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Music and the Creative Spirit
Buddy Montgomery Jazz Legacy Project Benefit & Concert
Buddy Montgomery Jazz Legacy Project Benefit & Concert Hillside Club Berkeley California September 10, 2016 The sold out first annual Buddy Montgomery Jazz Legacy Project Awards Benefit and Concert (BMJLP) was an exquisite evening that fulfilled the long held vision of Charles “Buddy" Montgomery. It recognized well deserving Bay Area veteran artists like Jeff Chambers and John Santos, and also championed rising young jazz talent. The high lights included the BMJLP award presentations ...
read moreRita Draper Frazão: A Fine Artist's Representations Of Creative Processes In Music (Part 2)
Part 1 | Part 2 This portrait of Portuguese fine artist Rita Draper Frazão is related to the recent Carte Blanche of percussionist Hamid Drake's at Amsterdam Bimhuis (read my February 2016 review). As a collaborative follow-up this article is published together with a series of portraits Rita Draper Frazão created of musician and others involved in or related to the Carte Blanche of Hamid Drake: From Chaos To A Dancing Star. This is Part 2 of my ...
read moreRita Draper Frazão: A Fine Artist's Representations Of Creative Processes In Music (Part 1)
Part 1 | Part 2This portrait of Portuguese fine artist Rita Draper Frazão is related to the recent Carte Blanche of percussionist Hamid Drake's that took place at the Amsterdam Bimhuis (read my February 2016 review). As a collaborative follow-up this article is published together with a series of portraits Rita Draper Frazão created of musician and others involved in or related to the Carte Blanche of Hamid Drake: From Chaos To A Dancing Star. Rita Draper Frazao's ...
read moreDr. Basil Peter Toutorsky, Classical Composer & Pianist
The Toutorsky Mansion is a five-story, 18-room house located at 1720 16th Street, NW in the Dupont Circle neighborhood of Washington, D.C. As of 2012, it is the location of the embassy of the Republic of the Congo. The 12,000-square-foot (1,100 m2) mansion was completed in 1894 for U.S. Supreme Court Justice Henry Billings Brown, who paid $25,000 in 1891 to buy the land from the Riggs family, and spent $40,000 on its construction. The house ...
read moreCurtis Mayfield: After the Rain
Throughout the passageways of my youth, perhaps no other voice was as critically important. When I questioned my own existence in a predominantly white school and community, it was his voice and music that carried me through. During my saddest and most vulnerable moments, he filled me with hope and the strength to face another day. When I was locked inside the torments of my own mind, he would free me from the shackles of despair. The Reverend Andrew Young ...
read moreNeil Young and the 2010 Bridge School Benefit
The Bridge School Benefit has become one of America's most anticipated annual musical events. Promoted by Pegi and Neil Young, to assist children with severe physical impairments and complex communication needs, this year's two day benefit promised to be one of the most remarkable of its 24 year history. With the first reunion of Buffalo Springfield in 42 years, it didn't disappoint. In 1986, Pegi and Neil sought an education for their son, Ben who was born ...
read moreJohn Gilbreath: Within Earshot
Over the past 90 years, a music scene has been developing in the northwest corner of the US that has provided a fertile imprint on jazz. It may not be as critically important within a historical context as that of New York and New Orleans, but Seattle has a landscape that has been developed and nurtured by the caring and delicate hands of a diversity of creative individuals. It has developed its own abstract voice, its own individual personality and ...
read moreThe Spiritual Beauty of Marilyn Crispell
There have been a number of pianists within the classical and jazz genres whose work have remained majestic and timeless, but never has there been a pianist quite like Marilyn Crispell. Never has a pianist been able to reach such extraordinary depths of spirituality and complexity. Nevertheless, levels of creativity rarely equate to levels of popularity and therefore, it's not surprising that visionary works remain largely misunderstood and unappreciated during their own time. Such is the case with Marilyn Crispell.
read moreFred Anderson: In Loving Memory....
I had the opportunity to interview with Fred Anderson on several occasions. In each instance I walked away with the feeling that I was a better person for the time I spent with him. It was his wisdom, his generosity of spirit, his knowingness that our time here on this planet was short at best, and his humble appreciation to have been able to play music during this lifetime.He had a gentle soul that was much larger than ...
read moreGreg Osby: A Candid Conversation
I have found that with forward-thinking artists, their music can be a direct reflection of who they are. That's largely my interest in these very creative individuals--in how they think and how they view the world through their own eyes. Greg Osby is fearless in expressing his convictions, and I think you'll find that his compositions reflect that very character. He is a creator and a fresh voice in a world that has a tendency to fall victim to the ...
read moreTerry Currier: A Coalition for Music Freedom
There is something almost sensual about the independent record store experience. Perhaps it's the element of discovery with each new find, or the common bond and passion shared with each other. Maybe it's the inspiration of hearing music that seems to arouse all the senses. Or perhaps it's the understanding that there is something more warm and soulful about music played from a treasured record than from a disposable downloaded file. Whatever it is, there is something magical that happens ...
read moreGeorge Lewis: A Power Stronger Than Itself
As an improviser, educator and an explorer of musical expression, George Lewis has become one of the significant contributors towards the respect and recognition Jazz is finally receiving as one of America's most notable and distinguished cultural achievements. He recently published what I consider to be one of the most critical books on Jazz and African American culture. I also consider the AACM to be the most culturally important group of artists that ever came together in the history of ...
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