Here are the most recent publications and other work reported by the extremely active members of the Jazz Journalists Association. We never sleep!
Gregg Akkerman published the first entry in a new column for All About Jazz . The column, “Jazz on the 90th Floor,” will focus on singers of the Great American Songbook with jazz leanings and the March entry featured an interview with the legendary Jon Hendricks. Akkerman also reviewed David Evanier’s Tony Bennett biography for the Jazz Journalists Association newsletter.
Nancy Barell has just uploaded her 183rd Edition of Jazz Spotlight On Sinatra. She says, ” My main concept is to introduce my listeners to new jazz singers and instrumentalists who are mostly straight ahead and combine them with the icons and Sinatra. I have been doing this for over 6 years now and enjoying new listeners every day.”
Jane Ira Bloom and her Wingwalker project performed at the Jazz at Bucknell concert series at Bucknell University in Lewisburg, PA on April 4th. Jane was joined by long-time bandmates Dawn Clement on piano & Fender Rhodes, Mark Helias on bass and Bobby Previte on drums.
Kenneth K. Martinez Burgmaier is producing two jazz events in Hawai’i with Delfeayo Marsalis and produced by Jazz Alley TV and covered for a TV News segment.
Suzanne Cloud will be covering the events at the John Coltrane House in Philadelphia on April 13th. Mayor Nutter will be holding a press conference there to honor the contributions of Philadelphia jazz musicians and to celebrate the life and career of legendary Charlie Rice, a 91-year-old drummer who toured and recorded with Louis Jordan and was a mainstay in the house band at the famous Downbeat Club in the 1940s.
David Evanier was on the panel, “Biographies of American Singers,” March 29 at the Leon Levy Biography Conference, City University, with Gary Giddins, James Kaplan and Margo Jefferson. On April 9, he is appearing in a “Tribute in Words and Music to Tony Bennett” in Philadelphia with singer Eddie Bruce and WRTI disc jockey Bob Perkins at the Suzanne Roberts Theater.
Steve Griggs wrote a cover feature on Jovino Santos Neto for the March Earshot Jazz and a historical piece on Joe Brazil for the April issue. He created a blog at http://joebrazilproject.
Lyn Horton is exhibiting her visual art in a group show at the Cross-Mackenzie Gallery in Washington, DC in April and in a solo show in September. Her art is featured on the cover and in the booklet that accompanies Wadada Leo Smith’s Ten Freedom Summers, being released in May by Cuneiform.
J Hunter‘s had a busy March in the Capital Region of Upstate New York: For Nippertown (www.nippertown.com), he’s reviewed shows by SFJAZZ Collective, Ravi Coltrane, Jason Marsalis Vibes Quartet, JLCO w/ Wynton Marsalis, and Dead Cat Bounce; he’s covered CD drop parties by local lions Brian Patneaude and Keith Pray (with interviews of both artists); and posted another edition of “Jazz2K”, his monthly review of national and local releases. For State of Mind (www.stateofmindmusic.com), he’s posted reviews of new releases by The Wee Trio, Brian Patneaude, and Todd Clouser’s A Love Electric. He also submitted photos of Dead Cat Bounce in concert to www.albanyjazz.com.
Matthew Kassel reviewed Aaron Novik’s latest CD, Secrets of Secrets, for The Jewish Daily Forward and the recently unearthed album of Wes Montgomery recordings, Echoes of Indiana Avenue, for The New York City Jazz Record.
Elzy Kolb interviewed Toshiko Akiyoshi for the April issue of Hot House. Check it out at www.hothousejazz.com; scroll to page 30. Elzy’s JazzWomen! column is on page 32, featuring chats with Myra Melford, Patricia Adams and Carol Fredette.
Kiyoshi Koyama just finished taping a series of five 50-minute FM radio specials, Jazz Tonight Presents : Jazz of Japan – The Legendary Sessions for NHK. The series features some of the historic mid-50s and early-60s sessions recorded in Tokyo, Yokohama and Osaka. The Highlight will be The Legendary Gin-Paris Session ’63 recorded by amateur engineer and well-known medical doctor Osamu Uchida, featuring some of the most talented new stars at that time: Masabumi Kikuchi (p), Terumasa Hino (tp), and Yosuke Yamashita (p) . They made their recording debut at this historic June 1963 Gin-Paris session.
