Listen to this week’s playlist on YouTube and Spotify For years, the Brazilian bossa nova queen Rosa Passos has had a devoted global following, including fans who proclaim she is Brazil’s answer to Ella Fitzgerald or the female Joao Gilberto. She began playing piano at age 13, but after listening to Gilberto and Dorival Caymmi, she abandoned …
Think of the songwriters whose work comprises the cannon of jazz standards, and names like Gershwin, Rodgers, Berlin and Porter immediately come to mind. On his new album, “Black, Brown, and Blue,” pianist Eric Reed argues for a revision of that canon to focus on Black and Brown composers, songwriters whose work originates …
Listen to this week’s playlist on YouTube and Spotify Think of the songwriters whose work comprises the cannon of jazz standards, and names like Gershwin, Rodgers, Berlin and Porter immediately come to mind. On his new album, “Black, Brown, and Blue,” pianist Eric Reed argues for a revision of that canon to focus on Black and …
Listen to this week’s playlist on YouTube and Spotify Vince Mendoza, who has won seven Grammy Awards and been nominated 36 times, reunited with his longtime collaborator Metropole Orkest to record “Olympians,” a select collection of the composer/conductor’s works written for the orchestra over their 28-year collaboration. Born out of the ashes of World War II, the …
Listen to this week’s playlist on YouTube and Spotify By now the international jazz community knows the story that Maqueque came out of a jam session at the Cohiba Hotel in Havana that introduced renowned jazz musician Jane Bunnett with young women musicians and composers who had recently graduated from the Cuban conservatory. Over ten years …
Listen to this week’s playlist on YouTube and Spotify “Makram” is the latest album from vibraphonist Joe Locke. Featuring a selection of new compositions and a return to his celebrated quartet (pianist Jim Ridl, bassist Lorin Cohen and drummer Samvel Sarkisyan), the disc is the latest addition to Locke’s extensive leader discography, an album the incorporates …
Listen to this week’s playlist on YouTube and Spotify The entire city of New Orleans becomes one big party during Mardi Gras, but Delfeayo Marsalis and the Uptown Jazz Orchestra know that there’s no place to be quite like “Uptown on a Mardi Gras Day.” With their latest album, the UJO provides the ultimate soundtrack for Carnival …
Listen to this week’s playlist on YouTube and Spotify Pianist/composer Fred Hersch and vocalist/bassist Esperanza Spalding can both be counted among the most acclaimed and inventive artists in modern jazz. The Village Vanguard is the music’s most revered venue, having played host to countless legendary musicians and beloved live recordings. The duo and the club …
