Dec 9, 2025 12:28 PM
In Memoriam: Gordon Goodwin, 1954–2025
Gordon Goodwin, an award-winning saxophonist, pianist, bandleader, composer and arranger, died Dec. 8 in Los Angeles.…
Miguel Zenón’s third Marsalis Music release, Awake will be released April 1. It follows the alto saxophonist’s 2005 Jíbaro, a reinterpretation of the rural music of Zenón’s native Puerto Rico.
“The focus is more personal and philosophical than Jíbaro,” Zenón said. “Although that album also has a central theme. I wrote all of the music for Awake, and the individual compositions fell into an order around one of the older tunes, ‘Awakening,’ which represents a period of personal growth I went through. What resulted was an awareness of my priorities, and how I want to portray myself as an artist.”
Zenón incorporates the use of Fender Rhodes on four tracks, a string quartet and a three-piece horn section.
“I felt that the Rhodes would create a different sonic flow and push the music in different directions,” he said. “And once I realized that ‘Awakening’ would serve as a connection between the various elements of the record, I decided to add a string quartet for two tracks.”
The members of Zenón’s working band include Luis Perdomo on piano and Fender Rhodes, Hans Glawischnig on bass and Henry Cole on drums.
More info: marsalismusic.com
Goodwin was one of the most acclaimed, successful and influential jazz musicians of his generation.
Dec 9, 2025 12:28 PM
Gordon Goodwin, an award-winning saxophonist, pianist, bandleader, composer and arranger, died Dec. 8 in Los Angeles.…
Belá Fleck during an interview with Fredrika Whitfield on CNN.
Jan 13, 2026 2:09 PM
The fallout from the renaming of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts to include President Donald…
Flea has returned to his first instrument — the trumpet — and assembled a dream band of jazz musicians to record a new album.
Dec 2, 2025 2:01 AM
After a nearly five-decade career as one of his generation’s defining rock bassists, Flea has returned to his first…
Dec 11, 2025 11:00 AM
DownBeat presents a complete list of the 4-, 4½- and 5-star albums from 2025 in one convenient package. It’s a great…
“It’s a pleasure and an honor to interpret the music of Oscar Peterson in his native city,” said Jim Doxas in regard to celebrating the Canadian legend. “He traveled the world, but never forgot Montreal.”
Nov 18, 2025 12:16 PM
In the pantheon of jazz luminaries, few shine as brightly, or swing as hard, as Oscar Peterson. A century ago, a…
