Since the first Dakota Combo was launched in 2006 as an audition-only ensemble of high school jazz students, I’ve had the pleasure to meet and observe some very talented young musicians. Originally a collaboration of the Dakota Foundation for Jazz Education and MacPhail Center for Music, the Dakota Combo, each year, brought together students from […]
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The 2019 Montreal Jazz Festival, officially called Le Festival International de Jazz de Montréal, took place from June 27 to July 6. It’s a landmark year for the Festival, as this is its 40th anniversary. Forty years ago, André Ménard and Alain Simard, both influenced by the jazz clubs in the city, and music from […]
Continue ReadingMore than a decade ago, I had the pleasure of reviewing a solo recording by Israeli, Boston-based pianist Eyran Katsenelenbogen. At that time, Solotude (2005, Eyran Records) was already the pianist’s eighth solo release; he went on to release another (88 Fingers, Eyran Records) in 2009. Over the past ten years, Eyran has continued teaching […]
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The Newport Jazz Festival, Presented by Natixis Investment Managers, is often called “The Granddaddy of Jazz Festivals,” It was founded in 1954 by George Wein, Elaine Lorillard and Louis Lorillard, and is widely considered one of the most famous jazz festivals in the world. Many of the biggest names in jazz have appeared there over […]
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The 24th Litchfield Jazz Festival (LJF) will take place July 26 to 28, 2019. LJF was launched by Founder and Executive/Artistic Director Vita West Muir under the auspices of Litchfield Performing Arts. From the beginning, and over the years, stellar artists like Marian McPartland, Tony Bennett, Thomas Chapin, Ahmad Jamal, Bill Charlap, Christian McBride, Terence Blanchard, […]
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