1982 Pintura Hubro Music 2011 In a world where technology is becoming a bigger partner in everything, for better or worse, there are still some artists who strive for purity--at least within certain contexts. The trio that has come to be known as 1982, when it first came together for its self-tit
02.22.2012| Jazz Articles | admin
No CommentsAmong m: Ornette Coleman's periods of relative quiet, the turn of the 1960s into the 1970s may well be the most frustrating. More than three years of musical life--from the final Blue Note sessions of April-May 1968 to the release of Science Fiction on Columbia in 1972--remain shrouded in mystery an
02.22.2012| Jazz Articles | admin
No CommentsThis is the second entry for my new column at All About Jazz. I actually published What's The Point? in my own blog in January 2012. All About Jazz asked if I would be interested in writing for them; I was surprised and honored. I decided to update and rewrite the original article; because of the re
02.21.2012| Jazz Articles | admin
No CommentsThere was a point during Amir ElSaffar's study of Arabic music where he almost didn't come back to jazz. He had gone to Iraq to study maqam, the system of melodic modes in traditional Arabic music, in order to bring some of the concepts into jazz. However, the experience proved to be a deepening one
02.21.2012| Jazz Articles | admin
No CommentsSouthern California's jazz community has taken some brutal hits in the last few years. Too many of the brilliant artists who make the music have passed on, as have the venues they performed in. The Jazz Bakery's shuttering nearly three years ago was a breath- snatching body blow; Charlie Os abrupt c
02.20.2012| Jazz Articles | admin
No CommentsDays 1-2 | Days 3-5 Umbria Jazz Winter #19 Perugia, Italy December 28, 2011-January 1, 2012 Stan Tracey Trio m: Stan Tracey started the morning of his 85th birthday in the best possible way: playing jazz for an audience which was enthusiastic to share his music in such an iconic moment. Openin
02.20.2012| Jazz Articles | admin
No CommentsElla Fitzgerald and Count Basie Ella and Basie! Verve 1963 In July 1963, singer Ella Fitzgerald and pianist m: Count Basie's orchestra entered the studio for their first full-length recording session as a collective. They produced a gem for both veteran jazz fans and novices. The album features bo
02.20.2012| Jazz Articles | admin
No CommentsWith website traffic on the rise, the question "What is All About Jazz?" is finding its way with greater frequency to my inbox. For long-time readers, the answer is self-evident. For all others, here's the primer... The Big Picture Technically innovative and with a global perspective
02.20.2012| Jazz Articles | admin
No CommentsSaxophonist Steve Coleman's The Mancy of Sound (Pi Recordings, 2011) was one of the records of 2011. Thematically and structurally challenging on the one hand, dynamic and funky on the other, the music's contrasts reflect Coleman's view of the world, in all its complexity and simplicity. Coleman's f
02.20.2012| Jazz Articles | admin
No CommentsLisa Smirnova Die Acht Grossen Suiten ECM Records 2012 In late 1720, Saxon cum British composer/impresario George Friedrich Handel was having an intellectual property problem. In the middle of his efforts to begin the new opera season at King's Theater in Haymarket, London, he discovered that one
02.19.2012| Jazz Articles | admin
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