miles davis

Grammy-nominated recording artist John Beasley’s music career spans three decades.  LA Times jazz critic Bill Kohlhaasee describes Beasley’s music and playing as “a variety of generational influences, incorporating the emphatic chordal clusters of Herbie Hancock, the rhythmic quirkiness of Monk and the lush intelligence of Art Tatum into a highly refined personal …

Grammy-nominated recording artist John Beasley’s music career spans three decades.  LA Times jazz critic Bill Kohlhaasee describes Beasley’s music and playing as “a variety of generational influences, incorporating the emphatic chordal clusters of Herbie Hancock, the rhythmic quirkiness of Monk and the lush intelligence of Art Tatum into a highly refined personal …

Ravi Coltrane photo by John Watson Bearing the last name Coltrane and the genes of John and Alice, Ravi Coltrane seemed destined to a career in jazz . However, he hasn’t relied on his bloodlines and developed his own voice to carve out a niche of his own. He’s stood on …

Thelonious Sphere Monk, III (T.S. Monk) is an internationally acclaimed jazz drummer, composer, bandleader, and vocalist. Lauded by critics and jazz fans alike as the true musical heir to his father, the legendary jazz composer and pianist Thelonious Monk, T.S. Monk has paved his own path to success, inspiring a …

Trumpeter Rick Braun is as smooth as they come. Best known for his passionate style of play and amazing song writing skills, the Pennsylvania native started his career at a young age and has gone on to create one of the most recognizable and admired sounds in contemporary jazz today. …

Very rarely does a musician get to play on a legendary recording such as Miles Davis’ Bitches Brew so early in their career, but drummer Lenny White is no ordinary musician.  Taking a cue from his drumming hero Tony Williams, White thrust himself completely into the burgeoning fusion scene of …

We love legends, don’t we? Not only do they use their talents to break barriers and achieve levels of greatness that few have seen, but they also use those very talents to lead a new generation to that same level of excellence and beyond. Master bassist, composer, leader, doctor and …

In a space defined by its progressive thought and forward-thinking, Sonny Rollins maintains his place as one of jazz’s most eccentric personalities. And as such, it affects the way in which we examine his life. For most artists, we track their lives through the lens of artistic output, because what …

When it comes to jazz, funk, R&B and bass guitar, Marcus Miller is truly a pioneer. By the age of 15 he was already composing music and was proficient on the clarinet, piano and bass guitar. In subsequent years he became one of the hottest musicians in the New York …

Trumpeter Roy Hargrove has firmly established himself as among the premier players in jazz and beyond. Ever-stretching into more challenging and colorful ways to flex his musical chops, Hargrove has left indelible imprints in a vast array of artful settings. During his tenure on the Verve label alone, he has recorded an …

Jazz trumpeter and composer Randy Brecker has helped shape the sound of jazz, R&B and rock for more than four decades. His trumpet and flugelhorn performances have graced hundreds of albums by a wide range of artists from James Taylor, Bruce Springsteen and Parliament/Funkadelic to Frank Sinatra, Steely Dan, Jaco …

clas·sic  /klasik/ adjective 1. judged over a period of time to be of the highest quality and outstanding of its kind. Synonym: Ahmad Jamal Playing the piano by the age of 3, composing at 10, and performing at Carnegie Hall with Duke Ellington at 22, Ahmad Jamal has proven that …