Aug 26, 2025 1:53 PM
Blindfold Test: Buster Williams
Buster Williams, who at the age of 83 has been on the scene for 65 years, had never done a Blindfold Test. The first…
Jason Moran extends his connection to gallery spaces at the Armstrong Center in Corona, Queens.
(Photo: Clay Patrick McBride)Armstrong House: Pianist Jason Moran is set to curate Here To Stay, a permanent exhibit at the Armstrong Center, an extension of the Louis Armstrong House Museum in Corona, Queens. The new building, across the street from the original museum, is set to open next year with the show, focusing on the trumpeter’s work with other performers, as well as his relationship with Lucille, his wife. “Pops is a game changer on and off of his trumpet,” Moran said in a press release.
Jazz Ed: Essentially Ellington, Jazz At Lincoln Center’s high-school band competition founded in 1995, is taking place online this year. Interactive events—alumni performances, performer discussions, masterclasses and student performances—began Monday and run through Friday.
Chicago Fest: The Chicago Jazz Festival won’t take place as planned in 2020. Instead, a series of performances will be hosted at area venues with a limited number of attendees and broadcast online, according to the Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events, which plans the fest each year.
Redman Returns: Saxophonist Joshua Redman reconvened an iteration of his namesake quartet that hasn’t recorded together since the 1994 CD MoodSwing. His new album, RoundAgain, which features pianist Brad Mehldau, bassist Christian McBride and drummer Brian Blade, is set for release July 10 on Nonesuch. Redman also recently was appointed artistic director for the San Francisco Conservatory of Music’s Roots, Jazz and American Music program.
Blues Blessing: Guitarist Joe Bonamassa has initiated the Fueling Musicians Program, aiming to raise $250,000 for performers who have been set adrift amid the coronavirus pandemic. The initiative so far has received donations from Gibson Brands, Reverb and Peter Frampton.
Satchmo Award: Arbors Records owner Rachel Domber and her late husband, Matthew, were honored March 12 with the Satchmo Award at a Jazz Club of Sarasota event during the Sarasota Jazz Festival. The award was created “to honor those who have made a unique and enduring contribution to the living history of jazz,” said Ed Linehan, president of the club and managing director of the festival. “I can’t think of anyone who fits that definition better.” DB
“What I got from Percy was the dignity of playing the bass,” Buster Williams said of Percy Heath.
Aug 26, 2025 1:53 PM
Buster Williams, who at the age of 83 has been on the scene for 65 years, had never done a Blindfold Test. The first…
Don and Maureen Sickler serve as the keepers of engineer Rudy Van Gelder’s flame at Van Gelder Studio, perhaps the most famous recording studio in jazz history.
Sep 3, 2025 12:02 PM
On the last Sunday of 2024, in the control room of Van Gelder Studio, Don and Maureen Sickler, co-owners since Rudy Van…
The Free Slave, Cosmos Nucleus and Sunset To Dawn: three classic Muse albums being reissued this fall by Timer Traveler Recordings.
Aug 26, 2025 1:32 PM
Record producer and “Jazz Detective” Zev Feldman has launched his next endeavor, the archival label Time Traveler…
Butcher Brown, clockwise from top left: Marcus Tenney, DJ Harrison, Morgan Burrs, Corey Fonville and Andrew Randazzo. (Keyboardist Harrison couldn’t make the gig, so special guest Jacob Mann sat in with the band at the Reno Jazz Festival.)
Aug 19, 2025 12:41 PM
The band known as Butcher Brown has enjoyed the last half-decade basking in the glow from the twin engines of critical…
This year’s Jazz em Agosto set by the Darius Jones Trio captured the titular alto saxophonist at his most ferocious.
Aug 26, 2025 1:31 PM
The organizers of Lisbon, Portugal’s Jazz em Agosto Festival assume its audience is thoughtful and independent. Over…
