by Michael J. West, JazzTimes “..Spring of Two Blue-J’s, one of the great concert triumphs of free-jazz pianist Cecil Taylor’s career, is just the shorter second set from a two-set night? Perhaps it’s not the world-reshaping news that the recent spate of new Coltrane releases has been, but it’s big, and the newly released full … Read More
By JazzTimes For the 2021 JazzTimes Expanded Critics’ Poll, an annual companion to last issue’s Year in Review section (which featured our choices for top 40 new releases and top 10 historical releases of 2021), our regular contributors participated in a survey based on our yearly Readers’ Poll. Winners are bolded; runners-up are listed below … Read More
by David Whiteis, JazzTimes “Oscar Hernández, longtime pianist, arranger, and musical director for Rubén Blades’ orchestra and founder/musical director of the Grammy-winning Spanish Harlem Orchestra, wears his prestige lightly. This is his third recording since 2017 with the quartet Alma Libre (augmented here, at various points, by trumpeter Aaron Janik, vibist Joe Locke, and hand-percussionist … Read More
By Michael J. West, JazzTimes A review of the six-disc set from the pianist spanning formats and environments. Read more here.
By Morgan Enos, JazzTimes We know what you’re thinking: Oh, great, here come the pandemic albums. Those who didn’t merely dump their offerings on Bandcamp during the initial wave, the artists who actually paid for a publicist and a pressing plant, are just now putting out their quarantine music. But if any COVID releases endure, … Read More
By Lee Mergner, JazzTimes Lee Mergner reports on the Washington fest’s return to live in-person performance. Read more here.
by Martin Johnson, JazzTimes “Just as the album effortlessly integrates guests and inspirations into the fold, the music flows freely between tempos and genres. There are plenty of ways to make an academic presentation about the core similarities of African-American musical styles, but Marcus and Jean Baylor have found a fun and captivating approach.” Read … Read More
By Lee Megner, JazzTimes Giveton Gelin Quintet, Camilla George, and Dayramir Gonzalez & Habana enTRANCe will compete for $15,000 grand prize and other benefits at the festival on Sept. 5. Read more here.
By Allen Morrison, JazzTimes A funny thing happened to the Canadian jazz guitar master Lorne Lofsky as he walked down Mt. Pleasant Road in Toronto one day a little over 40 years ago, a thing that would lead the jazz piano titan Oscar Peterson to produce Lofsky’s first album. Read more here.
By Philip. Booth, JazzTimes There’s nothing like a regular residency to hone the playing of a big band and give such an ensemble—always a challenge just to keep gigging—a chance to routinely introduce, air out, and tweak arrangements. Steven Feifke’s group benefited from just such an opportunity during nearly two years’ worth of monthly performances … Read More
