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Introducing Saxophonist Veronica Leahy
by Sanford Josephson
Growing up in Charlotte, NC, Veronica Leahy began playing classical piano at an early age. Then, when she was in the fourth grade, she heard a recording by tenor saxophonist Joshua Redman. “There was something about the saxophone that caught my fascination," she recalled. “It was kind a fusion record, but I did eventually go to ...
Introducing Trombonist Dan Harkins
by Sanford Josephson
Trombonist Urbie Green, who died in 2018 at the age of 92, was part of Woody Herman's Thundering Herd in the 1950s and won DownBeat's International Critics' Award for “New Star" in 1954. While revered among his colleagues, Green is not exactly a household name among the jazz listening public. But 22-year-old trombonist Dan Harkins lists ...
Introducing Saxophonist Anirudh Chakravarthy
by Sanford Josephson
Tenor saxophonist Paul Gonsalves' 27-chorus solo on “Diminuendo and Crescendo in Blue" with the Duke Ellington Orchestra at the 1956 Newport Jazz Festival is etched in jazz history. It energized the Newport audience and rejuvenated Ellington's band. So, the prospect of recreating that moment at Jazz at Lincoln Center's 2024 Essentially Ellington competition had ...
Introducing Vocalist Dani Assis
by Sanford Josephson
Vocalist Dani Assis' bio points out that he was born into a musical family. That is an understatement. “When I was younger," he said, “I didn't know there was anything else to life other than music because both my parents were musicians. My mom, Adriana Quadros, is a wonderful singer, and my father, Nanny Assis, is ...
Introducing Baritone Saxophonist Evan Gongora
by Sanford Josephson
Evan Gongora's father, Oscar, is a classical saxophonist and Founder and Director of The Vitral Saxophone Quartet. “So," recalled the 18-year-old Evan, “he put a saxophone in my mouth at a very early age." Evan “fell in love with the baritone saxophone. I loved the sound. I always listened for all the low sounds, songs built ...
Introducing Pianist Esteban Castro
by Sanford Josephson
Esteban Castro's parents gave him a toy piano when he was three years old. “I would just kind of gravitate toward it a lot," he recalled. “When I was four, they rented a piano and started getting me lessons. I got into jazz because I would really enjoy improvising and composing when I started playing. I ...
Introducing Saxophonist Olivia Hughart
by Sanford Josephson
Growing up in Lower Merion, PA, a Philadelphia suburb, Olivia Hughart started playing jazz saxophone in middle school. “My parents were big music lovers," she recalled. “We were listening to music all the time. They're huge Yellowjackets fans, so we'd always listen to Bob Mintzer playing. Also, Dexter Gordon, Larry McKenna, Melissa Aldana, and Roxy Coss." ...
Introducing Pianist Tyler Bullock
by Sanford Josephson
Tyler Bullock began taking classical piano lessons in his hometown of Nashville when he was four years old. Eight years later, he discovered jazz through an organization called the Nashville Jazz Workshop. “It's kind of similar to Jazz House Kids," he said. “They have classes and summer camps. It was a summer camp I went to, ...
Introducing Trumpeter Kellin Hanas
by Sanford Josephson
As a four-year-old, growing up in Wheaton, IL, Kellin Hanas was a fan of the TV show, The Wiggles. “There were four Australian guys in colorful shirts, and they would sing songs," she recalled. “In one of their shows, they brought out this guy with a little trumpet. I guess, from watching that, I had a ...
Introducing Vocalist Tyreek McDole
by Sanford Josephson
In 2018, Tyreek McDole, a student at the Osceola County School for the Arts in Kissimmee, FL, was playing classical percussion for a performance of the 1987 Stephen Sondheim/James Lapine musical, Into the Woods. “During rehearsal," he recalled, “one of the actors got sick. I had studied all the music, so I sang the part for ...
