Jun 9, 2026 10:54 AM
In Memoriam: James Blood Ulmer, 1940–2026
With deep sorrow and profound love, we announce the passing of James Blood Ulmer, a boldly innovative guitarist,…
William Paterson University in Wayne, N.J. will celebrate the opening of its Living Jazz Archive on April 24 with a concert featuring Clark Terry as guest soloist with the university’s jazz orchestra.
The archive includes manuscripts, awards, instruments and other memorabilia donated by Terry, as well as archival materials of the late trumpeter Thad Jones and the late pianist James Williams.
Located in College Hall on the university’s campus, the archive provides students, researchers and visitors with the opportunity to explore original jazz manuscripts and other materials that are an important part of jazz history. The archive includes a number of Terry’s original big band arrangements, custom vintage trumpets, pencil music manuscripts, historic recordings, photos and other memorabilia. It also contains original pencil manuscripts by Jones, the founding director of the school’s jazz studies program, as well as original manuscripts of compositions by Williams, who served as director of the program from 1999 until his death in 2004.
The concert will take place at the Shea Center for Performing Arts. Terry and the William Paterson Jazz Orchestra, under the direction of David Demsey, will perform a program of Terry’s original scores dating to the 1950s, which Terry has donated to the archive. The concert is the culmination of a weeklong residency by Terry on the campus.
“The creation of the William Paterson University Living Jazz Archive represents a historic step for our campus,” Demsey said. “Unlike other ‘sealed’ archive collections, it is Clark Terry’s wish and our intent to use the collections for active teaching, learning, performance and research and to integrate the use and study of these materials into the curriculum of our program.”
More info: wpunj.edu
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.
Jun 9, 2026 10:54 AM
With deep sorrow and profound love, we announce the passing of James Blood Ulmer, a boldly innovative guitarist,…
A drummer’s drummer, Rodney Holmes gigged with everyone from Joe Zawinul and Carlos Santana to Steve Kimock and the Brecker Brothers.
Jul 22, 2026 12:37 PM
Drummer Rodney Holmes, a powerful presence behind the kit who emerged as an in-demand player on the New York scene…
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.
Jul 16, 2026 1:34 PM
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.”
Jun 30, 2026 3:19 PM
Pianist Abdullah Ibrahim, the NEA Jazz Master from South Africa who helped fuse the folk music of his home country with…
Joe Lovano’s Paramount Quartet will record live at New York’s Village Vanguard for ECM records on Aug. 26–27.
Jul 22, 2026 12:46 PM
One of Joe Lovano’s buzz terms is “the moment of now” and with seemingly infinite patience — despite a schedule…
