Jul 14, 2026 12:22 PM
Montreal Jazz Festival: More Is More
I had heard for years about the massive Festival International de Jazz de Montreal (FIJM), the world’s largest jazz…
On the festival’s final night came a duo composed of two one-offs — guitarist Julian Lage and bassist Christian McBride.
Jul 14, 2026 12:22 PM
I had heard for years about the massive Festival International de Jazz de Montreal (FIJM), the world’s largest jazz…
Simon Moullier’s new album, Ceiba, features a cosmopolitan kaleidoscope of sonic influences.
Jul 14, 2026 11:49 AM
There’s an old joke about how the drummer is usually the first player to arrive at the gig and the last to leave due…
Viola artist Mat Manieri says DoYeon Kim’s approach to music is “at once delicate, and then punk rock — no fear.”
Jul 14, 2026 11:41 AM
Every country has its own musical culture, and every musical culture has a different approach to the question of…
“The greatest honor for me as a trumpet player is to have learned enough to know how great Louis Armstrong actually was,” said foundation president Wynton Marsalis, who spoke and performed at the gala.
Jul 7, 2026 12:35 PM
On June 18, exactly 100 years after Louis Armstrong’s Hot Five accompanied Butterbeans and Susie in a Chicago studio…
“The first time I was with him, I felt, ‘You must be on the right track to have people like this endorse you,’” Bobby Broom said of his mentor, the late Sonny Rollins.
Jul 7, 2026 12:14 PM
As guitarist Bobby Broom spoke from his Chicago home office in April, promoting jazz’s legacy was on his mind for two…
“I really wanted to make a record that’s something you can, like, put in your car and drive and have a story,” says Dida Pelled.
Jul 7, 2026 11:54 AM
It is not always definitive or eliminating to judge an artist by their discography. In the case of the multidirectional…
Everything about pianist Ben Markley’s new large ensemble project feels classic.
Jul 7, 2026 11:29 AM
A recent caller to my radio show expressed surprise that big band was music still being made in 2026. Not only is it…
DownBeat once described Vancouver’s Tony Wilson as “a talismanic West Coast figure.”
Jul 7, 2026 11:25 AM
Vancouver, B.C.-based creative jazz guitarist Tony Wilson passed away in his sleep on June 6. He was 66. A gifted…
Ibrahim was an early jazz acolyte, studying the music via 78s he would buy from soldiers stationed in South Africa — who also gave him the nickname “Dollar.”
Jun 30, 2026 3:19 PM
Pianist Abdullah Ibrahim, the NEA Jazz Master from South Africa who helped fuse the folk music of his home country with…
“I’ll always keep the jazz harmonic side in my music because I could never go all the way and be a straight smooth-jazz guy,” says Warren Wolf of his groove-oriented music.
Jun 30, 2026 3:10 PM
March 2020: Less than 24 hours before Baltimore residents begin sheltering in place, Warren Wolf is preparing for his…
