Interview News

Drummer Alvin Fielder Interviewed at AAJ

Source: All About Jazz
July 16, 2007

Drummer Alvin Fielder grew up in Mississippi, but the fruition of his musical career in Chicago came in the 1960s, when he worked with Sun Ra and appeared on Roscoe Mitchell's legendary Sound (Delmark, 1966) LP, one of the first AACM recordings to be released. After returning to a pharmacy career in Mississippi in the late 1960s, Fielder began working regularly with New Orleans saxophonist Kidd Jordan in the Improvisational Arts Ensemble.

A relationship that spans over thirty years, Fielder ...

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Barbara Sfraga & Center Search Quest Tune in Live to Hear Radio Interview KRML, July 11th

Source: Jim Eigo, Jazz Promo Services
July 11, 2007

Tune in live to hear radio interview KRML, July 11th...full info below... L.A. TIMES (CRITIC'S CHOICE, Sunday, July 9th edition) ...Always eager to bring new life to the most familiar songs, Sfraga has gotten together with the gifted quartet Center Search Quest to develop new material in a style eclectic enough to combine elements of cutting-edge improvisation with R&B-tinged rhythms. ~ Don Heckman BRICK'S PICKS (this week in LA Weekly) Timelessness Frozen in Time, is a funkier, groovier concoction... Still, ...

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Bill Bruford Interviewed at AAJ

Source: All About Jazz
July 10, 2007

For twenty years drummer Bill Bruford has been the engine of Earthworks, one of Britain's most inventive and original jazz bands. Earthworks slowly revolving door has, over the years, seen the coming and going of some of Britain's finest young jazz talent, from keyboardist Django Bates and saxophonist Iain Ballamy to ex-Chick Corea sideman and current reed/flute maestro Tim Garland, and current pianist Gwilym Simcock. The fostering of such youthful talent has brought comparisons between Bruford's Earthworks and Art Blakey's ...

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Dan Willis Interviewed at AAJ

Source: All About Jazz
July 9, 2007

You'll have to look long and hard to find a better tenor saxophonist than Dan Willis.

You'll have to look long and hard to find a better oboeist than Dan Willis.

Dan Willis is a wonderful soprano saxophone player. He's a terrific English horn player. His bass clarinet and piccolo playing is fine. He's more than competent with more obscure ethnic instruments such as zirna and dudek.

Perhaps most importantly, Dan Willis is a great composer. But instruments, and the ...

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Paul Taylor Interviewed at AAJ

Source: All About Jazz
July 5, 2007

Saxophonist Paul Taylor became interested in music at the age of seven, but it was not until he joined a local high school band that he decided to make it a career. He is perhaps best known for his signature smooth jazz vibe and instantly recognizable sound. There is a common thread of romance on all of his songs that enraptures the listener. A fixture in the smooth jazz community, he has recorded with many artists including pianist Keiko Matsui, ...

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Jane Monheit Interviewed at AAJ

Source: All About Jazz
July 3, 2007

When an artist breaks through and achieves the chart-topping success that Jane Monheit has with Surrender (Concord, 2007), it's easy to make the assumption that it came as a result of radio airplay, an aggressive publicity campaign and a big dose of good luck. What's forgotten is how many one-night stands in half-filled clubs you have to endure before the gravy train pulls in. Not quite yet thirty years old, Monheit is an experienced and exciting artist who belongs in ...

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Darrell Grant Interviewed at AAJ

Source: All About Jazz
July 2, 2007

Pianist Darrell Grant believes in the power of music and art to change people, and through that path effect positive change in the world. That path may be the road less traveled, but he is not alone. After a time of learning his trade and then establishing himself as a musician with something to say he's been striving to move his art down that road over the years.

His newest music, captured on Truth and Reconciliation (Origin Records, 2007), is ...

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Matt Shulman Interviewed at AAJ

Source: All About Jazz
June 28, 2007

Trumpeter Matt Shulman has been hailed by The New York Times as, “A new voice from jazz's emerging generation." His style is thought by cohorts of fans to be an amalgamation of Miles Davis and Radiohead. He is an up-and-coming virtuoso, comparable to a modern day Chet Baker with a far-seeing vision. Down Beat Magazine has called his signature sound, “Zen-like," a sound which consists of sincere, intimate vocals and ethereal multiphonics. His approach to the trumpet is one of ...

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