Sep 10, 2024 4:08 PM
Herbie Hancock: On Top Where He Belongs
On April 12 of this year, Herbie Hancock turned 84. How many people do you know in their 80s who are still working full…
Hancock has a new project on the horizon but says he will not put it out until he’s ready.
Sep 10, 2024 4:08 PM
On April 12 of this year, Herbie Hancock turned 84. How many people do you know in their 80s who are still working full…
Benny Green gave a breathtaking solo performance at this year’s San Jose Jazz Summer Fest.
Aug 20, 2024 12:12 PM
San Jose Jazz, a nonprofit, has been around since 1986 and produced its first jazz festival 34 years ago in 1990. It…
Charles Lloyd, seen here at the 2024 New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival, makes DownBeat Poll history!
Jul 11, 2024 1:20 PM
The incomparable Charles Lloyd swept the 72nd Annual DownBeat Critics Poll, becoming the first artist ever to earn…
Herbie Hancock (left), Jahari Stampley, Connor Rohrer and Paul Cornish at this year’s competition, which took place Oct. 14–15 in New York.
Nov 1, 2023 12:15 PM
Jahari Stampley, a 23-year-old from Chicago, won the 31st annual Herbie Hancock Institute of Jazz International Piano…
Herbie Hancock’s Sept. 28 set at the Hollywood Bowl fell in line with his smartly crafted concert menus of recent years.
Oct 4, 2022 2:13 PM
Musicians of a certain age and public visibility can lay claim to homecoming rites at special, sentimental venues,…
The Irving S. Gilmore International Piano Festival features Diana Krall.
Apr 26, 2022 3:13 PM
Billed as “North America’s largest gathering of keyboard artists,” the 15th biennial Irving S. Gilmore…
Gerald Clayton directs the Monterey Next Generation Jazz Orchestra.
Oct 19, 2021 2:08 PM
Though reduced to just a third of its usual capacity, the 64th Monterey Jazz Festival (Sept. 24–26) somehow pushed…
Herbie Hancock, and his keytar, drew standing ovations during his Chicago homecoming concert.
Sep 14, 2021 1:35 PM
As Herbie Hancock demonstrated in his recent return to performance, he is a musician of multitudes. The youthful…
Galactic will headline the John Coltrane International Jazz and Blues Festival.
Jul 13, 2021 4:21 PM
The jazz festival season for 2021 has certainly been a moving target, mostly for the good. With a host of late-breaking…
The Monterey Jazz Festival, one of many reopening for late summer.
Jun 15, 2021 11:43 AM
In what has to be billed as the great jazz reopening, festivals are coming back online, many with late-breaking plans…
A cavalcade of stars will be performing on Friday, April 30.
Apr 27, 2021 11:04 AM
The 10th annual International Jazz Day will be celebrated Friday, April 30, and this year’s event promises to be more…
Resonance Records’ Sonny Rollins album, Rollins In Holland, will be available as part of Record Store Day Black Friday (Nov. 27). The album’s packaging includes many photos, including this shot of bassist Ruud Jacobs (left) and Rollins performing on May 5, 1967.
Nov 30, 2020 10:06 AM
For vinyl collectors, the day after Thanksgiving traditionally has been a time to rush to a local independent retailer…
Dinner Party is the recorded collaboration of producer 9th Wonder, saxophonist Kamasi Washington, multi-instrumentalist Terrace Martin and keyboardist Robert Glasper.
Jul 21, 2020 2:50 PM
Friendships forged between young musicians can lead to magnificent collaborations. Sometimes those collaborations…
Harry Connick Jr. and his daughter Georgia, a filmmaker, are featured in the TV special “United We Sing: A Grammy Tribute To The Unsung Heroes,” airing on June 21.
Jun 16, 2020 4:36 PM
Harry Connick Jr., Herbie Hancock, Wynton Marsalis, Branford Marsalis, Jon Batiste, John Fogerty, Andra Day and Dave…
Vocalist Dianne Reeves is among the jazz stars who will take part in an April 30 live-streamed concert to celebrate International Jazz Day.
May 1, 2020 8:46 AM
Vocalist Dianne Reeves, guitarist John Scofield, organist Joey DeFrancesco and saxophonist Igor Butman are among the…
Vocalist Ledisi is one of the artists featured on International Jazz Day from Australia, a concert special that premieres on PBS on Friday.
Apr 24, 2020 11:01 AM
With the concert industry at a complete halt due to the coronavirus pandemic, jazz fans are turning to their computer…
Gard Nilssen Acoustic Unity performs at the 2019 Molde Jazz Festival in Molde, Norway, joined by trumpeter Ambrose Akinmusire (left) and saxophonist Joshua Redman.
Mar 24, 2020 10:49 AM
“Hans-Olav Solli and the crew at Molde International Jazz Festival let my dreams come true as the artist-in-residence…
Dee Dee Bridgewater is the artist-in-residence for this year’s Detroit Jazz Festival.
