Matty Bannond published five album reviews via Jazz Journal in February, including releases from Lina Allemano and Allison Au. He reported on a concert by the Wojtek Justyna TreeOh! for the same publication. He is now working on a profile of pianist Micah Thomas for The New York City Jazz Record.
Jim Brock, working closely with Just Jazz Foundation co-founder LeRoy “The Jazzcat” Downs and television producer Frederick Smith Jr., covered the first annual Just Jazz Grammy Party + Jam. The night honored jazz legend Bennie Maupin and World Stage founder Kamau Daaood, while also showcasing young trumpeter Daniel Harris III, who has used the Foundation’s resources to propel his career.
Noal Cohen had an essay published in the February 2024 issue of Jersey Jazz Magazine entitled “Sonny Stitt: One of the Most Talented and Influential Modern Jazz Saxophonists.” This piece was written to honor Stitt on the occasion of his centennial birthday, February 2, 2024.
Stephanie Crease will teach a four-week online course, “The Life and Music of Chick Webb,” for Swing U at Jazz at Lincoln Center, starting on Monday, March 11, 2024, at 7 p.m. Register for a single class or for the full course here.
Jeroen de Valk has been busy as editor-in-chief of Jazz Bulletin, a magazine devoted to Dutch jazz history, and enjoyed the presentation of the Italian translation—by member Francesco Martinelli—of his Chet Baker-biography, which featured Enrico Rava. De Valk wrote a series of investigative stories about special musicians who almost completely disappeared from view, including George Johnson, Sandy Mosse and Victor Kaihatu. They all moved back and forth between the U.S. and the Netherlands.
James Hale has written liner notes for new projects by guitarist Roddy Ellias and pianist D.D. Jackson.
Howard Mandel annotated a playlist of Kahil El’Zabar’s 50-years recordings for The Wire, hosted an episode of The Buzz podcast with Paul de Barros, Monika Herzig and John Szwed, and signed a contract with Cymbal Press for the 2024 publication of Jazz Notes: Writings and Photographs by Members of the Jazz Journalists Association, 2004-2024. He also reviewed James Brandon Lewis’ Transfigurations and The Messethetics and James Brandon Lewis for DownBeat.
Dan Ouellette previewed saxophonist Azar Lawrence for his concert at the Hamptons Jazz Festival’s Winter Series for the Sag Harbor’s Express Group weekly, then repurposed it as the lead February story for his 5-year-old Jazz & Beyond Intel column, interviewed Lizz Wright on her new album, Shadow, for an upcoming DownBeat cover story, wrote the bio notes for John Dokes’s Our Day album. He’s working daily with his Cymbal Press editor on his soon-to-be-published book: The Landfill Chronicles.
Lew Shaw‘s recent columns for The Syncopated Times featured a tribute on the passing of Dr. Lee Berk, the late president of Berklee College of Music, and an updated profile of Larry Linkin on his career as a performing musician on Holland-America cruise ships, and his 24-year leadership of the National Association of Music Merchants(NAMM).
Scott Thompson has been hired by Carnegie Hall to work the upcoming, newly commissioned work and debut by Cyrus Chestnut Power In The Blood, original arrangements of spirituals, on April 19. Upcoming projects include: Papo Vasquez, guitarist Sandro Norton and Portuguese vocalist Patrina Morris. He continues as Publicist for 2-time Grammy® nominee, Guggenheim Fellow, Steinway artist and music professor Elio Villafranca. Thompson’s very first client – Nicole Zuraitis – won a Grammy® for Best Jazz Vocal Album.
Michael J. West attended and covered the Vijay Iyer’s concert “Eternal Spirit: The Music of Andrew Hill” for DownBeat.
