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Obituary

Polish Jazz Guitar Master Jarek Smietana Passed Away On September 2, 2013

Polish Jazz Guitar Master Jarek Smietana Passed Away On September 2, 2013

Source: Cezary L. Lerski

Jaroslaw (Jarek) Smietana was born March 29, 1951 in Krakow, Poland. Jazz guitarist, composer and teacher. A graduate of Jazz and Popular Music faculty at The Karol Szymanowski Academy of Music in Katowice (Panstwowa Wyzsza Szkola Muzyczna w Katowicach). During his successful career, Jarek Smietana has always been very active on the Polish Jazz scene. He was a leader of many groups, including ‘Hall’, 'Extra Ball', 'Sounds', 'Symphonic Sound Orchestra', and 'Polish Jazz Stars Band’. He had a series of ...

Obituary

Sathima Bea Benjamin: 1936-2013

Sathima Bea Benjamin: 1936-2013

Source: Michael Ricci

Jazz artist Sathima Bea Benjamin's contribution to jazz was immense and her death was a sudden and sad day for music, say her family and friends. Benjamin, 76, died in her Claremont flat on Monday. The songstress was the former wife of jazz legend Abdullah Ibrahim and the mother of musician Tsakwe Ibrahim and internationally renowned rapper Jean Grae. Benjamin’s sister Edith Benjamin said her death was unexpected and she was alone at home when she died. “When we went ...

Obituary

Marian, Thanks for Everything

Marian, Thanks for Everything

Source: JazzINK by Andrea Canter

I just posted an obit for Marian McPartland, who passed away last night at age 95. But my thoughts about Marian are more personal than her interesting bio and extensive resume or 34-year catalog of Piano Jazz segments. Marian was one of the reasons my father enjoyed jazz. And in turn, my father was (and still is) the primary reason I enjoy jazz today. He introduced me early on to Dixieland and swing recordings. And later he introduced me to ...

Obituary

Marian McPartland (1918-2013)

Marian McPartland (1918-2013)

Source: JazzWax by Marc Myers

Marian McPartland, a spirited jazz pianist and self-effacing radio personality whose marriage to cornetist Jimmy McPartland in 1946 enabled her to move to the U.S. and work and record here steadily starting in 1948, died on Aug. 20. She was 95. When I interviewed Marian in 2009, I asked her how she first became interested in jazz while growing up in England. “I heard it every day on the radio in the 1930s," she said. “My younger sister was friends ...

Obituary

Marian McPartland, RIP

Marian McPartland, RIP

Source: Rifftides by Doug Ramsey

Two days following Cedar Walton’s passing, we have lost another splendid pianist, one of the world’s best known and best loved jazz artists. Marian McPartland died in her sleep just before midnight Tuesday in her home on Long Island, New York. A message from family members reports that she passed away, “smiling,knowing that she was surrounded by family and friends.” Ms. McPartland was 95. She developed from a shy English schoolgirl into a major influence in the music. It is ...

Obituary

Marian McPartland, Jazz Pianist and NPR Radio Staple, Dies at 95

Marian McPartland, Jazz Pianist and NPR Radio Staple, Dies at 95

Source: Michael Ricci

Marian McPartland, the genteel Englishwoman who became a fixture of the American jazz scene as a pianist and, later in life, hosted the internationally syndicated and immensely popular radio show “Marian McPartland’s Piano Jazz,” died on Tuesday at her home in Port Washington, N.Y. She was 95. Ms. McPartland was a gifted musician but an unlikely candidate for jazz stardom. She recalled in a 1998 interview for National Public Radio that shortly after she arrived in the United States in ...

Obituary

Jazz pianist Marian McPartland dies

Jazz pianist Marian McPartland dies

Source: Michael Ricci

Fans of jazz know her name — and her work. She had a particular specialty. Marian McPartland, jazz pianist and host of a longtime NPR radio program devoted to jazz, has died. NPR reports McPartland died of natural causes Tuesday night at her home on Long Island, N.Y. She was 95. McPartland, says NPR, reached an audience of millions in her career. The British-born McPartland started playing piano at age 3, toured with the USO and played jazz in clubs ...

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Obituary

Albert Murray: The Hero Of The Blues And Jazz

Albert Murray: The Hero Of The Blues And Jazz

Source: All About Jazz

By Greg Thomas Albert Murray, one of America's most significant writers and thought leaders of the 20th century on the blues, jazz and their influence on American culture, died in his Harlem home on the evening of August 18, 2013. In his non-fiction books The Omni-Americans, The Hero and the Blues, Stomping the Blues, The Blue Devils of Nada and From the Briarpatch File as well as in his novels Train Whistle Guitar, The Spyglass Tree, The Seven League Boots ...


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