Sep 26, 2023 12:48 PM
Blindfold Test: Sullivan Fortner
Before taking a live Blindfold Test in Indianapolis during the American Pianists Association Awards last April, pianist…
“He was the coolest,” Fortner says of Nat “King” Cole. “Didn’t break a sweat.”
Sep 26, 2023 12:48 PM
Before taking a live Blindfold Test in Indianapolis during the American Pianists Association Awards last April, pianist…
The new recording from Kris Davis’ Diatom Ribbons puts the pianist front and center of the jazz vanguard. From left, Davis, Trevor Dunn, Terri Lyne Carrington, Val Jeanty and Julian Lage.
Sep 6, 2023 12:37 PM
In late May 2022, Kris Davis realized a dream. She and her ensemble Diatom Ribbons performed six nights at New York’s…
“I’ll produce my own projects,” says drummer and composer Tyshawn Sorey. “I’ll do it my way, and I’ll do it well.”
Sep 6, 2023 12:27 PM
When Tyshawn Sorey turned 40 a few months into the pandemic lockdown, he decided henceforth to focus on more explicitly…
Christian McBride and writer Ashley Kahn meet for a DownBeat Blindfold Test hosted by New York University’s Jazz Studies program.
Aug 29, 2023 11:41 AM
Christian McBride turned 51 this May 31 and is still pushing far beyond what many might consider conventional career…
“There is a bit of a theme — that it’s a sense of optimism and a sense of togetherness,” bassist Nick Blacka says of the new GoGo Penguin album.
Aug 15, 2023 12:11 PM
Samuel Clemens once said, “What is joy without sorrow? What is success without failure? What is a win without a loss?…
Montgomery praised guitarist Joe Pass for his tone and phrasing.
Aug 8, 2023 12:37 PM
Editor’s Note: This classic Blindfold Test by the celebrated jazz journalist Leonard Feather (1914–’94) features…
“Bill Stewart has nothing to prove,” Baron says. “I aspire to that ethic.”
Aug 1, 2023 1:22 PM
At 68, Joey Baron has been a lifelong connoisseur of the nuances of groove and melody-oriented drumming. Over his…
“It felt like my people were right there in Harlem,” Jacques Schwarz-Bart said of the muse for his latest recording.
Jul 18, 2023 2:07 PM
Five years ago, Jacques Schwarz-Bart moved away from Harlem, where he had come into his own as a tenor saxophonist,…
Shakti celebrates its 50th anniversary with a new album and tour.
Jul 11, 2023 12:52 PM
There was a moment in 2017, following what was billed as his farewell tour in the States, that guitar avatar John…
Arturo O’Farrill said his latest album “is about all of our legacies. This music is really from Mother Africa.”
Jul 11, 2023 12:45 PM
The cover of Arturo O’Farrill’s new trio album, Legacies (Blue Note), shows a 12-year-old O’Farrill sitting on…
