I review a lot of contemporary jazz albums that are tributes to jazz legends. A big chunk of the jazz canon is about honoring traditions and keeping those musical pioneers at [...]
This new album from the Jeff Benedict Big Big Band (website) turned me into a mess for a few hours. That’s mostly because of the title: The Weather Is Here, Wish You [...]
When I first moved to Texas back in 2009, I was more than a little concerned about the music situation there. I know, I lived outside of Austin and shouldn’t have [...]
Felipe Salles and his new project The New Immigrant Experience isn’t the first time we’ve had a large scale jazz recording that documented the experiences [...]
I’m still struggling with my approach to big band jazz lately, and how to search for the recordings that will truly engage me. A couple of years ago I dove in head [...]
I toyed with the idea of resting and relaxing until after the first of the year, but then there’s this, Ronny Whyte‘s latest album, and it’s the perfect New [...]
Talk about extremes–yesterday it was Filter, and today it’s the Flying Horse Big Band. I was just thinking that the big band jazz releases have been slowing down [...]
It says a lot about legendary jazz pianist Fred Hersch and his unique style that he can play with a large ensemble such as the WDR Big Band and leave you thinking [...]
There’s a huge pile of recordings of female vocalists on the coffee table in my listening room right now, and Beata Pater‘s Tet has been sitting there for months, [...]
“Before recording the music, the eight musicians on the record spent a year rehearsing and playing together under the tutelage of some of the most respected names in [...]