Vocalist, composer, producer, arranger and 7 time Grammy nominee Nnenna Freelon brings her talent to the Hayti Heritage Center on the campus of North Carolina Central University. She is joined by her ensemble including bassist John Brown, the NCCU Jazz Ensemble under the direction of Robert Trowers, and the NCCU Vocal Jazz Ensemble directed by […]
Singer and guitarist, he represents the quintessence of jazz vocals, heir to an art, that of crooners, which in the past has produced great performers. Born in Brooklyn and raised between Harlem and Pittsburgh, between jazz and country, over the course of his career he has received dozens of awards, among which the Downbeat critics' […]
Dave Stryker - Guitar | Warren Wolf - Vibes | Jared Gold - Organ | McClenty Hunter - Drums Whether you’ve heard guitarist Dave Stryker leading his own group (with 30 CD’s as a leader to date), or as a featured sideman with Stanley Turrentine, Jack McDuff, and many others, you know why the Village Voice calls him “one […]
If the paths of jazz, blues and pop mostly run in parallel, it is not at all uncommon for their paths to intersect and come together in a single, and generally quite intriguing, stretch. For some time one of these intersections has borne the name of Kandace Springs: the young singer, pianist and composer based […]
The trumpeter performed in New York's loft scene with various groups including the Melodic Art-Tet (Charles Brackeen, Roger Blank and Ronnie Boykins, later William Parker). Ahmed Abdullah formed his own band in 1972, and joined the Sun Ra Arkestra in 1975, working there on and off until 1993, when Sun Ra died. He stayed on […]
Drummer, producer and sound artist Makaya McCraven is one of the most in-demand artists in Chicago today. His creative inventiveness and intuitive, individual style transcend all categories. Recognized as a true innovator, McCraven brilliantly moves between genres, pushing the boundaries of jazz, electronics, composition and rhythm. His breakthrough album "In the Moment" was released on the International […]
Ellington 125 | Duke Ellington Sacred Concert Cyrus Chestnut is a jazz pianist, composer and producer. In 2006, Josh Tyrangiel, music critic for Time, wrote: "What makes Chestnut the best jazz pianist of his generation is a willingness to abandon notes and play space. In the late 1980s and early 1990s, Chestnut worked with Wynton Marsalis, Terence Blanchard, Donald Harrison, and other […]
According to The Guardian, Scott Hamilton represents the timeless essence of jazz. The tenor saxophonist is known for his captivating style of playing, for which trumpeter Roy Eldridge was a major influence. After trying out several instruments, he picked the saxophone when he ended up in New York. He stayed with the instrument ever since […]
Reverence | Record Release Charles McPherson – alto saxophone | Terell Stafford – trumpet | Jeb Patton – piano | Peter Washington – bass | Billy Drummond – drums “No jazz musician of the past 60 years has more palpably channeled the sound of Charlie Parker than alto saxophonist Charles McPherson.” – Jazziz Alto saxophonist […]
According to The Guardian, Scott Hamilton represents the timeless essence of jazz. The tenor saxophonist is known for his captivating style of playing, for which trumpeter Roy Eldridge was a major influence. After trying out several instruments, he picked the saxophone when he ended up in New York. He stayed with the instrument ever since […]
Award-winning pianist, composer and educator, Rossano Sportiello is one of the world's leading jazz piano players on the scene today, specialized in the styles from Harlem Stride Piano to Bebop to Contemporary Jazz. A swinging jazz saxophonist, Harry Allen is a highly regarded performer whose musical inspiration and interpretive approach come from the giants and […]
As a part of Miami’s vibrant music scene, singer/songwriter Leesa Richards grew up in music-rich Detroit and started showing an inclination towards the arts at a very early age. “My parents listened to a lot of jazz and I would record myself over and over singing along to Nancy Wilson records,” she says. But when she […]
The Double N Trio is headed up by Noah Nipp, hence the double "n" in the groups name. Negroni's Trio is a jazz band that plays piano jazz, Latin jazz, hard bop, jazz instrument, and soul jazz. The band is made up of Jose Negroni on piano, Nomar Negroni on drums, and Josh Allen on bass. They […]
Performing for nearly five decades, jazz flutist Ali Ryerson consistently ranks among the top flutists in the Downbeat poll. An international touring/recording artist, she’s released 15 albums including Brasil: Quiet Devotion. The Hartford Currant wrote, “She is all about the music, she serves it, molds it, makes it her own. She is at the mercy […]
Jacky Terrasson, the most widely traveled of all jazz pianists, is the “piano player of happiness,” according to Telerama magazine in France. He is an exhilarating musician, one of those who play their public straight to euphoria. Born in Berlin, of an American mother and a French father, he grew up in Paris, France. He […]
Three pillars of international jazz, celebrate over thirty years as a trio and 30 years is almost an eternity in jazz terms, but the trio shows no signs of tiredness, on the contrary, the ability to renew itself, exciting the audience is always the same. The trio has been recognized for breaking new ground and […]
The two-time Grammy winning vocalist, lyricist, and composer for internationally and critically acclaimed roots music group, Ranky Tanky, Quiana Parler spent weeks at #1 on several Billboard Jazz charts. Quiana has spent over 20 years as the most sought-after vocalist in the Lowcountry. Known locally for years prior, she rose to national prominence after her […]
Eddie Henderson – trumpet | Ralph Moore – tenor saxophone | Steve Davis – trombone | Mike LeDonne – piano | Buster Williams – bass | Carl Allen – drums “Among jazz’s greatest living composers.” – The Washington Post The music of jazz legend Benny Golson is celebrated and performed by the New Jazztet featuring […]
Renowned pianist Shelly Berg, along with bassist Carlos Del Puerto and the talented Max Marsillo on drums, will present their latest album, "Alegria." Shelly Berg, a jazz luminary and Dean of the Frost School of Music, has made significant contributions to the genre. Del Puerto, with a remarkable resume including collaborations with Quincy Jones and […]
Take 6 is Claude McKnight, Mark Kibble, Joel Kibble, Dave Thomas, Alvin Chea and Khristian Dentley, and has been heralded by Quincy Jones as the “baddest vocal cats on the planet!,” is the quintessential a cappella group and the model for vocal genius. With 10 Grammy Awards, 10 Dove Awards, a Soul Train Award, and […]
SFJazz Gala 2024 Honoring Patti Austin | A Benefit Of SFJazz Artistic And Education Programs Patti Austin was born to be music royalty with Dinah Washington and Quincy Jones as her godmother and godfather. From her start as a four-year-old prodigy on Harlem’s Apollo Theatre Stage, through her years as an elite backing vocalist, to […]
The trumpeter studied classical trumpet as a child and focused on jazz after playing in a high school jazz ensemble. He studied at Berklee College of Music. Among those he has performed with are Ravi Coltrane, Roy Hargrove, Greg Osby, and Cassandra Wilson.
Omar Sosa ~ Piano | Seckou Keita ~ Kora | Gustavo Ovalles ~ Percussion Seven-time Grammy-nominated pianist Omar Sosa joins kora maestro Seckou Keita and percussionist Gustavo Ovalles for an all-star collaboration. The Atlantic Ocean separates Senegal and Cuba, the respective birthplaces of kora maestro Seckou Keita and piano virtuoso Omar Sosa, a distance diminished by […]
Eugenie Jones was not supposed to be a jazz singer. She graduated with an MBA in marketing, and her post-graduate career took her deep within the nonprofit sector as a marketing communications executive. Her mother, a soprano gospel singer, was the singer of the family, and when cancer claimed her life, Jones managed her grief […]
