruce Lindsay
June 14, 2010

March and April 2010 were eventful months for JazzLife UK--my photo-documentary project on the jazz scene in Britain. Spring finally emerged from winter's grasp, snowdrops replaced snow drifts and jazz life got busier. Debates about jazz and the media took center-stage, at least for some of us, politicians limbered up for a General Election (I know the result, but I'll leave you in suspense until JazzLife UK #3), I was roundly chastised for my optimism and blatant lack of musical ...

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Roberto Magris Quintet: Mating Call

by Edward Blanco
June 14, 2010

In 2008, Italian jazz pianist Roberto Magris came to Kansas City to record Kansas City Outbound (PCAMI 2008) in a trio setting with the late bassist, Dr. Art Davis. Mating Call builds on that success; a straight-ahead project reconnecting with the area on the upstart Kansas City-based J-Mood Records, another evolution from Paul Collins of PCAMI Records. This time, Magris returns to the area, bringing with him jazz drummer Idris Muhammad from New York, saxophonist Paul Carr from Washington, D.C., ...

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2010 New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival

by Gary Firstenberg
June 14, 2010

The city of New Orleans is riding high these days. With the beloved football team winning the Super Bowl, a new mayor promising a brighter future, a rebuilding of structures and economy, and a new HBO television show, Treme, extolling the virtues of the unique culture of this musical mecca, times could not be better for the 41st Annual Jazz & Heritage Festival. Like its famed cuisine, this huge music marathon offers a gumbo of sights and sounds; a diversified ...

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Gratkowski / Nabatov / Schmickler: Deployment

by Glenn Astarita
June 14, 2010

Armed and prepared for battle, prominent improvisers Frank Gratkowski (reeds) and Simon Nabatov (prepared piano) align forces with computer operator Marcus Schmickler for a sequence of strategic maneuvers. They commence the Deployment with haunting overlays, via Nabatov's clustered phrasings and Schmickler's ethereal, and sometimes subliminal, overlays or interjections. Gratkowski commandeers a free form impetus, spanning boisterous sax and clarinet parts amid shifting movements and alterations to the ensuing skirmish.

The trio synthesizes an array of mood-evoking frameworks via ...

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Jazz at the 2010 Norfolk and Norwich Festival, UK

by Bruce Lindsay
June 14, 2010

Norfolk and Norwich Festival Norwich, UK May 7-22, 2010 The Norfolk and Norwich Festival is one of the oldest arts and music festivals anywhere, having been established in 1772. In recent years, under the direction of Jonathan Holloway, the Festival has expanded and now offers an ambitious program of events across the city of Norwich. Jazz and related music are a core part of this programming, and the 2010 Festival brought an ...

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Stacey Kent: Trans-atlantically Yours

by David Adler
June 13, 2010

This interview was first published at All About Jazz in June 2001. Stacey Kent left the States in 1991 and unwittingly became a British-based international singing sensation. She met her present husband, tenor saxophonist Jim Tomlinson, while visiting friends in London, and one thing led to another. Her first demo received airplay from an excited Humphrey Lyttelton on his well-loved show on BBC Radio 2. She landed a singing part in Ian McKellen's film ...

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Paul Meyers: Paul Meyers Quartet featuring Frank Wess

by Jeff Dayton-Johnson
June 13, 2010

This is a very smooth outing from Paul Meyers, mixing standards--both the rather ripe ("I Cover The Waterfront") and the lesser-known (Billy Strayhorn's “Snibor")--with Meyers originals as showcases for his acoustic nylon string guitar. “Smooth" should not be taken to mean “smooth jazz": there is just the right amount of edge in the musicians' interaction to keep things interesting.Meyers' style is almost casually virtuosic, reflecting the easy skill of a session veteran whose credits span a vast stylistic ...