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Article: The Jazz Life

My Early Years With Bill Evans, Part 1

by Chuck Israels
June 25, 2020

Bassist and composer, Chuck Israels was raised in a musical family. Paul Robeson, Pete Seeger and The Weavers were visitors to his home and the appearance of Louis Armstrong's All Stars in a concert series produced by his parents in 1948 gave Chuck his first opportunity to meet and hear jazz musicians. Chuck studied the cello ...

Article: The Jazz Life

Making Friends with a Giant: How I first met Michael Brecker

by Bob Reynolds
April 8, 2020

Bob Reynolds is one of those great tenor saxophone players and teachers you should know but perhaps don't. He's in that class of great musicians like drummer Anwar Marshall, tenor player Tivon Pennicott, and Scottish guitarist Kevin Mackenzie who work steadily, gigging and releasing an increasingly excellent body of work you should definitely check out if ...

Article: The Jazz Life

How to Play a Tin Whistle Like Michael Brecker

by Peter Rubie
March 18, 2020

I was talking to a musician friend of mine the other day, asking her how her move from Brooklyn to Forrest Hills was going. She said, “I love it! I love the neighborhood and best of all, musically, I'm not running any more jam sessions at the moment, just doing gigs—and practicing! It's great."

Article: The Jazz Life

My First Visit to China

by Gene Perla
February 13, 2020

It all started with Dome. That's drummer Adam Nussbaum. Decades had gone by without the opportunity to musically connect with him, but then Dave Liebman and I decided to put together a quartet called New Light. In 2014, along with saxophonist Adam Niewood, we hit three NYC area jazz clubs followed by a concert at Clarke ...

Article: The Jazz Life

Scenes From a Life in Jazz, Part 2: Life on the Road

by Duncan Lamont
August 6, 2019

Part 1 | Part 2 Duncan Lamont was one of the UK's musical treasures. He passed away unexpectedly, a couple of days before his upcoming 88th birthday on July 4th, 2019, having done a gig at the 606 Club in London the night before. I'd known and admired who he was for years and ...

Article: The Jazz Life

To Dream the Impossible Dream: the quest for a music education

by Peter Rubie
May 22, 2019

I've been thinking a lot about how jazz is taught recently. I realize now, my search for a real musical education was not a simple thing, but a series of life changing moments. My son, on the other hand, is planning to study music in college after he finishes high school. Though it would fill his ...

Article: The Jazz Life

A Professional Jazz Musician? Really? What's That?

by Peter Rubie
February 27, 2019

I've been around as a musician long enough to understand when a promoter or booker ghosts me. “Yeah, sure, send me an email," they say in that sincere way that sounds like someone saying, “Of course I love you" just to shut you up. It comes with the territory, and a musician has to be Zen ...

Article: The Jazz Life

Jazz and the Rules of the Knife Fight

by Peter Rubie
January 15, 2019

There's a great scene near the beginning of Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, when Butch (Paul Newman) returns to the Hole in the Wall Gang and is challenged for leadership of the gang. As Butch and Harvey face off, Butch says to his enormous opponent, “Let's get the rules straight first." Harvey straightens in surprise ...

Article: The Jazz Life

Scenes from a life in Jazz

by Duncan Lamont
November 26, 2018

Part 1 | Part 2 About the author Duncan Lamont is one of the UK's musical treasures. I've known who he is for years, but finally through a friend, got to meet and play with him only this year (2018) at The Pizza Express in Soho, London. Sammy Cahn, the legendary lyricist, said about ...

Article: The Jazz Life

Does Talent Matter?

by Peter Rubie
October 6, 2018

A good friend of mine, who is a recognized great guitarist, once said to me as we were standing at the bar of the old Birdland, “Charlie Christian really wasn't that good a player, you know." I looked at him for a moment, then said with a smile, “Are you trying to pick a fight with ...