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Introducing Bassist Liany Mateo
by Sanford Josephson
Liany Mateo started playing the bass when she was 13 years old. “They opened up a performing arts school in Jersey City," she recalled. “At that time, I knew I wanted to play an instrument. I was into '70s punk music, and all of my favorite people in those bands were the (electric) bass players. I ...
Introducing Drummer Mecadon McCune
by Sanford Josephson
Mecadon McCune has been immersed in music since he was born. His father is veteran jazz pianist Brandon McCune; his mother, Christine Clemmons-McCune, is an opera singer. “My dad made sure that I was learning piano since I was about four years old," he said, “but growing up I really did not like learning the piano. ...
Introducing Jazz House Kids All-Stars
by Sanford Josephson
Bassist Laura Simone-Martin of Lawrenceville, NJ, is heading back to Carnegie Hall's NYO Jazz Program for the second consecutive year. “Last year," she said, “gave me that first-hand experience of what it is like being on the road for so long and how much energy goes into it." On Saturday night, June 3, Simone-Martin ...
Introducing Vocalist April Varner
by Sanford Josephson
The 1957 Verve album, Ella Fitzgerald Sings the Duke Ellington Song Book, contained 38 tracks, including some of the best-known tunes associated with Ellington such as “Solitude," “Satin Doll," and “I'm Beginning to See the Light." Contestants in this year's sixth annual Ella Fitzgerald Jazz Vocal Competition, sponsored by Blues Alley Jazz, were asked to select ...
Introducing Saxophonist Kevin Huang
by Sanford Josephson
When Kevin Huang was in middle school, he started attending the New Jersey Performing Arts Center's TD Jazz for Teens program. “There were lots of incredible people there," he said, “not only the mentoring from the actual teachers but the community of people I got to play with--my fellow peers, who were incredible musicians." He spent ...
Introducing Violinist Jacquie Lee
by Sanford Josephson
When Jacquie Lee was nine years old, she went with her family to see violinist Regina Carter at Birdland. “I had never felt a connection to jazz at that point," she recalled, “but I saw someone who was a woman and a violinist playing jazz. I idolized her for a long time. We had family connections, ...
Introducing Drummer Maria Marmarou
by Sanford Josephson
At the 2023 Jazz at Lincoln Center Jack Rudin Championship, held January 14 and 15 at JALC's Rose Hall, drummer Maria Marmarou, a graduate student at Temple University's Boyer College of Music and Dance, received the Earl Hines Outstanding Musician Award. She also shared Outstanding Drums honors with Nygel Anderson of Florida State University and Pete ...
Introducing Saxophonist Anthony Ware
by Sanford Josephson
When Anthony Ware was a fourth grader at the Hillcrest Elementary School in Somerset, NJ, he had the opportunity to select a musical instrument to learn. “We had our pick of instruments," he recalled. “I had always seen this saxophone in my father's closet, and I'd heard stories--'Your father played saxophone.' I fell in love with ...
Introducing Pianist Samvit Prem Singhal
by Sanford Josephson
Growing up in Delhi, India, Samvit Prem Singhal always had a love for jazz, although he played classical piano. “I was playing piano since I was three years old," he recalled. “I started playing Indian classical music. Then, I transitioned into western classical music. But my dad had some jazz CDs, and, in the back of ...
Introducing Bassist Adi Meyerson
by Sanford Josephson
As a teenager in Israel, Adi Meyerson played the electric bass and was “into fusion and rock, listening to Jaco (Pastorius) and stuff. I was about 17, and I think it was a family friend who gave me a bunch of Sonny Rollins albums. I kinda listened to them and was like, 'What's that? How do ...
