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MULTIPLE REVIEWS April 14, 2019

Piano in Solitude

There are people who play the piano, and then there are some who create a whole other state of consciousness with it. While these three may not be among the more common household names in the jazz world, here they each offer a master class in the craft to make you wonder just why the hell not. Lewis Porter Solo Piano Next to Silence 2019 Bill Evans this ain't. There are some ...

RADIO January 23, 2019

Kenny Werner on his Life and Career

By Leo Sidran

Kenny Werner might try to talk you out of becoming a jazz musician. “Please don't become a jazz musician just because you think you should. That's like saying you think you should become a typewriter salesman. Nobody needs you. I would do everything I could to talk them out of it and if they couldn't be talked out of it then I would say go for it. It's got to be a thing of extreme love because it doesn't make ...

RADIO January 14, 2019

Kenny Werner, Miles Davis & more

By Joe Dimino

The wise veteran New York Pianist Kenny Werner starts this week's show with a cut off his latest CD The Space. We then go into a track that was a huge influence on Kenny's perception and approach to jazz with Miles Davis's “In a Silent Way." We also profile the great band Butcher Brown and a wonderful veteran drummer like Chip White with a track off All Star Ensemble Volume 5. We continue the hour of jazz ...

RADIO November 13, 2018

Art Ensemble of Chicago, Federica Michisanti and other great new releases

By Ludovico Granvassu

Sometime ago everybody kept saying that the CD was dead. Judging by the growing number of new records that keep coming out at an increasing pace, the CD is still alive and kicking! Intrestgingly, as the number of new jazz albums continues to grow, this has not been at the expense of the average quality of the new album. This week we'll go through a heap of spectacular new releases, with a special emphasis on albums featuring ...

ALBUM REVIEWS November 6, 2018

Kenny Werner: The Space

By Dan Bilawsky

Need can be the greatest enemy of the improvising artist, as the hunger to prove oneself, the self-inflicted imperative demanding the addressing of a naked canvas, and a deep-seated desire to create all tend to have a stunting effect, engendering the exact opposite result of what it means to truly live in the moment. Only with an embrace of the space, a true release from conscious decision-making, can an artist paint without caution and explore to the fullest. Pianist Kenny ...

ALBUM REVIEWS November 5, 2018

Kenny Werner: The Space

By Dan McClenaghan

Let's ruminate on the state of jazz piano in the year 2018. It is a rich time, when perhaps a dozen hugely talented artists have reached the peaks of their artistry. Keith Jarrett, Marc Copland, Brad Mehldau, Bobo Stenson, Denny Zeitlin, Fred Hersch and a handful more are creating some of the richest and most beautiful and original sounds imaginable with eighty-eight keys. Geniuses all. With a perhaps lower profile among this exclusive group is Kenny Werner, who ...

LIVE REVIEWS May 10, 2016

Bray Jazz 2016

By Ian Patterson

Bray Jazz Various venues jny:Bray, Ireland April 29 -May 1, 2016 With first-rate music festivals mushrooming all over Ireland, Bray Jazz remains a highlight in a crowded calendar. Now in its seventeenth year, Bray Jazz' tried and tested format strikes a pleasing balance musically, with jazz, folk and world musics in the afternoon and evenings catering for the traditionalists and modernists alike. The weekend program, whilst full, is not overly cluttered, and mornings are left ...