Monk

MONK

by Larry Koenigsberg
March 8, 2004

by Laurent de Wilde Marlowe & Company (New York, 1997)

This is a biography with the flavor of a novel. Lacking any of the scholarly apparatus customary in a historical work -- no index, footnotes, bibliography, discography, or acknowledgments -- it nevertheless imposes a knowing and occasionally stylish sensibility on its treatment of the seminal jazz composer and pianist Thelonious Monk (1917 - 1982). To a large degree, though, it is less a biography than a meditation on ...

Monk: Harmony of Odd Numbers

by C. Michael Bailey
June 25, 2003

San Francisco Bay Area fixtures Chuck Bernstein, Si Perkoff, and Frank Passantino join forces to produce the finest Thelonious Monk recital of the new millennium. Gleefully, this trio has avoided the tried and true Monk classics; so do not expect to hear "’Round Midnight," "Blue Monk," or “Straight, No Chaser." Familiarity with these pieces only helps, but listening to this disc will readily provide you with all of the musical elements characteristic of the composer.

Spearheaded by drummer Chuck Berstein, ...

Smoke Jazz Club Announces October 2025 Lineup Including A Two-week Thelonious Monk Festival With Orrin Evans, Terri Lyne Carrington, Melissa Aldana, Joe Lovano, And More

Source: AMT Public Relations
September 5, 2025

SMOKE Jazz Club today announced its concert schedule for October 2025. The month’s capstone is a two-week Thelonious Monk Festival (Oct 8-19) celebrating the unparalleled genius of the legendary composer/pianist Thelonious Monk (born 10.10.17) with performances by some of today’s top artists including Melissa Aldana, winner of the 2013 Thelonious Monk International Jazz Saxophone Competition. Other highlights this month include the return of club audience favorites Nicholas Payton, Steve Davis, and one of the greatest organ trios Goldings/Bernstein/Stewart. For the ...
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Acclaimed String Quartet ETHEL And Legendary Bassist Ron Carter Present Reflections On Monk And Bach, Zankel Hall At Carnegie Hall, March 13, 2025

Source: AMT Public Relations
December 17, 2024

World premiere performance of MONK SUITE — compositions and arrangements for string quartet and bass featuring the music of Thelonious Monk, Duke Ellington and J. S. Bach String quartet ETHEL ’s Carnegie Hall debut The “avatar of ‘post-classical’ music—the virtuosic string quartet ETHEL (The New Yorker)” and legendary bassist Ron Carter join forces for an unforgettable classical-jazz mashup performance at Zankel Hall at Carnegie Hall on Thursday, March 13, 2025, at 7:30 p.m.Centered on the music from Monk Suite: Kronos ...
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Announcing Smoke Jazz Club’s October Line-up Including A Special Tribute To Monk, Smoke Sessions Records Album Release Celebration By Peter Bernstein, And More

Source: AMT Public Relations
August 27, 2024

Entering its second quarter century as committed as ever to pure jazz (All About Jazz),” SMOKE Jazz Club continues its 25th anniversary season with a month of both legendary artists and young jazz luminaries. October begins with the award-winning David Weiss Sextet (Oct 2) celebrating the release of Auteur, its first album in a decade. Peter Bernstein convenes a remarkable all-star quartet featuring legendary drummer Al Foster to celebrate the release of his stunning album Better Angels on the club’s ...
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Chromatic Harmonica Virtuoso Randy Weinstein Explores Seven Of Monk’s Enduring Favorites On 'HarmoniMonk'

Source: Jim Eigo, Jazz Promo Services
May 17, 2024

Randy Weinstein is a veteran musician who has mastered both the chromatic and diatonic harmonicas, performing jazz, blues and other styles of music in his career. When the COVID epidemic hit, Weinstein used his free time to become expert at recording techniques, and to dedicate himself to recording Thelonious Monk compositions, but in his own way. For HarmoniMonk, Weinstein performs fresh and memorable renditions of seven of Monk’s pieces, creating inventive arrangements that cast a new light on the vintage ...
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Thelonious Monk in Paris, 1969

Source: JazzWax by Marc Myers
January 24, 2023

On December 15, 1969, pianist Thelonious Monk was in Paris on tour with Charlie Rouse (ts) Nate Hygelund (b) and Austin “Paris" Wright (d), with Philly Joe Jones (d) playing on Nutty and Blue Monk. Hygelund was still a student at the Berklee School of Music in Boston. And Wright was only 17. Monk had asked his father, bassist Herman Wright, if he could take his son along on the road. Nine months ago, the complete broadcast of the quartet ...
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Jazz Musician of the Day: Thelonious Monk

Source: Michael Ricci
October 10, 2022

All About Jazz is celebrating Thelonious Monk's birthday today!

With the arrival Thelonious Sphere Monk, modern music— let alone modern culture—simply hasn’t been the same. Recognized as one of the most inventive pianists of any musical genre, Monk achieved a startlingly original sound that even his most devoted followers have been unable to successfully imitate. His musical vision was both ahead of its time and deeply rooted in tradition, spanning the entire history of the music from the “stride” masters ...
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Jazz Musician of the Day: Thelonious Monk

Source: Michael Ricci
October 10, 2021

All About Jazz is celebrating Thelonious Monk's birthday today!

With the arrival Thelonious Sphere Monk, modern music— let alone modern culture—simply hasn’t been the same. Recognized as one of the most inventive pianists of any musical genre, Monk achieved a startlingly original sound that even his most devoted followers have been unable to successfully imitate. His musical vision was both ahead of its time and deeply rooted in tradition, spanning the entire history of the music from the “stride” masters ...
read more

Thelonious Monk: Brussels, 1963

Source: JazzWax by Marc Myers
September 30, 2021

I'm loving these newly colorized jazz videos on YouTube. The trend began earlier this year, and the number of videos being given the hue treatment keeps multiplying. I'm not sure how or why so many are getting this makeover, but they certainly are move exciting and lively than the black and white originals. Case in point: In March 1963, the Thelonious Monk Quartet performed in Brussels as part of a European tour. Here's an hour of the group in color... ...
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Thelonious Monk Quartet: Jazz 625

Source: JazzWax by Marc Myers
May 27, 2021

My favorite Thelonious Monk quartet featured Charlie Rouse on tenor saxophone, Monk on piano, Larry Gales on bass and Ben Riley on drums. The group was recorded extensively on tour and in the studio from 1964 to 1968. On March 14,1965, they were at the Marquee Club in London before a live audience for the BBC2's Jazz 625. The TV show's title refers to the BBC2's broadcast on 625-lines UHF rather than the 405-lines VHF system used by the other ...
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Jazz Musician of the Day: Thelonious Monk

Source: Michael Ricci
October 10, 2020

All About Jazz is celebrating Thelonious Monk's birthday today!

With the arrival Thelonious Sphere Monk, modern music— let alone modern culture—simply hasn’t been the same. Recognized as one of the most inventive pianists of any musical genre, Monk achieved a startlingly original sound that even his most devoted followers have been unable to successfully imitate. His musical vision was both ahead of its time and deeply rooted in tradition, spanning the entire history of the music from the “stride” masters ...
read more