Jazz Articles about Carla Bley

About Carla Bley

Radio & Podcasts

The Music of Carla Bley, part 2; Small and Large Ensemble Recordings

by Larry Slater
April 11, 2025

The jazz world lost a true original free spirit in October of 2023 when t.he composer, arranger and pianist Carla Bley died at age 87. Carla led both big bands and smaller groups throughout the '70s, '80s and '90s, typically utilizing many of the same musicians, including the trombonist Gary Valente, saxophonists Andy Sheppard & Wolfgang Puschnig and trumpeter.Lew Soloff. Carla's music was uniquely hers--regardless of the size of the ensemble, the sound was pure Carla. Her big ...

Radio & Podcasts

The Music of Carla Bley, Part 1: The Early Years

by Larry Slater
April 4, 2025

The Jazz world is full of highly original, creative musicians who forged their own unique paths. Carla Bley, who died on October 17, 2023, followed her own highly individual path as a composer, arranger and bandleader. As one critic commented, “No album by the legendary composer, pianist, and bandleader sounds like anyone else could have created it." One of the most creative spirits in jazz, Carla Bley's music spanned decades and included big band, small ensemble and duet ...

Radio & Podcasts

New Releases, Mothers In Jazz, Birthday Shoutouts to Mary Lou Williams, Carla Bley & More

by Mary Foster Conklin
May 20, 2024

The Mothers Day broadcast includes new releases from Win Pongsakorn, Nicki Parrott, Brenda Earle Stokes, Yelena Eckemoff, Luke Sellick & Andrew Renfroe, Meg Okura, Wadada Leo Smith & Amina Claudine Myers and Haile Loren, with birthday shoutouts to Mary Lou Williams, Carla Bley, Tania Maria, Nadje Noordhuis, Judi Silvano, Andrea Superstein and Allegra Levy, among others. Happy listening and please support the artists you hear by seeing them live and online. Purchase their music so they can continue to distract, ...

Radio & Podcasts

A Belated Tribute to Carla Bley

by Jerome Wilson
April 3, 2024

Better late than never, this show is in tribute to composer Carla Bley who passed away in October 2023. It features Bley's work with her various small and large groups as well as with Charlie Haden's Liberation Music Orchestra. It also had her compositions performed by collaborators and admirers such as Billy Drummond, Nels Cline, Gary Burton, and Irene Schweizer. Playlist Henry Threadgill Sextett “I Can't Wait Till I Get Home" from The Complete Novus & Columbia Recordings ...

Radio & Podcasts

Carla Bley, Phil Haynes, & Dan Phillips

by Maurice Hogue
December 11, 2023

I pay tribute to the magnificent Carla Bley in this episode before moving on to drummer Phil Haynes and music from the extensive compilation he assembled to accompany his new memoir “Chasing the Masters: First Takes of a Modernist Drumming Artist." There's music from new releases by the Berlin-based Aut Records, a new two-drummer release by Chicago guitarist Dan Phillips, and drawing upon the ability to record asynchronously from far-off locations, drummer John Hollenbeck (in Montreal) plays with the Monash ...

Radio & Podcasts

Carla Bley: A View from her Hill, Part 2

by Ludovico Granvassu
November 14, 2023

Artistically ambitious, a rare woman in a male dominated scene, taking the road less travelled, or even the road never travelled, and with her feet well on the ground business-wise to ensure her artistic independence, Carla Bley played a key role in shaping today's music scene. This week we concentrate on some of her signature compositions, focusing on her “church" side, her big band side, her catchy side, her electric side, and some of the musicians that embraced her work ...

Radio & Podcasts

Carla Bley: A View from her Hill, Part 1

by Ludovico Granvassu
November 8, 2023

We could spend hours talking about the many things that made Carla Bley unique, and made her passing a huge loss for the jazz world. This week we decided to focus on her songbook, as interpreted by many of the peers that admired her work. Playlist Ben Allison “Mondo Jazz Theme (feat. Ted Nash & Pyeng Threadgill)" 0:00 The Gary Burton Quartet “Real Life Hits" Real Life Hits (ECM) 0:16 Host talks 8:44 Henri Texier Transatlantik Quartet “Ups ...