Jazz Articles about Sean Nowell

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Jaana Narsipur: The Re-Collection

by Pierre Giroux
June 11, 2026

There are few things more revealing than the songs we hold close from our formative years. Jaana Narsipur on The Re- Collection opens her musical scrapbook of Brit-pop and adult contemporary staples, reimagining them as living, breathing jazz narratives. The result is an album that feels deeply personal without tipping into self-indulgence. Pianist and music director Nicki Adams has taken Narsipur's intricate arrangements and expanded them into expressive jazz frameworks, leaving ample room for improvisation. Other first-rate ensemble members include ...

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Sean Nowell: The Kung-Fu Masters

by Glenn Astarita
May 6, 2013

New York City-based saxophonist Sean Nowell has found a home with the increasingly prominent West Coast modern jazz record label, Posi-Tone Records. His fourth release highlights the turbo-powered acoustic-electric band, The Kung-Fu Masters. Word has it that the ensemble has been creating a buzz in The Big Apple, and in recent times has acted like a jazz collective, featuring guest spots by formidable players such as guitarist Mike Stern and trumpeter Jeremy Pelt. Now that Nowell has firmed-up the core ...

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Sean Nowell: The Kung-Fu Masters

by Dan Bilawsky
February 18, 2013

The Kung-Fu Masters isn't simply another album for tenor saxophonist Sean Nowell; it's the recorded coming out party for a band and concept that he's been tweaking and promoting for years. Nowell has been field testing this project in New York jazz spots like 55 Bar, and his website contains various recorded performances of the group at the club dating back to 2009, but this marks the first official outing from this forward-thinking beast of a band. ...

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Sean Nowell: Stockholm Swingin'

by Bruce Lindsay
August 26, 2011

Sean Nowell has lent his talents to a diverse array of bands including Travis Sullivan's Bjorkestra and his own Kung-Fu Masters, working across numerous musical styles. On Stockholm Swingin', the tenor saxophonist's third Posi-Tone release, he stays in recognizably straight-ahead territory, bringing his impressively wide-ranging and imaginative tenor sound to a live quintet recording from the Swedish capital's Glenn Miller Café in November, 2010. Nowell and drummer Joe Abba, a longtime musical collaborator, are joined by a ...

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Sean Nowell: Stockholm Swingin'

by Dan Bilawsky
August 10, 2011

Tenor saxophonist Sean Nowell's third CD is an engaging set of music that was recorded live at the Glen Miller Café in Stockholm at the end of a fourteen-day tour through Sweden. Nowell's band mate in Travis Sullivan's Björkestra, drummer Joe Abba, and a solid crew of Swedish musicians help to flesh out this riveting set of music which, as the title implies, is built on, but not limited to, swinging selections. The program starts off with ...

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Take Five With Sean Nowell

by AAJ Staff
August 24, 2009

Meet Sean Nowell:Sean Nowell is a tenor saxophonist and composer from Birmingham, Alabama steeped in the southern traditions of blues, gospel, jazz, and funk fused with the complex harmonic and world rhythmic concepts that permeate the music of New York City.

While in Alabama, he sang in cathedrals with a national touring a cappella choir and was exposed to vocal music from Germany, Eastern Europe, and Africa. He received a BA in Composition from Berklee College of Music ...

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Sean Nowell: The Seeker

by Woodrow Wilkins
August 23, 2009

The group dynamic is a powerful force in jazz. Tenor saxophonist Sean Nowell recognizes that with The Seeker, a set of songs that demonstrate his abilities as a leader, songwriter and soloist, but doesn't ignore those around him. Nowell hails from Birmingham, Alabama. Versed in several styles of music, he has also traveled world-wide and has worked with musicians, actors, dancers and many others throughout his career. In addition to playing jazz in New York clubs, Nowell ...