Jazz

When pianist/composer Richard Sussman's extraordinary debut album Free Fall was first released over 30 years ago, it quickly became a classic. The reunion of this incredible band, consisting of renowned trumpeter Tom Harrell, saxophonist Jerry Bergonzi,...

When pianist Bill Charlap featured Tom Harrell at a recent gig with his trio at New York's Jazz Standard, he summarized the trumpeter's genius as concisely as anyone could. "It is our honor and privilege," he announced, "To share the bandstand with a man...

When people hear George Kelly play for the first time, the normal reaction is to wonder why they haven't heard of him before. There are many musicians around who, like George Kelly, are fine players but somehow never got the recognition due them. Born in...

When originally released in 1956, Chet Baker Sings caused some considerable confusion among critics. Was Chet a trumpet player who sang or a singer who played the trumpet? the truth was probably a mixture of both, since he performed both with equal...

When one listens to the songs of George Brassens, explains Rodolphe, it's an obviousness that the Quintet of Hot Club of France could have played that. One did not pay attention too much during his living, because people were attracted by the texts, but...

When Mobtown Modern Music Series curator Brian Sacawa invited Darryl Brenzel to adapt Igor Stravinsky's radical orchestral ballet "The Rite of Spring" for a modern 17-piece jazz big band, no one really knew what was going to happen. There were, after...

When Mister Rogers' Neighborhood premiered in the 1960s, no one would have expected it to have the impact it continues to have to this day. One of the things that made it special, was the music. Host and songwriter, Fred Rogers, found his perfect...

When Mark Wingfield, Jane Chapman and Adriano Adewale came to breathe life into these ornate and dazzling compositions they collectively embarked on a process that would have them prospecting in the eddying silt of imagination and intuition. As each...

When Mark Murphy died in October 2015, the obituaries claimed that he had been almost the last of his kind. Murphy, it was said, was a man who embodied the spirit of postwar bohemia, the 'On The Road' Kerouac generation who fought against the straight...

When listening to and watching John Lee perform, there are qualities that you consistently hear and see. Lee exudes an unerring sense for swing, shows an instinct for knowing when to play intricate lines or an economy of notes, and above all, radiates...

When jazz comes to the Opera... A surprising approach, in a swing version, to the great classics of opera (Rossini, Puccini, Bellini, Tchaikovsky, Massenet, Wagner, Offenbach, Bizet, Prokoviev...) brilliantly arranged and performed by the soloists of the...

When it comes to technique, speed, power, and the ability to put together incredible drum solos, Buddy Rich lived up to the billing of 'the world's greatest drummer.' His was a career that spanned seven decades, beginning when Rich was 18 months old and...