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Jim Hall & Joey Baron: Conversations
by Dan Bilawsky
The art of the duo is nothing new to guitar legend Jim Hall. His one-on-one encounters with bassist Ron Carter have been wowing jazz fans for decades. More recent mano a mano musical encounters with equally sublime artists, like pianist Geoffrey Keezer, and guitarist Bill Frisell, have produced works that challenge but, ultimately, remain largely listenable. ...
Toots Thielemans: The Live Takes, Vol. 1
by Dan Bilawsky
While studio recordings can capture a musician's sound, live performances capture the essence of their being and the soul within the sound. When an iconic artist like harmonica giant Toots Thielemans isn't in the studio or creating a prearranged live recording, he's still traveling the globe and bringing his music into the clubs and concert halls ...
Dan Berg & The Gestalt: Manifesto
by Dan Bilawsky
The idea of creation through inclusion seems to be lost on a lot of musicians today. Jazz--like every other area of music--has become highly compartmentalized. A need to place oneself as a direct descendant of a particular artist or style often limits horizon-expanding opportunities and results in stunted creativity. Pianist/composer Dan Berg and his band, The ...
Jacob Melchior: It's About Time
by Dan Bilawsky
The art of the trio often takes shape in a variety of ways. Many of today's leading three-piece groups rely on a difficult-is-better approach, reveling in rhythmic trickery, harmonic complexity and melodic fragmentation. Others choose to distill everything down to bare essentials but, in doing so, run the risk of playing dumbed-down lounge jazz that's generic ...
Ehud Asherie: Organic
by Dan Bilawsky
Contrary to what some might believe, the designation of a musician as an organist or pianist does not have to be mutually exclusive. While some players choose to focus all of their time and energy on one of these instruments, many others prefer to branch out and try their hand at both. Fats Waller wasn't afraid ...
Boris Kozlov: Double Standard
by Dan Bilawsky
Selling a solo bass disc--both artistically and commercially speaking--is no easy feat. The demanding physical aspects of such a project, requiring a bassist to have the endurance to sustain perpetual motion and interest on such a behemoth of an instrument, is one problem. Another issue is general marketability. The average jazz fan might be quite happy ...
Danielle Eva: Road And Moon
by Dan Bilawsky
What do you get when you mix one part Lizz Wright, one part Alyssa Graham and a dash of Chiara Civello? The answer is vocalist Danielle Eva. Eva's music could be characterized as roots-infused jazz with a pop spin on the production, but plenty of other influences seep into the mix. A large cast of musicians ...
Roy Gaines and his Orchestra: Tuxedo Blues
by Dan Bilawsky
Blues singers and big bands used to go together like bread and butter, but somewhere along the way the singers must have become superfluous in the minds of the leaders or the public. Nowadays, large ensembles are still happy to play the blues--be they well-known warhorses or obscure gems--but husky-voiced singers are rarely seen delivering a ...
Scott Feiner: Accents
by Dan Bilawsky
While drummer-leaders don't usually get enough credit, pandeiro-leaders usually don't exist. The pandeiro--a small, handheld instrument that marries that best traits of a deeper-sounding, jingle-less frame drum and a tambourine--is a staple of Brazilian percussion. When Scott Feiner first encountered the instrument, during his first trip to Brazil in 1999, he immediately took to it. In ...
Andy Farber and his Orchestra: This Could Be The Start Of Something Big
by Dan Bilawsky
Whatever happened to big bands that swing? While the big bands of yesteryear provided music for dancing and a healthy appreciation for swinging soloists and hip arrangements, that isn't the case today. Many of the most popular--and critically acclaimed--large ensembles in modern times are winning fans with highbrow conceptualism and compositions that, as brilliant as they ...

