Daily Dose Of Jazz…
Steve Wilson was born February 9, 1961 in Hampton, Virginia. As a teenager, Wilson played in various R&B and funk bands and after a year of playing with Stephanie Mills he attended Virginia Commonwealth University. By 1987 he moved to New York, where he established himself as a sideman performing with American Jazz Orchestra, the Mingus Big Band and the Smithsonian Jazz Orchestra among others.
Wilson toured Europe in 1988 with Lionel Hampton and was a member of “Out Of The Blue”, an ensemble featuring young Blue Note musicians. An accomplished flautist and alto and soprano saxophonist, he also plays the clarinet and piccolo and has played and recorded with the Dave Holland Quintet, the Chick Corea Origin Sextet, with Japanese composer Yoko Kanno, has been a member of the Seatbelt’s New York Musicians, the Blue Note 7 and has performed as a soloist for Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip.
In 1997 he formed the Steve Wilson Quartet and has performed together for over a decade and produced two CDs. He also heads a larger ensemble, Generations, which performs jazz classic and original compositions.
He has held teaching positions in several schools and Universities, as well as holding jazz clinics, notably at the Manhattan School of Music, SUNY at Purchase, Columbia University, has been artist-in-residence at Hamilton College, Old Dominion and University of North Carolina and continues to maintain a busy career as a session musician both in studio and on tour.
Daily Dose Of Jazz…
Bill Easley: A Life Lived Through Every Era of Modern Jazz
Some musicians pass through jazz history. Bill Easley has lived it—from Harlem jam sessions to Stax Records, from Arctic military bands to Broadway’s brightest lights.
A Prodigy from Upstate New York
Born January 13, 1946, in Orleans, New York, Easley was already a working professional by age thirteen, gigging with his parents and absorbing the craft from the inside. When he arrived in New York City in 1964, he dove straight into the deep end—studying part-time at the legendary Juilliard School while simultaneously earning his real education in Harlem’s uptown jazz clubs, learning directly from the masters who made the music breathe.
An Unexpected Arctic Interlude
Then came an unexpected detour: the draft. Suddenly, Easley found himself stationed in Fairbanks, Alaska, with the 9th Army Band. It wasn’t exactly 52nd Street, but as any true musician knows, you make music wherever you are—even when surrounded by snow instead of skyscrapers.
The Real Education Begins
Back in action by the late ’60s, Easley was playing the legendary rooms that defined the era—Minton’s Playhouse, the Plugged Nickel, The Jazz Workshop, The Hurricane—standing shoulder to shoulder with George Benson. These weren’t just gigs; they were nightly master classes in jazz history happening in real time, each set a conversation with the greats.
Memphis Soul and Stax Swagger
The ’70s brought a southern migration to Memphis, where Easley entered Isaac Hayes’ orbit, laying down tracks at the iconic Stax and Hi Records—the studios where soul music was being redefined. Even while pursuing his formal education at Memphis State University, he was out there every night with big bands and show bands, whatever was swinging.
Then came the gig that changes everything for any jazz musician: touring with the Duke Ellington Orchestra under Mercer Ellington in the mid-’70s. To play that book, to carry that legacy—it’s a responsibility and an honor few ever experience.
The Great White Way Calls
By 1980, Broadway beckoned, and Easley answered. His theater credits read like a greatest-hits compilation: Sophisticated Ladies, The Wiz, Black and Blue, Jelly’s Last Jam, Fosse—the shows that defined an era of musical theater and kept the jazz tradition alive on the world’s most famous stages.
Never Just a Pit Musician
But here’s the thing about Bill Easley: he never stopped being a jazz cat. Between curtain calls, he was in recording studios with pianists Sir Roland Hanna and Mulgrew Miller, organists Jimmy McGriff and Jimmy Smith, vocalist Ruth Brown, and drummers Grady Tate and Billy Higgins. He recorded for respected labels like Sunnyside and Milestone, keeping one foot firmly planted in the jazz tradition even as the other tapped out Broadway rhythms.
Master of Many Voices
Saxophone, flute, clarinet—Easley commands them all with the hard-won wisdom of someone who’s witnessed every chapter of modern jazz unfold firsthand. From bebop to soul jazz, from Broadway pits to intimate club dates, he’s been there, absorbed it, and made it part of his musical DNA.
Still Writing the Story
And the best part? Bill Easley is still out there, still playing, still adding new chapters to a story that now spans six decades and counting. In a world obsessed with the next new thing, there’s something deeply reassuring about a musician who has mastered the art of being present—in every era, in every room, in every note.
That’s not just a career. That’s a life lived in service to the music itself.
