Billy Mohler’s Ultraviolet was inspired by Sonny Rollins’ A Night At The Village Vanguard and Ornette Coleman’s The Shape Of Jazz To Come.

Seeking to create a vibe similar to New York’s Village Vanguard, Paul Solomon (left) and David Robaire have made L.A.-based Sam First an artist-friendly club with its own record label.

​The Blue Note Quintet includes Gerald Clayton, Immanuel Wilkins, Joel Ross, Kendrick Scott and Matt Brewer. The all-star collective embarks on a North American tour this month.

​Shabaka, previously known as Shabaka Hutchings, is the artist-in-residence at this year’s NYC Winter Jazzfest.

“I feel honored to have been a part of this legacy and tradition,” Jackson says of his years at the helm of the Monterey Jazz Festival. “I’m proud of the work that I did.”

“He knew how to administer to the needs of a beginner, and had the skill set and patience to teach somebody young,” says saxophonist Greg Osby of his first music teacher, Fred Irby III.

“I don’t think there’s anything better than seeing kids grow as human beings,” Gaesser said.

“I mortgaged my house a couple of times, but it was worth it,” Muscarella says of working to establish Jazzschool and California Jazz Conservatory.

McCann’s deep roots in gospel and the blues gave his music a gritty, earthy quality and a large supply of soulful licks.

“I really respect people who could learn this vocabulary and find a way to express it in a way that is so unique,” Nduduzo Makhathini said of the late pianist Don Pullen during his live Blindfold Test.