Jazz Master

Keith Jarrett, pianist and composer is known for his creative improvisational works. He can play an entire concert without any planning beforehand. This may explain why clearly missing from the Playbill from a recent performance at The Chicago Symphony Center (CSC) was the artist’s list of songs. With much anticipation …

As Esperanza Spalding appeared on stage in shadow, applause erupted throughout the Chicago Symphony Center. She stood there in the dim light for a moment, and then sashayed over to a floor lamp and chair. She turned on the lamp light, slipped out of her jacket, and sunk into the big …

Pianist and composer Hiromi Uehara, whose passionate and incendiary keyboard work has been a shining light on the jazz landscape since her 2003 debut, believes that the voice that never speaks can sometimes be the most powerful of all. Her newest release, a nine-song trio recording simply titled Voice, expresses a …

The New York Times is one of numerous publications to declare that Kurt Elling is the “standout male vocalist of our time,” and The Gate, Elling’s follow-up to his Grammy®-winning Dedicated to You, is among his strongest albums–and perhaps the finest of his career. Produced by Don Was (Rolling Stones, Bonnie …

KAISO is the third recording as a leader for talented trumpeter Etienne Charles, following his two well-received projects, Culture Shock, and Folklore. It continues a theme that he has embraced from the outset of his recording career: an immersion in, and a respect for the music, and by extension, the culture, of …

For more than two decades, drummer, producer and vocalist Terri Lyne Carrington has crafted an eclectic brand of jazz that incorporates elements of bebop, soul, funk and much more. Since her debut in 1989, the GRAMMY®-nominated artist has established a reputation for assembling artists of varying styles and perspectives to …

In the liner notes to Tree of Life, drummer/composer/arranger Francisco Mela’s third album as a leader, Bill Milkowski quotes him: “There are three bands that I really love, the electric Miles Davis band with keyboardists Keith Jarrett and Chick Corea, Weather Report, and Chucho Valdés with Irakere. What I’m trying to do with Cuban Safari is put those three bands together.” That’s a mighty ambitious …

Trombonists Jay Ashby and Steve Davis have played together in various jazz ensembles over the years. Their physical, biographical and musical similarities have lead to many instances of being confused for each other, and is the source of the title of their first duet release, Mistaken Identity. The two have …