Interview News

Interview: Terry Teachout (Part 4)

Source: JazzWax by Marc Myers
December 6, 2009

Given Louis Armstrong's jolly nature, it's somewhat fitting that his last known recording would be a narration of The Night Before Christmas. The recording was made at his home in Queens, N.Y., on February 26, 1971. Louis would die five months later. Throughout his life, Armstrong understood the misery of his origins, the heights of his fame and his enormous good fortune along the way. But Armstrong wasn't a big believer in happenstance. He knew that everything he had achieved ...

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Interview: Terry Teachout (Part 3)

Source: JazzWax by Marc Myers
December 3, 2009

Greatness always finds itself under siege. It can't be helped. Sooner or later an impatient rival comes along who wants the attention and adulation afforded the top dog. In the late 1940s, this natural course of events pitted Dizzy Gillespie against Louis Armstrong. Since his days in Cab Calloway's band, Gillespie worked hard to stand out, and when recognition wasn't forthcoming in 1941, he kept raising the ante until a violent confrontation erupted with Calloway. Fortunately bassist Milt Hinton stepped ...

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A Fascinating Exhibition in Paris, France, That Pays Homage to Miles Davis (1926 - 1991)

Source: Michael Ricci
December 3, 2009

By Regine Coqueran-Gelin

The exhibition “We want Miles - Miles Davis le jazz face a sa legende" is on until the 17th January 2010 at the Musee de la musique in La Villette, in Paris, France. It is an unusual exhibition that gives jazz a rare opportunity to look inside itself and to be seen and heard. We go on a journey through the life and times of Miles Davis guided by the inspirational curator Vincent Bessieres. There is something ...

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Jazz It Up! TV Host Gregory Thomas Interviewed at AAJ

Source: All About Jazz
December 3, 2009

Gregory Thomas has been a well respected multimedia jazz journalist for over twenty years. A contributing writer to All About Jazz, Thomas is the host of Jazz It Up!, the first internet-based television station to devote itself exclusively to jazz, founded by George Moorer of Brownstone Digital, Inc. More than just a passive experience, however, Jazz It Up! is interactive, allowing its viewers to comment on the show while they're watching it.

Willard Jenkins spoke with Thomas recently as part ...

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Pianist Chano Dominguez Interviewed at AAJ

Source: All About Jazz
December 2, 2009

The meeting between Chano Domínguez and All About Jazz took place hours after the opening ceremony of the 41st Barcelona International Vol-Damm Jazz Festival, starring Wayne Shorter. Chano's enthusiasm is contagious: “Wayne Shorter's quartet is a fully fledged group with very clear objectives and led by one of the greatest living jazz legends," says Chano, who even though he was completing his next record with his flamenco quartet, did not miss the chimerical evening featuring the saxophonist, pianist Danilo Perez, ...

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Rodrigo Y Gabriela: An Adventure All Their Own

Source: JamBase
December 2, 2009

By: Kevin Schwartzbach

Rodrigo y Gabriela by Chris Strong There seems to be a burning desire, if not a philosophy of sorts, that pilots Rodrigo y Gabriela - a constant hunt for adventure. Practically this manifests itself not in the pursuit of fame, success, money or stability but rather a pursuit of the new, the unexpected, and the unknown, wherever that may lead. It is precisely that yearning that's ...

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Interview: Terry Teachout (Part 1)

Source: JazzWax by Marc Myers
December 1, 2009

Wall Street Journal drama critic, author, blogger and arts essayist Terry Teachout has managed to do the impossible. For the past six years, Terry has worked steadily on Pops: A Life of Louis Armstrong, which was published a week ago to rave reviews. What's remarkable is not that Terry wrote the book on the side while pounding out weekly drama columns and arts essays for leading newspapers and magazines. Or that he wrote an opera libretto (The Letter) that premiered ...

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British Vocalist Ian Shaw Interviewed at AAJ

Source: All About Jazz
December 1, 2009

Ian Shaw is a jazz singer. This simple description is accurate--it's how Shaw refers to himself--but it falls well short of doing the man justice. Ian Shaw is one of the most distinctive, original and creative jazz singers on the scene: he is a talented pianist and songwriter with a knack for working with top-quality musicians, an ability to seek out and cover some of the finest songs in contemporary music, and a showmanship that ensures that his live performances ...

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