Daily Dose Of Jazz…
Masao Yagi was born on November 14, 1932 in Tokyo, Japan. He became devoted to American jazz very early in the wave of Japanese jazz enthusiasm, becoming a member of the Cozy Quartet in 1956 after Toshiko Akiyoshi’s departure. During his tenure in the quartet he played alongside Sadao Watanabe.
In 1959, at twenty-six, the pianist formed his own group featuring several Thelonious Monk tunes in their repertoire, culminating in his debut album, Masao Yagi Plays Thelonious Monk, recorded in the summer of 1960. Later in the decade he played with Charlie Mariano, Hidehiko Matsumoto, and Helen Merrill.
The 1970s saw Yagi leading his own ensembles. He was well-known as a composer and arranger, and wrote copiously for film soundtracks.
Pianist Masao Yagi transitioned on March 4, 1991.
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Daily Dose Of Jazz…
Warren Bernhardt was born on November 13, 1938 in Wausau, Wisconsin. His early childhood exposure to piano was due to his pianist father and he learned some rudiments of keyboarding from his friends. At five his parents moved to New York City, where he began studying seriously under varied instructors. After his father’s death he suffered a period of depression and quit music opting to study chemistry and physics at the University of Chicago. However, exposure to blues and jazz influenced the rest of his career.
From 1961 to 1964 he worked in Paul Winter’s sextet, which led to his return to New York. He would go on to work with George Benson, Gerry Mulligan, Jeremy Steig among others. He developed a close relationship with the pianist Bill Evans, who served as his mentor. Bernhardt released several solo albums in the Seventies, and eventually became a member of the jazz fusion group Steps Ahead. In 1971, he provided the piano accompaniment on the Don McLean song Crossroads.
Warren has toured as the musical director with Steely Dan and can be heard on their Alive in America album. He has performed on Simon and Garfunkel’s Old Friends tour, on Art Garfunkel’s solo tours, and on the latter’s presentation Across America.
In 2009 he reunited with his 1973 band L’Image, featuring Mike Mainieri, David Spinozza, Tony Levin and Steve Gadd. They released the album L ‘Image 2.0. Pianist Warren Bernhardt transitioned on August 19, 2022 of natural causes.
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SHELLY BERG TRIO
The Best Of Broadway!
Shelly Berg is a Steinway piano artist and five-time Grammy-nominated arranger, orchestrator, and producer. His album projects The Deep (Chesky), The Nearness of You (Arbors), Blackbird (Concord) and The Will (CARS) are critically acclaimed. Berg earned three Grammy nominations in the Best Arrangement Accompanying Vocal(s) category with jazz singer-lyricist Lorraine Feather and international superstar Gloria Estefan, and a fourth Grammy nomination as co-producer of Gloria Estefan: The Standards (Sony). He earned his fifth Grammy nomination as co-arranger of “I Loves You Porgy / There’s a Boat That’s Leavin’ Soon for New York” from the album Rendezvous (2018) featuring jazz singers Clint Holmes and Dee Dee Bridgewater with The Count Basie Orchestra. Recent projects include recording and/or performing with Tony Bennett, Seal, Lizz Wright, Andra Day, Clint Holmes, Renée Fleming, and Arturo Sandoval.
Shelly Berg is Dean of the Frost School of Music at the University of Miami and was previously the McCoy/Sample Professor of Jazz Studies at the Thornton School of Music at the University of Southern California. He is also the host of a monthly radio show Generation Next on Sirius XM, music director of The Jazz Cruise, and artistic advisor for the Jazz Roots series at the Adrienne Arsht Center in Miami. Learn more about Shelly at www.shellyberg.com
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EMMET COHEN TRIO
Multifaceted American jazz pianist and composer Emmet Cohen is one of his generation’s pivotal artistic figures. Downbeat praised the “nimble touch, measured stride and warm harmonic vocabulary” he employs to communicate with other musicians and audiences at “the deepest level of humanity and individuality.” Cohen plays with the command and passion of an artist fully devoted to his medium.
He presents jazz performance lectures through the YoungArts Foundation and Lincoln Center’s “Jazz for Young People” program. Cohen has appeared at the Monterey, Newport, North Sea, Bern, and Edinburgh jazz festivals, among others, and at many famous music venues, including Rose Hall and the Kennedy Center.
He has also played in legendary international nightspots, such as Birdland, the Blue Note, Dizzy’s Club Coca-Cola, Jazzhaus Montmartre, Ronnie Scott’s and is the Hammond B-3 organist-in-residence at Harlem’s Smoke jazz club. Cohen holds jazz piano degrees from the Manhattan School of Music (M.M.) and the University of Miami (B.M.). In 2019 he won the American Pianists Association’s Cole Porter Fellowship and in 2011 the Thelonious Monk International Piano Competition. He has performed or collaborated with Debbie Allen, Ron Carter, Jimmy Cobb, Lea DeLaria, Kurt Elling, Billy Hart, Jimmy Heath, Ali Jackson, Bill T. Jones, Brian Lynch, Christian McBride, and Herlin Riley. Learn more about Emmet at www.emmetcohen.com
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CHUCHITO VALDÉS
Chuchito Valdés, following in the footsteps of his famed father Chucho Valdés and grandfather Bebo Valdés, continues the legacy of great piano players from Cuba. With influences of Caribbean rhythms and jazz, Chuchito creates an exciting and energetic blend of spicy music that drives audiences wild. This piano master captivates with his sensitivity and drives excitement with his dynamic band.
He is recognized as a master of Cuban music including Son, Danzon, Cuban Timba and Guaguanco. He has also extensively studied classical music including harmony and composition. His original compositions and arrangements draw on classical harmonic and structural techniques. In his performances, Chuchito’s music draws on many styles including Afro-Cuban Latin Jazz, Bebop, Danzon, Cha-Cha-Cha, Son Montuno and much more.
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