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Catching Up With
Less formal than our standard interviews with a focus on an artist's recent recording project or tour.
Gary Bartz: Music For Expanding One's Own Mind
Some jazz musicians are the embodiment of a specific historical period. Their performances conjure memories of the very ideals, passions, and philosophies that characterized an era. This is certainly true of American saxophonist Gary Bartz. After joining Art Blakey & the Jazz Messangers and collaborating with McCoy Tyner on the pianist's tenth album, Expansions (Blue Note, 1968), Bartz joined Miles Davis' band in 1970, playing an active role in recording the groundbreaking album Live-Evil (Columbia). Bartz's diverse musical ...
read moreCrosscurrents Trio: East meets West
The Crosscurrents Trio is comprised of three master improvisers: Dave Holland, Zakir Hussain and Chris Potter. Emanating from a multicultral septet project, which was the brainchild of Zakir Hussain, the trio developed out of the desire to explore the cultural and musical connections between the East and the West. From this perspective, music is not only a form of self-expression but rather a way of understanding reality through the deepening of human relations based on mutual respect and dialogue.
read moreMiguel Zenon Celebrates Sonero!
As the song's lyrics about freedom were sung, the child's conscience consumed them whole. This child, ten years young at the time, had never heard the singer, Ismael Rivera, or the song, “Las Tumbas," before, but, three decades later, this initial impression remains in Miguel Zenon's memory. “I was taken by the song's overall structure and the way his voice worked within the song," said Zenon, an alto saxophonist, composer, and band leader, whose music has earned him ...
read moreMike Vax: Getting Vaxinated
Mike Vax has one of the shortest surnames in jazz music—he's “tied" with Tommy Vig and Jack Six for that honor. However, those familiar with his activities as a well-respected lead trumpeter and soloist with Stan Kenton, a stalwart member of the famous Dukes of Dixieland, the leader and man behind the annual tour of the Stan Kenton Legacy Orchestra, and as an ardent proponent of jazz education know that what the name Vax lacks in length, Vax delivers in ...
read moreEliane Elias: Chanteuse
Eliane Elias has glistened across the global music scene since first coming to the United States in 1981, playing fiery jazz, beautiful pop tunes, and warm and charming music from her native Brazil. She became established as a major jazz pianist. But as her career has grown and her popularity has endured, she's become known as something else. Singer. She probably always sang, even as a child and then a child prodigy, studying piano at age ...
read moreMatthew Whitaker: A New Voice On Jazz Piano
Matthew Whitaker is an American jazz pianist. Blind since birth, he has performed at venues including Carnegie Hall, The Kennedy Center, Lincoln Center, and The Apollo Theatre, where aged ten, he opened for Stevie Wonder. Though he is only eighteen years old, multi instrumentalist Whitaker has come a long way to get where he is today, overcoming adversity and dedicating countless hours to honing his craft. Now with his declarative label debut Now Hear This (Resilience Music, 2019), ...
read moreShalosh: Onwards and Upwards Indeed
Shalosh is the Hebrew word for “three," and also a powerhouse piano trio from jny: Jerusalem with a dynamic rhythm section featuring drummer Matan Assayag and bassist David Michaeli with Gadi Stern on the keys. The group formed in 2014 when Stern and Assayag, who've known each other since childhood, joined with Michaeli for the trio's debut record. Their emphasis on co-leadership has been evident since the beginning. These days they are enjoying a significant surge in recognition ...
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