Aug 22, 2019
This coming weekend, August 25-27, the Red Sea Jazz Festival in Eilat, Israel, will host the semifinals and finals of the first Michael Brecker International Saxophone Competition. Eight selected aspiring talented musicians will arrive in Eilat to participate in the semi-final round on the morning of the second day of...
Aug 19, 2019
In Podcast 665 in February, Ashley Kahn joined me to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the recording of Miles Davis’ In A Silent Way. Considered the start of Miles’ “Electric Period”, the album was a progenitor of fusion, jazz-rock and ambient music. Our conversation then shifted to the making of Bitches Brew,...
Aug 16, 2019
It's past the midpoint in summer in New England, so why not some summer themed music for these lazy, hot days? Today is August 16th, the feast day of Saint Roch, the patron saint of Dogs, so why not celebrate the "Dog Days"?
The Romans associated the hot weather with the star Sirius. They considered Sirius to be the...
Aug 15, 2019
One of the most memorable performances at the 2019 Freihofer’s Saratoga Jazz Festival was given by singer Veronica Swift. Backed by pianist Emmet Cohen’s trio, she transported the crowd with songs that recalled the thirties and forties, but were thoroughly modern in her approach and style. With charisma to spare,...
Aug 8, 2019
Way back in 2011, my year end podcast picked Nights on Earth, Vince Mendoza’s dazzling, sweeping work as one of the most Notable Releases of that year. Since then, the six-time Grammy winner left his position as conductor of the Metropole Orchestra and has arranged, scored, or conducted more than thirty pop,...