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…
The London International Jazz Competition (LIJC) for vocalists will take place from March 18 – 26, hitting some of the city’s premier jazz venues along the way.
Twelve finalists have been selected from 107 entries from 25 countries. Sitting in judgement are well-known vocalists, including Ian Shaw, Lee Gibson, Tina May, Ursula Malewski and Pete Churchill, the executive director of the competition. Others on the panel include Adam Sieff, a jazz consultant with Sony BMG Music International, Dune Records and DDE Records. Humphrey Lyttelton, a bandleader, musician, and broadcaster will also be involved in the competition.
Six finalists will perform for the LIJC award at Chelsea’s Cadogan Hall, one of London’s most prestigious concert venues. The concert will be presented by saxophonist Alan Barnes and recorded for broadcasting.
The winner will not only receive the LIJC Jazz Vocalist 2006 award, but also a cash prize and future engagements to be held on March 23 and 26. An additional prize, The Gibson May Award, will be presented for the Most Impressive Performance of an individual song by either a semi-finalist or finalist. The winner will be able to open up the shows for the winner.
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…
“If you don’t keep learning, your mind slows down,” Coleman says. “Use it or lose it.”
Jan 28, 2025 11:38 AM
PolyTropos/Of Many Turns — the title for Steve Coleman’s latest recording on Pi and his 33rd album overall —…