Daily Dose Of Jazz…
Ingrid Jensen: From Subway Platforms to the World’s Greatest Stages
Born on January 12, 1966, in North Vancouver, British Columbia, Ingrid Jensen grew up in nearby Nanaimo, Canada, where she first picked up the trumpet as a child. What began as childhood curiosity blossomed into exceptional talent—so much so that scholarship offers poured in. Jensen made her way through Malaspina University before landing at the prestigious Berklee College of Music, where her distinctive voice on the trumpet truly began to emerge.
Hustle and Heart in the Big Apple< Like so many jazz dreamers before her, Jensen arrived in New York City determined to make her mark. Her early days weren't glamorous—she played in subway stations, trumpet case open for tips, honing her chops and building confidence one commuter at a time. It was the kind of apprenticeship that forges character as much as skill, and Jensen emerged from it ready to take on the jazz world.
Breaking Through
Her rise to prominence has been both steady and impressive. Jensen has signed with and released albums on respected labels including Enja, Justin Time, Universal, and ArtistShare. Her debut album, Vernal Fields, featuring drumming legend Lenny White, saxophonist George Garzone, and bassist Larry Grenadier, earned her a Juno Award—Canada’s highest musical honor. She’s been nominated for several more since, cementing her status as one of jazz’s essential voices.
A Musical Life in Motion
Today, Jensen divides her time between leading her own projects and serving as a featured soloist with the Grammy Award-winning Maria Schneider Jazz Orchestra—one of the most celebrated large ensembles in contemporary jazz. She’s also a sought-after educator, guest-teaching at prestigious universities around the world, sharing not just technique but the wisdom gained from decades on the bandstand.
Family Harmony
Music runs deep in the Jensen family. Ingrid occasionally collaborates with her sister, the accomplished saxophonist Christine Jensen, creating performances that showcase not just their individual artistry but the intuitive connection that only siblings can share.
A Who’s Who of Collaborators
ensen’s résumé reads like a jazz encyclopedia. She’s performed with Steve Wilson, Jeff “Tain” Watts, Dr. Lonnie Smith, Gary Bartz, Bob Berg, Terri Lyne Carrington, Geoffrey Keezer, Chris Connor, Clark Terry, Frank Wess, Dr. Billy Taylor, and the DIVA Big Band, among many others. Each collaboration has added another dimension to her musical vocabulary.
Beyond Jazz
Her trumpet has also crossed genre boundaries—she’s performed with British soul singer Corinne Bailey Rae on Saturday Night Live and even backed comedian Denis Leary, proving that great musicianship transcends stylistic borders.
Still Climbing
Ingrid Jensen continues to perform, record, and tour, bringing her warm tone, impeccable technique, and creative spirit to audiences worldwide. From those early days busking in New York subway stations to standing ovations on international stages, her journey is a testament to talent, perseverance, and an unshakeable belief in the power of music.
For anyone who loves the sound of a trumpet played with both virtuosity and soul, Ingrid Jensen is essential listening.
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Daily Dose Of Jazz…
Patt Casion was born Patt Spears on December 31, 1963 in the Monterey Peninsula, California and grew up in Marina where she learned to play music while at church. It was there she started building her musical chops that led to her attending Berklee College of Music in Boston, Massachusetts, where one of her classmates was Lalah Hathaway, daughter of Donny Hathaway.
Opportunity gave way to her playing local gigs and recording two albums and took her to many places around the world, one was as a member of the Church of God Christ International Orchestra based in Memphis, Tennessee.
Soprano saxophonist Patt Casion, who after a two year battle with cancer, died on December 31, 2017 at Community Hospital of the Monterey Peninsula at the age of 55.
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Daily Dose Of Jazz…
Anna Maria Jopek was born on December 14, 1970 in Warsaw, Poland, the daughter of Mazowsze singer Stanisław Jopek, known as the First Coachman of Poland.
Representing her country in the 1997 Eurovision Song Contest with the song Ale jestem, she finished 11th out of 25 competitors. By 2002 she was collaborating on an album with jazz guitarist Pat Metheny. She has received numerous awards for her music, including Michel Legrand’s Personal Award in Vitebsk, Belarus in 1994.
Anna has sung with Polish musicians Marek Grechuta, Jeremi Przybora and Wojciech Młynarski as well as abroad with Youssu’n Dour, Bobby McFerrin, Ivan Linz, Branford Marsalis, Nigel Kennedy, Richard Bona, Oscar Castro-Neves, Makoto Ozone, Sting and Gonzalo Rubalcaba among others.
In 2015, Jopek received the Knight’s Cross Order of Polonia Restituta conferred by President Bronisław Komorowski for promoting Polish art worldwide.
Vocalist, songwriter and improviser Anna Maria Jopek, who has recorded twelve studio and two live albums as a leader, continues to pursue beyond the boundaries of her musical range.
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