Mar 23, 2020 4:37 PM
The Detroit Jazz Festival, set to run Labor Day weekend, announced its 2020 lineup Monday.
“True to our mission,…
Herbie Hancock (left) and Evgeny Pobozhiy at the Herbie Hancock Institute of Jazz International Guitar Competition on Dec. 4 in Washington, D.C.
Dec 4, 2019 8:32 PM
Evgeny Pobozhiy, a 30-year-old from Seversk, Russia, took first place at the Herbie Hancock Institute of Jazz…
The Afterlife, by the trio The Comet Is Coming, will be available on Friday, Nov. 29, as part of the Record Store Day Black Friday retail event.
Nov 25, 2019 4:59 PM
Record collectors and vinyl fans are checking their bank accounts and mapping out their shopping routes for Black…
Robert Glasper (foreground) and Herbie Hancock in a scene from the documentary Blue Note Records: Beyond the Notes.
Nov 13, 2019 4:32 PM
Swiss-born director Sophie Huber’s Blue Note Records: Beyond the Notes (Eagle Vision), which coincides with the…
Norah Jones is among the artists who pay tribute to Joni Mitchell on a new album and DVD.
Aug 15, 2019 10:15 AM
The two sold-out concerts staged in November at Los Angeles’ Dorothy Chandler Pavilion, both in honor of…
Alfred Lion (left), Dexter Gordon and Francis Wolff
Aug 23, 2019 5:14 PM
As label president Don Was told DownBeat in a recent phone interview from his office in the Capitol Records Building in…
Antonio Hart helms a big band workshop with the New South Wales Public Schools Stage Band inside the Sydney Opera House.
May 14, 2019 9:37 AM
Intense listening that results in meaningful communication and deep connection has been a philosophical touchstone for…
Vocalist Lizz Wright performs April 30 at Arts Centre Melbourne’s Hamer Hall in Australia.
Apr 20, 2020 10:22 AM
Acknowledgments of Australia’s indigenous Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people were peppered throughout the…
Frank Caruso (1948–2019)
Feb 24, 2020 10:16 AM
Chicago-based pianist and educator Frank Caruso died suddenly on April 22 at a relative’s home in Cary, Illinois. He…
Back On Indiana Avenue: The Carroll DeCamp Recordings, an album of previously unreleased work by Wes Montgomery, is among the recordings being released Saturday for Record Store Day.
Apr 14, 2019 11:36 AM
In the United States, the middle of April means two things: Record Store Day and Tax Day. Vinyl LP collectors must…
Artistic co-director Herbie Hancock speaks during the 2018 International Jazz Day in St. Petersburg, Russia.
Mar 27, 2019 2:39 PM
For two days in Melbourne, Australia, during April, International Jazz Day will celebrate the genre’s worldwide…
Concord Label Group president John Burk (left), Monk Competition winner Tom Oren and Thelonious Monk Institute chairman Herbie Hancock
Dec 13, 2018 10:50 AM
The winner of this year’s Thelonious Monk Institute of Jazz competition, Tom Oren, hails from Tel Aviv, Israel—a…
Saxophonist and 2018 Kennedy Center Honoree Wayne Shorter delivers a speech Dec. 1 at a State Department dinner in Washington, D.C.
Dec 3, 2018 1:40 PM
Over the course of his fruitful career, prolific saxophonist and composer Wayne Shorter has amassed numerous accolades,…
Herbie Hancock (left) and Igor Butman shake hands after their performance during the International Jazz Day 2015 Global Concert at UNESCO on April 30, 2015, in Paris, France.
Nov 7, 2018 12:37 PM
The Thelonious Monk Institute of Jazz announced Wednesday that it will be called the Herbie Hancock Institute of Jazz…
Thundercat performs at the 39th Montreal International Jazz Festival.
Jul 16, 2018 10:02 AM
Last year, Montreal native Leonard Cohen was immortalized in a 20-story mural in the city’s downtown. Cohen’s image…
Buster Williams’ new album is titled Audacity.
Oct 24, 2020 7:06 PM
On hiatus from his long-running gig with singer Nancy Wilson, bassist Buster Williams, then 25, suddenly got an offer…
Ben Williams (left), Oleg Butman and James Morrison perform in St. Petersburg, Russia, during the April 30 celebration of International Jazz Day.
Oct 26, 2018 4:45 PM
Amplifying cultural exchange and diplomacy more than igniting heated sociopolitical debates has become an unspoken rule…
Pianist Herbie Hancock is International Jazz Day’s ambassador and artistic co-director.
Oct 26, 2018 4:47 PM
St. Petersburg, Russia, will serve as the global host city for the annual International Jazz Day, with events being…
Herbie Hancock’s appearance on Austin City Limits is set to air nationally on PBS on Jan. 20.
