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Jazz Articles about Langston Hughes II
Something Blue: In The Beginning
by Michael Ambrosino
Jazz is powered by many things. Perhaps most notably, the expansive variety of independent record labels representing some of the more inspiring aspirations of the idiom. Reflecting the grit, passion and often sheer audacity to exist within an industry that makes little room for jazz, independent labels have established an expanse of music that exemplifies the very essence of the art form. For the past 30 years, Posi-Tone Records has championed this independent spirit, shining a light on a rich ...
Continue ReadingHoward University Jazz Ensemble 2023: Nefertiti
by Jack Bowers
The Howard University Jazz Ensemble was formed almost half a century ago, in 1975, by Fred Irby III, its first--and, so far, only--music director. Every year since 1976, the ensemble has recorded and released an album to showcase its prowess and growth under Irby's baton. This year's entry, Nefertiti, is a tribute to the legendary saxophonist Wayne Shorter, many of whose compositions have become jazz standards, including the album's title song. Interestingly, Shorter, a twelve-time Grammy winner ...
Continue ReadingHoward University Jazz Ensemble: HUJE 2022
by Jack Bowers
Recordings by the superb Howard University Jazz Ensemble have been surfacing like clockwork each year since shortly after the orchestra was formed in 1975 by its first (and only) music director, Fred Irby III. Sometimes the albums have overall themes, while others (such as this one) are dedicated to one or more of the university's distinguished alumni. Andrew Nathaniel White III, a Washingtonian who graduated cum laude from Howard in 1964, was a multi-instrumentalist whose notable career ...
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