Audrey Shakir was born into a musical family in Cleveland, Ohio – her mother was a great pianist, organist and vocal coach, and her father, whose idol was Billy Eckstine, loved to sing. She began her professional career as a pianist in a group that played the tunes of Stevie Wonder, Chaka Khan and others. […]
The Heavy Hitters is a sextet co-led by pianist Mike LeDonne and tenor saxophonist Eric Alexander. The band is rounded out by some of the premiere purveyors of straight-ahead swinging jazz: Vincent Herring on alto saxophone, Joshua Bruneau on trumpet, Peter Washington on upright bass, and Kenny Washington on drums. The music is built to […]
“Obviously, we are in the capable hands of a master. Absolutely fluid touch and beautiful integration between moving lines and harmonic cadences. The sound of the instrument is well-balanced throughout the entire register. The relaxed quality of everything that’s being played gives it such a warm feeling. To play that stuff is extremely hard. This […]
Singer/Songwriter Tony Hightower is taking up the mantle to be a bridge that ushers R&B audiences into Jazz…Real Jazz. With years of experience as a musical performer and actor with familiar roots that place him firmly within the music’s firmament, Atlanta-native Hightower is still just getting started on this benevolent turn in his journey. And he is bringing a lot […]
Christian McBride is an eight-time GRAMMY Award winning bassist, composer, and bandleader. McBride is the Artistic Director of the historic Newport Jazz Festival, New Jersey Performing Arts center (NJPAC) and the TD James Moody Jazz Festival, and the National Jazz Museum in Harlem. Christian is also a respected educator and advocate as the Artistic Director […]
Grammy winner Kurt Elling is without question today’s preeminent male jazz vocalist, renowned worldwide for his unparalleled virtuosity and flair for trailblazing artistic exploration. From his stunning reinvention of timeless standards to his own captivating original songcraft, the Chicago-based musician has fused his dazzling talents across a panoply of musical approaches, emblazoning each with signature […]
At 43, Tyshawn Sorey is an American composer, multi-instrumentalist, and professor of contemporary music. Sorey has received accolades for performances, recordings, and compositions ranging from improvised solo percussion to opera, with work in best-of lists for both classical and jazz music. A Newark native, is among the most formidable denizens of the in-between zone. Here […]
A jazz Celebration of Stevie Wonder featuring special guest Adam McKnight. For over 35 years, Maria Howell, this petite North Carolina native, who splits her time between both the east coast and the west coast, has developed her career as a singer, actor, and voiceover artist. Her debut acting role was the choir soloist in […]
French jazz guitarist and composer who started playing guitar at fourteen years old, after eight years of piano training. Two years later, he began formally studying jazz music. He received a degree in jazz musical studies from the Conservatory of Orsay in 2004, later rounding out this academic training by playing extensively in France with musicians such […]
The multi-talented siblings have been playing together since they were 10 and 11. They continue to strive with their gifts as they travel, playing with some of the best local, national and international recording artists. Their performances can be described as two different voices coming together to create a healing, ethereal, and emotional experience for the […]
Russell Malone is one of the signature guitar players of his generation. The several recordings since 1992, Malone is as well-known on the international circuit for helming a world-class quartet and trio as he is for his long-standing participation in Ron Carter’s Golden Striker Trio, and his recent consequential contribution to the musical production of […]
George Colligan - piano | Nicole Glover - saxophone | Alex Claffy - bass | Kush Abadey - drums George Colligan is not only one of the great jazz pianists of his generation, but he has earned an international reputation as a multi-instrumentalist (drums, trumpet, organ, keyboards), composer, accompanist, teacher, and bandleader, as well as […]
Ensemble: Janelle Gil, Romeir Mendez, Justin Faulkner, Paige Brown, Tim Warfield & Clarence Ward, III A treat in store for jazz-vocals fans released at the end of this month this from American singer Heidi Martin full of original, involving compositions with some very sensitive accompaniment by among others guitarist Paul Bollenback, bassist Tarus Mateen and drummer […]
In a career that took flight in 1985 with commercial and critical acclaim, guitar virtuoso Stanley Jordan has consistently displayed a chameleonic musical persona of openness, imagination, versatility and maverick daring. Be it bold reinventions of classical masterpieces or soulful explorations through pop-rock hits, to blazing straight ahead jazz forays and ultramodern improvisational works-solo or […]
Joey Alexander, is an Indonesian jazz pianist. He became the first Indonesian musician to chart on Billboard 200 when his album My Favorite Things debuted at number 174 and then peaked at 59. His first album, My Favorite Things, was released in 2015 when he was 11 years old. Widely regarded as a wunderkind, Alexander taught himself to play jazz at the age […]
Gary Bartz Jean Carn Norman Connors Eddie Baccus Jr. The Starship Orchestra Known for his overblowing, harmonic, and multi-phonic techniques on the saxophone, as well as his use of "sheets of sound", American jazz musician Pharaoh Sanders played a prominent role in the development of free jazz and spiritual jazz through his work as a member of John Coltrane's groups in the mid-1960s, and later […]
Laurence Hobgood: pianist, Matt Clohesy: bass, Jared Schonig: drums. Laurence Hobgood, a multifaceted artist with a career spanning over three decades, brings his exceptional talents to the stage. From a young age, he immersed himself in the world of music, ultimately transitioning to jazz during his time at the University of Illinois. It was there […]
Every great musical project starts with a feeling that it’s time.So it was, in 2004, for Madeleine Peyroux: “when I got around to making Careless Love it had been a good eight years since my first album.” Eight years—forever in the music world. Not long After Dreamland dropped in ’96, she had disappeared from the […]
Michael Wolff ~ piano, Ben Allison ~ bass, Allison Miller ~ drums. In the summer of 2015, the renowned pianist-composer battled a rare cancer, defying the odds to make a remarkable recovery. His sons Nat and Alex, known from The Naked Brothers Band, played by his side during his darkest moments. Today, he is completely […]
Al West Jr. — vocalist Greg Chako — guitar David Lloyd — bass Michael Meloy — drums Conceived in Mississippi, born in St. Louis, Misouri and raised in Chicago, Illinois he is a jazz vocalist whose journey follows the genealogy and geography of this uniquely American musical art form. His silky smooth vocals and classic-man […]
Mandy Gaines ~ vocalist | Sergio Pamies ~ piano Mandy Gaines began singing at an early age in school and church. She holds a B.A. from the College of Wooster in Speech/Arts. She has continued her studies through private vocal instruction and workshops emphasizing oral interpretation, jazz improvisation, vocal technique, theatre, and broadcasting/media studies. Born […]
An American jazz, R&B, and pop singer. Her first single, "Fool Me Once", reached number one on the Smooth Jazz chart at Billboard magazine (2016), making her the first vocalist since Sade's 2010 "Soldier of Love" to have a #1 vocally-driven song in the primarily instrumental format. Since then Webster has scored six Top 5 hits, including […]
Atlanta native Joe Alterman expresses a certain upbeat naivete, with a broad smile and bright eyes that make you feel welcome. One would not guess that this is a man hailed by greats; Ramsey Lewis describes his music as "happy music with tasty meat on the bones," Les McCann states "Joe's on a 'blow your […]
Kate Baker is a critically acclaimed jazz singer hailing from, and currently residing in, New Jersey. Her debut album, 2022's Return to Shore, is a luminous guitar-and-voice duet with her late husband, Vic Juris, who passed away in 2019. The throughline is Baker’s inimitable voice, which resonates with her love of diverse musical inspirations — whether […]