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Year in Review

YEAR IN REVIEW

2018: The Year in Jazz

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The year 2018 was a busy one for the jazz world. The genre's version of the #MeToo movement resulted in a new Code of Conduct and other efforts to make the music workplace more equitable. International Jazz Day brought its biggest stage to St. Petersburg, Russia. The Thelonious Monk Institute of Jazz, which ran a high-profile performance competition for more than 30 years and co-produces International Jazz Day, announced a significant name change. The New Orleans financial scandal focusing on ...

YEAR IN REVIEW

Most Read Articles: 2018

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All About Jazz tracks how often an article is read, and the articles listed below represent our most popular in 2018. Interviews Leonardo Pavkovic: Nothing is Ordinary by Chris M. Slawecki Published: March 16, 2018 History of Jazz Monk's Trumpets by Matt Lavelle Published: March 2, 2018 Interviews Paula Shocron: Paths to a New Sound by Jakob Baekgaard ...

YEAR IN REVIEW

Most Read Album Reviews: 2018

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All About Jazz tracks how often an album review is read, and the reviews listed below represent our most popular in 2018. After The Fall Keith Jarrett / Gary Peacock / Jack DeJohnette by Karl Ackermann Published: February 13, 2018 Music IS Bill Frisell by John Kelman Published: March 9, 2018 Your Queen Is A Reptile Sons ...

YEAR IN REVIEW

Popular Tracks: 2018

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All About Jazz tracks how often a featured song is heard, and the following represent the most popular in 2018. If you missed them the first time around, give them a listen now, and enjoy! Sway Sara LaCombe Sophisticated Lady Saraphim Records Featured: August 26, 2018 Ascension Roman Miroshnichenko Ascension Self Produced Featured: July 21, 2018 Shatter ...

YEAR IN REVIEW

In Memoriam: Jazz Musicians Who Passed in 2018

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As 2018 comes to a close, we wanted to take a moment to remember the extraordinarily gifted musicians who made an indelible mark on jazz. With sadness, we bid farewell to NEA Jazz Masters Bob Dorough, Nancy Wilson and Cecil Taylor as well as trumpeters Hugh Masekela, Tomasz Stanko, Jerry González and Roy Hargrove. Marlene VerPlanck Instrument: Vocals Born: November 11, 1933 Died: January 14, 2018 Marlene Paula VerPlanck was an American ...

YEAR IN REVIEW

Mark Sullivan's Best Releases of 2018

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2018 was another year with too many favorites to choose from. I'm struck by the number of “extended ensembles" on my list: groups of eight or more, including a chamber orchestra plus jazz group. It was also an exceptionally good year for RareNoiseRecords, making it hard for me to stop at three albums. This list is in chronological order but not ranked. MMO-Ensemble Any Day Now Øra Fonogram Norwegian saxophonist/composer Martin Myhre Olsen's ...

YEAR IN REVIEW

The Top Ten Christmas Jazz Albums Of All Time

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As temperatures drop and days grow short, Winter is once again upon us. For those looking to listen to the sounds of the season without resorting to December's relentless slew of glossy, generic cash-grabs, jazz can be a breath of fresh, wintry air. You won't find (many) singers on this list, since most people already know and have records by Frank, Dean, Ella, Karen, and more. Instead, I've put together jazz's greatest Christmas albums from the golden age to today. ...

YEAR IN REVIEW

Mike Jurkovic's Best Releases Of 2018

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Fully steeped as I am in two guitars, bass, and drums, I keep listening, learning and thankful the jazz steels my spine. A quick thank you to my patient editors here at All About Jazz and a special thank you to all the musicians who have contacted me from around the world. Let's not stop creating. It's our only defense to the soul gripping chaos that passes these days as living. Nik Bartsch Awase

YEAR IN REVIEW

John Kelman's Best Releases of 2018

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Once again, the chronic health problem that has reduced my writing pace to a crawl continues without any respite. My best of the year lists have traditionally been predicated upon having reviewed the releases chosen, but with only a relative handful of reviews to choose from this year (and with those choices, more than ever now, always representing music that moved me in a big way), there's simply no way to come up with the big lists I used to ...

YEAR IN REVIEW

Mark Werlin's Notable Hi-Res Releases in 2018

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2018 has been a good year for jazz music in hi-res audio formats. ECM, Songlines, Intakt, ACT Music, Firehouse 12, Foné, Mack Avenue, TRPTK, and other independent labels released newly-recorded and recent catalog albums in high resolution through download vendors, Bandcamp, and the labels' own websites. One US music vendor lists more than 300 jazz titles that became available as hi-res downloads in 2018. High resolution audio has become increasingly affordable and widespread, with hi-res DACs included in portable and ...

YEAR IN REVIEW

Jerome Wilson's Best Releases Of 2018

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It may be unwieldy to keep a large jazz ensemble together for economic reasons but this year was still full of outstanding big band recordings, whether done through commissions, arrangers working with established orchestras or even actual working ensembles. Several of the releases on my list are examples of that. Also this year had the usual strong statements from younger, up-and-coming musicians as well as greybeards like Charles Lloyd and Wayne Shorter who proved that creative genius does not fade ...

YEAR IN REVIEW

John Sharpe's Best Releases Of 2018

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Here are 12 new releases which stood out among the 200 or so discs that I heard this year, in no particular order. It's worth noting that Japanese pianist Satoko Fujii set herself the challenge to release a CD every month during 2018, to mark the milestone of her 60th birthday. Her output has been so remarkably consistent that a whole Year End list could be given over to her alone. I've reluctantly restricted myself to just two.