May 26, 2026 11:08 AM
Sonny Rollins Passes Away at 95
Sonny Rollins, the iconic saxophonist, composer and improviser whose career stretched from the origins of bebop to 21st…
The 2023 Monterey Jazz Festival will be Tim Jackson’s last as artistic director.
(Photo: Courtesy MJF)Tim Jackson, long-time artistic director of the Monterey Jazz Festival, plans to leave his position at the end of February 2024, according to a statement released earlier this week. He will then continue as an artistic advisor to MJF for an interim time period prior to departing the organization in an official capacity.
“I want to let all of you know that the 2023 Monterey Jazz Festival will be my last as artistic director,” Jackson wrote in a letter to his constituents. “I feel that this a good time for a transition. The organization is stabilizing after the pandemic, the staff and board are strong and committed, and it is time for a new perspective on the artistic side to help guide the organization for the next generation.”
This year’s festival will mark Jackson’s 33rd year with the 66-year-old MJF organization.
“I feel grateful and blessed to have been a part of this historic festival, and proud of the role I have played in its continued success,” said Jackson, who has been producing and presenting jazz for five decades. “To be able to work with the world’s greatest musicians has been the joy of a lifetime.” DB
Onstage, Rollins would move about restlessly, thrusting his tenor sax in the air as he blew.
May 26, 2026 11:08 AM
Sonny Rollins, the iconic saxophonist, composer and improviser whose career stretched from the origins of bebop to 21st…
To the world, James Blood Ulmer was a legend, a visionary and a musical force whose sound was distinctive and unique. To his family, he was their teacher, their storyteller and a source of strength.
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With deep sorrow and profound love, we announce the passing of James Blood Ulmer, a boldly innovative guitarist,…
How best to mark Miles Davis’ centennial? By allowing the stories to flow, and cross-discussions to happen.
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Editor’s Note: The iconic trumpeter, composer and bandleader Miles Davis would have turned 100 today (May 26, 2026).…
Clockwise from top left, Mary Halvorson, Patricia Brennan, Adam O’Farrill, Keith Jarrett’s At the Deer Head Inn: The Complete Recordings, Sheila Jordan and Jaki Byard.
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The DownBeat Critics Poll never ceases to amaze! And the 74th Edition offered plenty of accolades for poll veterans and…
Ibrahim was an early jazz acolyte, studying the music via 78s he would buy from soldiers stationed in South Africa — who also gave him the nickname “Dollar.”
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Pianist Abdullah Ibrahim, the NEA Jazz Master from South Africa who helped fuse the folk music of his home country with…