John Litweiler‘s story “The Buddy Bolden Case” is now posted on his web site goodbaitbooks.com. It is about what probably really happened to Buddy Bolden when he disappeared from New Orleans in 1907, and already it has offended some readers. Also recently added to goodbaitbooks.com are a reprint of his essay “Jazz in the 21st Century: Reasons for Hope” and some photos.
Ralph A.Miriello reviewed Matt Wilson’s Arts & Crafts Quartet at Dizzy’s Club Coca Cola and a solo concert by pianist Vjay Iyer at the Carnegie Room of the Nyack Library, along with reviews of new albums by saxophonists Jurgen Hagenlocher and Michael Campagna and singers Kathy Kosins and Sabrina Lastman for his blog and the Huffington Post.
Steve Monroe in his March Jazz Avenues column for the MD-DC edition of Capital Community News, featured owner Tony Puesan talking about a new and bigger space for his HR-57 club in D.C., and previewed saxophonist Ron Kearns’ new CD Quiet Nights. Monroe also tweeted (@jazzavenues) and blogged on Andrew Cyrille’s performance with his 21st Century Big Band Unlimited at the Atlas in D.C., and also tweeted on Kearns’ CD and Amy K. Bormet’s Washington Women in Jazz Festival performances.
Lenore Raphael, JJA member/jazz pianist/Steinway artist, will be doing four performances and a Master Class in April for Jazz Appreciation month.
Maxi Sickert contributed three large articles on ZEIT.online on the current German Jazz debate about how Jazz as an artform should get state support and about the danger of age poverty of musicians.
Daniel Smith will be the subject of a rare double interview in Cadence magazineon his unique career as the only bassoon soloist in both jazz and classical music. The first part of this Cadence showcase, scheduled for their June edition, will be an in- depth interview; this be followed by further interview material, along with new updates to appear in the July edition.
Greg Thomas is now a weekly jazz columnist with the New York Daily News, the nation’s fourth largest daily newspaper. His column is featured every Thursday in the “Now Focus” features section and on Sundays in Your New York. In March, he wrote features on the Stan Kenton centennial celebrations at Jazz at Lincoln Center and the Manhattan School of Music; vocalists Carmen Lundy and Patti Austin; pianists Monty Alexander and Eddie Palmieri; the Music of the Tenor Masters concert at JALC featuring Joe Lovano, Benny Golson, and Bennie Maupin; bassist Christian McBride; and reviews of new releases by Robert Glasper, Steve Turre, Bria Skonberg and Wes Montgomery.
Michael J. West wrote profiles of Hailey Niswanger for Downbeat and of Sammy Nestico for JazzTimes. He also co-wrote a cover story for Washington City Paper on the renovation and reopening of DC’s legendary Howard Theatre.
Florence Wetzel just published Elvis in the Morning: Poems and Tales, a collection of poems and five memoir pieces. The poems include several portraits of jazz musicians, which were originally published in the JJA website.
Adina Williams produces New Orleans: Culture Remixed Global Weekend at The American Museum of Natural History, Saturday, April 28, 1-6PM. As part of the national celebrations during Jazz Appreciation Month (JAM), the Museum takes a close look at jazz’s birthplace, New Orleans.
Joyce M. Wilson, a new intern for the JJA, will for the month of April be attending a series of live performances taking place within the Greater Los Angeles area. Her main focus will be concentrating on the hot spots to attend for a wide range of different sounds within Jazz Music.
Use our JJA Member Directories to find JJA members qualified to contribute to your publication or production or to assist you with your jazz-related project. The directories can be searched by name, area of expertise and geographic location.
If you are a JJA Member and want your update to be included in next month’s roundup, send it to membernews@jazzjournalists.org by May 1, 2012.
If you aren’t a JJA Member yet, consider joining us. Membership is open to both Professional Journalists (writers, bloggers, photographers, videographers, web producers and others who cover jazz) and Industry Associates (musicians, educators, presenters, promoters and others who work in the industry and support our work.)
