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Rodney Whitaker: Mosaic: The Music of Gregg Hill

by Paul Rauch
In their fourth collaboration on Origin Records, bassist and bandleader Rodney Whitaker and Central Michigan composer Gregg Hill strike gold once again, backed by a formidable gathering of musicians. Hill's music has experienced a surge in interest due to his prolific releases on Origin, which have featured musicians in and around the impressive jazz faculty roster at Michigan State University, a program with Whitaker at the helm. Hill's compositions have a notable sound uniquely tied to both urban ...
Continue ReadingRodney Whitaker: Mosaic: The Music of Gregg Hill

by Michael Dease
At just fifty-six years young, Rodney Whitaker has cemented his legendary status as a sought-after bassist extraordinaire and, arguably the pre-eminent jazz educator of his generation. The Detroit, Michigan native, recently elected to the hallowed ranks of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, that includes such innovators as Benjamin Franklin and Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., continues to firmly establish himself as a superb interpreter of original music, notably through his fruitful association with composer Gregg Hill. Mosaic is ...
Continue ReadingUNCG Jazz Ensemble I with Tim Warfield

by La-Faithia White
The University of North Carolina at Greensboro presented the Miles Davis Jazz Festival which featured the UNCG Jazz Ensemble I with special guest Tim Warfield. UNCG Jazz Ensemble I is regarded as one of the premier jazz ensembles in the nation and the flagship of the Miles Davis Jazz program. The ensemble performs big band arrangements spanning the entire history of jazz, from the 1920's to the modern era. Tim Warfield, a native of York, Pennsylvania began studying the alto ...
Continue ReadingTim Warfield: One For Shirley

by C. Andrew Hovan
Jimmy Smith and Larry Young have continually set the benchmark for creative endeavors involving jazz and the Hammond B-3 organ, Smith being acknowledged for bringing the technical virtuosity of be-bop to the instrument and Young for expanding the vernacular based on the forward-thinking implications of John Coltrane. Somewhere in between these two, a colorful range of styles proliferated throughout the '50s and '60s, from the cocktail jazz of Milt Buckner to the soulful grooves of “Big" John Patton. But it ...
Continue ReadingTerell Stafford: Between Two Worlds

by Neil Duggan
Family is a major theme on Terell Stafford's Between Two Worlds, with compositions dedicated to his daughter, mother and wife. His band has been playing with him so long they must feel like family too. They include tenor and soprano saxophonist Tim Warfield, pianist Bruce Barth, drummer Johnathan Blake and bassist David Wong. In fact, Wong plays with Stafford every week as part of the renowned Vanguard Jazz Orchestra. Percussionist Alex Acuña is the new member of the family.
Continue ReadingRodney Whitaker: Oasis: The Music of Gregg Hill

by Jack Bowers
Oasis is the third time around for bassist Rodney Whitaker and music written by fellow Michigander Gregg Hill, following Common Ground (Origin 82780) and Outrospection (Origin 82819). Personnel is the same as on Common Ground (Terell Stafford, trumpet; Tim Warfield, saxophone; Bruce Barth, piano; Dana Hall, drums; Rockelle Fortin, vocals) with Hall and Fortin returning from Outrospection (on which Fortin is listed as Rockelle Whitaker). Hill's compositions are for the most part firmly grounded in customary post-bop ...
Continue ReadingTim Warfield: Spherical: Dedicated to Thelonious Sphere Monk

by Andrew Luhn
Thelonious Monk tribute albums are certainly nothing new in the jazz world. As early as 1961, Eddie “Lockjaw" Davis and Johnny Griffin recorded Lookin' at Monk and pianist Bud Powell recorded Portrait of Thelonious. Even while his career was still going strong, Monk's importance as a composer and influence on other jazz musicians was already clear. Today Monk's legendary status as one of jazz's most important figures is still clear. As far as I know, there is no hard data ...
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