Videos Recommended by Scott Lichtman

Lennie Tristano - Solo Piano

Lennie Tristano
Duration: 40:53
444 views

Lennie Tristano was blind yet a piano visionary. His pioneering approach to improvisation, characterized by long, unbroken melodic lines and intricate polyphony, remains a cornerstone of the cool jazz movement. This 1965 solo performance from Copenhagen’s Tivoli Gardens captures the pianist at his most daring and introspective. Listen for the independence of his hands as he reconstructs familiar standards, often ballads, into dense, contrapuntal tapestries. On more swinging tunes, Tristano’s left hand provides a steady pulse while the right unfurls endless jagged improvisations. The nine-song set begins with "Darn that Dream."

Auld Lang Syne

WDR Big Band
Duration: 04:08
1,158 views

New Year’s gives us the chance to combine the best of the past year with hopes for the coming period. Similarly, the (Westdeutscher Rundfunk) {{m: WDR Big Band = 96675}} and WDR Symphony Orchestra here give us a remarkably blended jazz/classical arrangement of Auld Lang Syne. Bask in the closed voice swells, advanced chordal extensions, contrapuntal motion, string and horn timbres, and gentle lilt offered by arranger Jörg Achim Keller and conductor Cristian Mǎcelaru. In the year ahead, may your music be a canvas where the stars take hold.

A Charlie Brown Christmas: Live at The Jazz Estate

The Commercialists
Duration: 58:20
1,600 views

The Commercialists are a Milwaukee, Wisconsin trio formed to share Christmas holiday cheer -- especially by playing music from A Charlie Brown Christmas (Fantasy Records, 1965) album and TV special. The group consists of Anthony Deutsch on piano and voice, Clay Schaub on bass, and Patrick Morrow on drums. Song highlights in this complete set include the swinging "Oh Tannenbaum," the wistful "Christmas Time is Here" and the pulsating "Skating." It's a perfect collection of sensitive jazz to play when friends come over for your holiday eve party or you’re sipping hot cocoa the day after. Recorded live at {{e: The Jazz Estate = 52881}} in Milwaukee.

Linus and Lucy: with the Jerry Granelli Trio

Jerry Granelli
Duration: 06:05
1,548 views

One of the most-recognized Christmas jazz tunes is “Linus and Lucy” from the 1965 cartoon TV special, A Charlie Brown Christmas. With this scene/song, the kids of the Peanuts comic strip shimmy freely amongst themselves at the school dance. Meanwhile, three of the characters jam on piano (Linus), guitar (Snoopy) and bass (Pig Pen). Jazz pianist and composer {{m: Vince Guaraldi = 7278}} created a shuffle-like eight-note groove that seeps from the drummer’s brushes and a pentatonic melody that is impossible to forget once you’ve enjoyed it. As seen in this 2014 video of "Linus and Lucy," {{m: Jerry Granelli = 7166}} (drums) was the last living member of the Vince Guaraldi Trio that recorded the original. Granelli was joined by {{m: Chris Gestrin = 21699}} (piano) and {{m: Simon Fisk = 22951}} (bass).

Essentiallly Ellington 2025: Sant Andreu Jazz Band, Round I

Sant Andreu Jazz Band
Duration: 24:31
2,108 views

Gratitude is due to all the high school/secondary school jazz programs that give teenagers the appreciation and fundamental skills needed to keep our music alive. One international youth group of note is {{m: Sant Andreu Jazz Band = 29110}}, based in Barcelona, Spain. It was founded in 2006 by Mr. {{m: Joan Chamorro = 33376}}. SAJB adeptly cover big band swing, Dixieland, bebop and bossa nova classics including vocal tunes. You'll find clips of them taking their music and joy to the streets. The SAJB has produced musicians of the stature of {{m: Andrea Motis = 33375}}, {{m: Rita Payés = 119593}}, {{m: Èlia Bastida = 139389}} and {{m: Joan Mar Sauqué = 130423}}, all of them with international careers. Here, they participate in the "Essentially Ellington" 2025 youth big band competition, sponsored by Lincoln Center Jazz in New York. Sant Andreu was noted as the first non-US band ever in the competition in the later rounds and was awarded second place. Listen with eyes closed and you may think of them as many do -- as professionals. The first blues runs 3:45, burning all the while.

Twincy Jones

Gudics Twins
Duration: 03:59
2,597 views

The Gudics Twins are a case of 1 plus 1 equaling 3. The Hungary-based duo, consisting of twin brothers Martin on electric bass and Marcell on drums, displays tons of technical proficiency and lock-step synchronization. When you combine this with their writing of muscular, up-tempo grooves, then the duo is simply explosive. Here is their original YouTube duo video, called "Twincy Jones." Listen for the drum rolls integrated across snare, toms and bass drum, and the shift in feel “on a dime” on bass. Their reputation is validated by the many elite jazz-rock, R&B, smooth jazz & classical stars that one or the other brother has performed with, including Frank Gambale, Chieli Minucci, Jesus Molina, Dave Koz and Hauser.

Epilogue

Franz von Chossy
Duration: 05:13
1,777 views

Franz von Chossy is a German-born pianist and composer who has made a name for himself across Europe and beyond, winning first prize at the Dutch Jazz Competition and 2nd prize at the Montreux Solo Piano Competition. His album, Mirror 9 (ZenneZ Records, 2025), takes the listener on a thrilling journey through modern jazz and classical music that’s well worth experiencing from start to finish. The cohering theme is the enneagram, a classification system that organizes human personality traits according to ways of seeing, feeling and being in the world. Orchestrated for sax, violin/guitar, piano, cello, bass and drums, each song on Mirror 9 represents a type of person in the enneagram, such as "the Individualist." Musically speaking, the overall work is riveting, delicately shifting timbre and energy from song-to-song and passage-to-passage. Here we have "Epilogue (Outtake)," suggesting the beauty and mysteries of being alive.