Jan 19, 2018 3:55 PM
Herbie Hancock’s responsible for a few firsts in jazz and popular music. And now he’s recorded his debut appearance on…
Wynton Marsalis is the newest inductee in the DownBeat Hall of Fame.
Nov 7, 2017 12:00 PM
DownBeat is proud to announce the results of its 82nd Annual Readers Poll.
Wynton Marsalis topped the Trumpet…
Herbie Hancock, seen here at the 2017 International Jazz Day Global Concert in Havana, Cuba, performed in Atlanta on Oct. 17.
Oct 23, 2017 12:37 PM
At 77, multiple Grammy winner, NEA Jazz Master and musical ambassador Herbie Hancock refuses to become a legacy act.…
The Chicago Jazz Fest (left) and Detroit Jazz Fest will take place over Labor Day Weekend. Admission to both festivals is free.
Sep 3, 2017 8:43 PM
Jazz fans within earshot of Chicago and Detroit might want to pack up the car and head into town, as both cities play…
Herbie Hancock performs at the Hollywood Bowl in Los Angeles on Aug. 23
Sep 5, 2017 3:18 PM
A young native of Los Angeles and an adopted icon of the city shared a double bill at the Hollywood Bowl on Aug. 23…
Vocalist Bobby Carcassés, percussionist Yaroldy Abreu and bassist Esperanza Spalding perform Spalding’s composition “I Adore You” in Havana on April 30. The BET network will broadcast the concert Sunday (June 18) at 2 p.m. EST.
Jun 19, 2017 2:18 PM
If you weren’t fortunate enough to attend the 2017 International Jazz Day Concert in Havana, or if you didn’t watch the…
Herbie Hancock will teach his first ever online class exclusively with MasterClass.
Jun 16, 2017 10:12 AM
The online education platform MasterClass has announced today composer/keyboardist Herbie Hancock will teach his first…
Adel Gonzáles (left), Orlando “Maraca” Valle, Yandy Martinez, Sixto Llorente and Héctor Quintana perform at the International Jazz Day Global Concert at the Gran Teatro de la Habana Alicia Alonso in Havana, Cuba, on April 30.
May 10, 2017 12:38 PM
After engaging with Marcus Miller’s popping electric bass ostinato, Ambrose Akinmusire’s piquant trumpet harmonies…
Herbie Hancock performs at the International Jazz Day “All-Star Global Concert” in Havana, Cuba, on April 30.
May 1, 2017 10:22 AM
The International Jazz Day “All-Star Global Concert” took place in Havana, Cuba, on, April 30, and is now archived…
Herbie Hancock (left) and Igor Butman shake hands after their performance during the International Jazz Day 2015 Global Concert at UNESCO on April 30, 2015, in Paris, France.
Apr 30, 2017 9:56 PM
The sixth annual International Jazz Day will be celebrated worldwide on Sunday, April 30, and, just as in years past,…
Herbie Hancock (left), Christian McBride, Wayne Shorter, Danilo Pérez, John Patitucci and Brian Blade take a bow after a performance at New Jersey Performing Arts Center on April 23.
May 2, 2017 12:55 PM
It’s a little over a mile, walking distance, from 106 South Street, where Wayne Shorter grew up in Newark’s…
Wayne Shorter performs during the April 19 press conference, at which headliners for the 2017 Detroit Jazz Festival were announced.
Apr 20, 2017 2:15 PM
The Detroit Jazz Festival, the world’s largest free jazz fest, has announced its full artist lineup for the 38th…
Terence Blanchard, Herbie Hancock, Wayne Shorter performed together at Disney Hall in Los Angeles on Feb. 19.
Feb 28, 2017 11:09 AM
Los Angeles is very lucky to count pianist Herbie Hancock and saxophonist Wayne Shorter as residents. Both are American…
Top: Wayne Shorter (left) and Herbie Hancock. Bottom: Carlos Santana (left), Marcus Miller and Cindy Blackman Santana.
Sep 8, 2016 3:23 PM
Herbie Hancock and Wayne Shorter are regular visitors to the Hollywood Bowl, one of the world’s largest venues in…
Dee Dee Bridgewater (left) Esperanza Spalding, Herbie Hancock, Chick Corea, President Obama and Kurt Elling celebrate International Jazz Day in Washington, D.C., April 29.
Mar 27, 2019 10:36 AM
Bittersweet moments seeped into the International Jazz Day Global Concert held in Washington, D.C., on April 29. After…
Christian McBride (left), Brian Blade, Aretha Franklin and Herbie Hancock rehearse for the International Jazz Day concert in Washington, D.C., on April 29.
Jul 11, 2016 12:41 PM
President Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama hosted an all-star concert featuring Herbie Hancock, Diana Krall, Aretha…
Christian Scott aTunde Adjuah at the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival on April 22.
Jul 11, 2016 12:42 PM
Traditionally taking place over two weekends in late April and early May, the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival is…
