Jan 21, 2025 7:54 PM
Southern California Fires Hit the Jazz Community
Roy McCurdy and his wife had just finished eating dinner and were relaxing over coffee in their Altadena home, when he…
Ulysses Owens Jr. will lead his big band in a performance with special guest Marquis Hill at the Detroit Jazz Festival on Sept. 3.
(Photo: Courtesy of Ulysses Owens Jr.)Jazz fans in three major U.S. metropolitan areas — Chicago, Detroit and Washington, D.C. — might want to hop a train or pack up the car and head into town this coming Labor Day weekend, as all three play host to their annual jazz festivals.
The Chicago Jazz Festival returns Sept. 1–4 with performances celebrating all forms of jazz on multiple stages in downtown Millennium Park and at the Chicago Cultural Center. Programmed by the Jazz Institute of Chicago, the performance schedule highlights include Henry Threadgill and Zooid, Bill Frisell, William Parker and his quintet, Greg Ward, Immanuel Wilkins, Donald Harrison, Miguel Zenón, Linda May Han Oh, Adam O’Farrill, JD Allen, Jazzmeia Horn, local student jazz ensembles and others. Admission to all performances is free and no advanced reservations are required.
For a complete lineup and schedule for the Chicago Jazz Festival, click here.
The Detroit Jazz Festival, another free-admission jazz celebration, gets underway Sept. 2 and runs through Sept. 4 with a parade of stars performing on four stages in downtown Motor City. Featured artists include Ambrose Akinmusire Quartet, Abdullah Ibrahim & Ekaya, Artemis, Antonio Sánchez & Bad Hombre, Bill Frisell Trio, Cécile McLorin Salvant, Charles McPherson, Chucho Vadés, Dianne Reeves, Monny McCaslin, Ethan Iverson, JD Allen, John Scofield, Michael Dease, DownBeat Blindfold Test with Jason Marsalis, Ulysses Owens Jr. Big Band with Marquis Hill, Vijay Iyer Trio and José James, among others.
For more information on the Detroit Jazz Festival, click here.
The 18th annual DC JazzFest, which includes both free and paid-admission performances, is set to launch its lineup of acclaimed artists into an array of indoor and outdoor venues in and around the District starting tomorrow, Aug. 31, and running through Sept. 4 — culminating in a big tentpole Labor Day weekend on the scenic Potomac Riverfront at The Wharf. Headliners include Christian McBride & Inside Straight, Orrin Evans Captain Black Big Band with Dianne Reeves, Ron Carter’s Golden Striker Trio; Regina Carter, Cindy Blackman Santana, Kurt Elling’s SuperBlue with Charlie Hunter, Emmet Cohen Trio, Patrick Zimmerli “Messages” with Chris Potter and Steve Wilson, Matthew Shipp, the 2022 DCJazzPrix emerging bands competition finalists (Akua Allrich & The Tribe, Jalen Baker Quartet and Julieta Eugenio Trio) and numerous others. On Sept. 3 at the Arena Stage, DC JazzFest will screen the 2022 documentary film Hargrove, followed by a panel discussion featuring former Roy Hargrove band pianist Marc Cary, Orrin Evans and film producer Eliane Henri.
For a complete DC JazzFest schedule, click here. DB
Gerald and John Clayton at the family home in Altadena during a photo shoot for the June 2022 cover of DownBeat. The house was lost during the Los Angeles fires.
Jan 21, 2025 7:54 PM
Roy McCurdy and his wife had just finished eating dinner and were relaxing over coffee in their Altadena home, when he…
“She said, ‘A lot of people are going to try and stop you,’” Sheryl Bailey recalls of the advice she received from jazz guitarist Emily Remler (1957–’90). “‘They’re going to say you slept with somebody, you’re a dyke, you’re this and that and the other. Don’t listen to them, and just keep playing.’”
Feb 3, 2025 10:49 PM
In the April 1982 issue of People magazine, under the heading “Lookout: A Guide To The Up and Coming,” jazz…
The Old Country: More From The Deer Head Inn arrives 30 years after ECM issued the Keith Jarret Trio live album At The Deer Head Inn.
Jan 21, 2025 7:38 PM
Last November, Keith Jarrett, who has not played publicly since suffering two strokes in 2018, greenlighted ECM to drop…
“The first recording I owned with Brazilian music on it was Wayne Shorter’s Native Dancer,” says Renee Rosnes. “And then I just started to go down the rabbit hole.”
Jan 16, 2025 2:02 PM
In her four-decade career, Renee Rosnes has been recognized as a singular voice, both as a jazz composer and a…
As Ted Nash, left, departs the alto saxophone chair for LCJO, Alexa Tarantino steps in as the band’s first female full-time member.
Mar 4, 2025 1:29 PM
If only because openings for JLCO’s 15 permanent positions appear about as frequently as sub-freezing days on the…
