New York, NY -- Pianist, composer and band leader Vijay Iyer and the All About Jazz Orchestra are featured on the latest episode of Jazz it Up! Iyer's trio grooves with rhythmic and harmonic pizzazz in the wake of the release of his new recording, Historicity, and the big band whose members coordinated efforts online at AllAboutJazz.com come to New York to play together for the first time in public.
As in every episode of Jazz it Up!, the featured artists are interviewed during the second of their two songs. Iyer describes his artistic objectives and the elements of his aesthetic in musical terms, his pianistic influences and the inspiration of John Coltrane as well as how his work, in a trio setting, fits within the jazz tradition. Drummer Jay Norem, a primary organizer of the All About Jazz Orchestra, explains how and why the group came together, as he and his digital and musical mates are seen onstage striving for swing.
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JAZZ NEWS: Jazz it Up! reports on the 13th annual Jazz Journalists Association Awards ceremony live from the Jazz Standard in New York City. Howard Mandel, president of the JJA, explains the import of the organization and the event to host Greg Thomas, who also interviews Frank Wess and Rudresh Mahanthappa, winners of flutist and alto saxophonist of the year, respectively.
VINTAGE: Saxophone colossus Sonny Rollins performs “There Will Never Be Another You," ripping through the changes in double time, with drummer Alan Dawson and bassist Niels Henning Orsted Pederson live in Denmark in 1965.
JAZZ INSIDER: Andre Kimo Stone Guess, who manages Christian McBride and other artists through his firm Guess Works, details his background in the arts as a finance and production man, including his tenure as a Vice President with Jazz at Lincoln Center.
JAZZ CAMEOS: Leah, Paquito D'Rivera, Terence Blanchard, and Jon Hendricks all urge viewers to “Keep Swingin'!"
Jazz it Up! dedicates this episode to the memory of drummer Eddie Locke and Ron Walker, long-time manager of drumming legend and jazz vocalist Grady Tate.
Next on Jazz it Up!
Join us for the final episode of season 2 of Jazz it Up! and witness Christian McBride boom his bass with a big band at the Iridium club, and Eric Person front a trio in Brooklyn, breathing fire into his alto sax. Along with our customary vintage segment, viewers will see host Greg Thomas interview jazz legend Jon Hendricks for the National Jazz Museum in Harlem. There's also news coverage of a book signing in Harlem: historian and scholar Robin D.G. Kelley is joined by pianist Randy Weston at the Dwyer Cultural Center for a discussion of his acclaimed new biography, Thelonious Monk: The Life and Times of an American Original.
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About Jazz it Up!
Jazz it Up!, a production of BrownStone Digital, Inc., contains live performances, news, and discussions by emerging to established artists who play the array of styles that make jazz. Program segments are designed to engage viewers through different angles of insight into the art form. Our editing style appeals to a younger demographic through special effects, and to a mature audience by syncing the edits with the transitions in the music.
This is the only online music series that incorporates: interactive streaming video; mp4 sound technology; banner and video ads; features for sharing and feedback, with a distribution model exploiting the low-cost viral nature of email. Any user of Apples iPhone can view our half-hour episodes.
Hosted by jazz writer, producer and broadcast journalist Greg Thomas, the first season of Jazz it Up! was watched by 1,000,000 people in 15 countries. The first nine episodes of season 2 have garnered an additional 2 million viewers, for a two-season total of 3 million viewers. In October 2008, the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences and the Consumer Electronics Association nominated Jazz it Up! for a Global Media Award in the Outstanding Long Form Entertainment category.
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