Mar 2, 2026 9:58 PM
In Memoriam: John Hammond Jr., 1942–2026
John P. Hammond (aka John Hammond Jr.), a blues guitarist and singer who was one of the first white American…
The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts announced its lineup for 2008-’09.
The center will offer several series of concerts including Jazz In D.C., Louis Armstrong Legacy Singers, Art Tatum Piano Panorama and a Platinum series focused on the classical influences on Duke Ellington. It will also host the 14th Annual Mary Lou Williams Women In Jazz festival May 14–16, 2009. Special concerts include NPR’s Jazz Piano Christmas and A Jazz new Year’s Eve scheduled for Dec. 4 and Dec. 31, respectively.
Ellington Voices: Classical To Jazz will be a series of concerts in the Platinum series. A Nov. 22 concert will feature vocalists Nnenna Freelon and Harolyn Blackwell interpreting classical influences on Duke’s jazz.
The NSO Pops orchestra, conducted by Marvin Hamlisch, will feature the Jazz Ambassadors Army Field Band Nov. 28–29 performing the music of Duke Ellington, Billy Taylor and James Reese Europe.
Benny Golson will appear Jan. 24, 2009, to celebrate his 80th birthday with the Clayton-Hamilton Jazz Orchestra, Al Jarreau, Ron Carter, Bill Cosby and others.
More info: kennedy-center.org
Hammond came to the blues through the folk boom of the late 1950s and early 1960s, which he experienced firsthand in New York’s Greenwich Village.
Mar 2, 2026 9:58 PM
John P. Hammond (aka John Hammond Jr.), a blues guitarist and singer who was one of the first white American…
“Cerebral and academic thought is a different way to approach music,” Flea says of his continuing dive into jazz. “I’ve always relied on emotion and intuition and physicality.”
Mar 30, 2026 10:30 PM
In the relatively small pantheon of certifiable rock stars venturing into the intersection of pop music and jazz, the…
New Orleans Trad Jazz Camp
Feb 19, 2026 10:39 AM
Jazz camps have exploded around the globe as a summertime tradition for working on your chops and making new friends.…
Vocalist Dee Dee Bridgewater will be among the headliners at this year’s DC JazzFest.
Mar 2, 2026 9:48 PM
The first wave of artists scheduled to perform at the 2026 DC JazzFest have been announced. This year’s headliners…
Blindfold Test proctor Ted Panken, left, with the Grammy-winning Nicole Zuraitis.
Feb 24, 2026 12:00 PM
After earning the 2024 Best Jazz Vocal Album Grammy for her seventh album, How Love Begins (La Reserve), comprising 12…
