Sep 4, 2024 1:26 PM
Sullivan Fortner Trio: Collective Imagination
As a pianist, Sullivan Fortner is a master at shifting gears. He spent years as a key member of trumpeter Roy…
The Sullivan Fortner Trio, from left, Fortner, Tyrone Allen and Kayvon Gordon.
Sep 4, 2024 1:26 PM
As a pianist, Sullivan Fortner is a master at shifting gears. He spent years as a key member of trumpeter Roy…
“I had to play the music I loved with the people I wanted to play it with,” said Bloom. “Nothing would stop me.”
Sep 4, 2024 1:09 PM
When DownBeat last profiled Jane Ira Bloom in August 2017, the soprano saxophonist was at the start of her ongoing…
“Just because I’m at the organ doesn’t mean I have to fall into the predictable traditional approach to the instrument,” says Goldings.
Sep 4, 2024 1:07 PM
A funny thing happened to Larry Goldings on his way to pursuing a career as a jazz pianist: He became a jazz organ…
In addition to his instrumental prowess, Malone was praised for his musical generosity and his singular sense of humor.
Aug 27, 2024 12:09 PM
Guitarist and bandleader Russell Malone died Aug. 23, while on tour in Japan, after battling end-stage kidney failure.…
“He would always call me his grandson,” Whitaker says of the late Dr. Lonnie Smith. Smith’s personal assistant sent Whitaker one of the master’s B-3s after he died in 2021.
Aug 27, 2024 11:46 AM
At the close of 2021, Matthew Whitaker faced a glut of options. Having met with his management team to discuss ideas…
Saxophonist Greg Ward, left, gets a lesson in how to wear the blindfold before journalist Michael Jackson administers the test.
Aug 27, 2024 11:33 AM
Alto saxophonist Greg Ward’s win in this year’s Critics Poll Rising Star category, at age 42, was a long time…
Béla Fleck will perform in a trio with Edmar Castañeda and Antonio Sanchez at New York’s Blue Note in September.
Aug 27, 2024 11:20 AM
Banjo player Béla Fleck, harpist Edmar Castañeda and drummer Antonio Sanchez will make their world premiere as a trio…
“You gotta go out on a limb and book people who you know people need to see, need to experience,” says Christian McBride of curating the Newport Jazz Festival.
Aug 20, 2024 11:38 AM
Newport Jazz Festival 2024 carried much promise, and it delivered: a diverse and very strong lineup – each act an…
Benny Green gave a breathtaking solo performance at this year’s San Jose Jazz Summer Fest.
Aug 20, 2024 10:59 AM
San Jose Jazz, a nonprofit, has been around since 1986 and produced its first jazz festival 34 years ago in 1990. It…
“We do have a lot of differences, but we are much more similar than different,” says Lee. “I really truly believe that my very personal story can reach out to and appeal to a lot of people.”
Aug 20, 2024 10:40 AM
Jihye Lee joins the growing ranks of young, tradition-respecting and medium-rethinking big band leaders, blessed with a…
