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Results for "Toshiko Akiyoshi"
Let's Give Thanks for the DVD
by Jack Bowers
As there isn't much to report--well, nothing, actually--about big bands this month, I'll use the space to say a few words in praise of the DVD. Yes, I know there aren't a whole lot of jazz DVDs on the market, especially big band videos, but there are a few, and I'm grateful for every one of ...
Moody's Mood Was Always Happy
by Jack Bowers
James Moody, whose noble spirit and radiant personality were as impressive as his exploits on saxophone and flute for more than six decades, died December 9, 2010 from pancreatic cancer at his home in San Diego. He was 85 years old. To anyone who was lucky enough to meet him, the Moody hug ...
Musical Talent Is (Now and Then) All in the Family
by Jack Bowers
The induction of almost the entire Marsalis family (father Ellis, piano, and sons Wynton, trumpet; Branford, saxophones; Delfeayo, trombone; and Jason, drums) set me to thinking about how musical talent sometimes runs in families. In the pop world, almost everyone knows about the Jacksons, the Kings, the Osmonds and others. The same is true in jazz, ...
Take Five With David Bixler
by AAJ Staff
Meet David Bixler: Alto saxophonist, composer, and educator David Bixler has been steadily garnering attention for his unique playing and writing. Since moving to New York City from his native Wisconsin, David has performed and toured with the orchestras of Lionel Hampton, Toshiko Akiyoshi, and Duke Ellington. In 2000 he joined ...
Buselli-Wallarab Jazz Orchesta / Vaughn Wiester / Chie Imaizumi
by Jack Bowers
Buselli--Wallarab Jazz OrchestraMezzanineOwl Studios2010 After veering slightly off-course recently with several albums devoted in part to backing singers, the outstanding Indianapolis-based Buselli-Wallarab Jazz Orchestra is back in a more pleasing instrumental groove on Mezzanine, profiling the compositions and arrangements of co-leader / trombonist Brent Wallarab. The first ...
Toshiko Akiyoshi: The Music Keeps Her Young
by Jack Bowers
Pianist Billy Taylor, now in his eighty-ninth year, once recorded an album titled Music Keeps Us Young. I'm a firm believer in that and could point to several notable examples, one of whom is composer / pianist / bandleader Toshiko Akiyoshi who was in Albuquerque and Santa Fe last month with husband Lew Tabackin to headline ...
Mike Mainieri: Crescent
by Mark Corroto
Nearly forty-five years after the death of John Coltrane, jazz players still feel compelled to negotiate his music. Young cats wrestle with the harmonic complexities and attempt to conquer the saxophonist icon's mighty energy. Luckily, players like vibraphonist Mike Mainieri and saxophonist Charlie Mariano have made peace with the legend. Their document, in this two-disc set, ...
Lorraine Feather: The Girl With the Lazy Eye
by Carl L. Hager
While writing the tune “Scrabble" for her recently released CD Ages (Jazzed Media, 2010), lyricist and singer Lorraine Feather's songwriting partner, Dick Hyman, had an unusual request that bordered on a dare: could she work the name of the venerable pianist/composer's family friend Dushka into the lyrics? After all, the middle section of his stride composition ...
Albuquerque Jazz Orchestra Rekindles Cuban Fire Suite
by Jack Bowers
On June 5, 2010, with the temperature in Albuquerque hovering around 100 degrees, the Albuquerque Jazz Orchestra couldn't have wished for a better time to perform Johnny Richards' incendiary Cuban Fire suite, first recorded in 1956 by the Stan Kenton Orchestra. The sold-out concert was the opening event in the city's annual Jazz and Blues Under ...
Lew Tabackin: Jazz na Hrade
by Ken Dryden
Lew Tabackin began to make his mark in the '60s, touring or recording with Maynard Ferguson, the Thad Jones/Mel Lewis Orchestra, Duke Pearson, Joe Henderson, Elvin Jones, Donald Byrd and The Tonight Show Band. From 1968-69, he was a main soloist with the Danish Radio Orchestra. He helped his wife, Toshiko Akiyoshi, to form her long-running ...
