JJA Member News: February 2017

Looking for proof that jazz is alive and well? You’ll find the most recent publications and other work reported by the extremely active members of the Jazz Journalists Association after the jump. We never sleep! If you are a JJA member and would like your recent activities included in the next installment of Member Updates, send a brief paragraph beginning with your name to membernews@jazzjournalists.org by March 3, 2017.

David R. Adler wrote about big-band composer Jihye Lee for The Village Voice and vocalist/guitarist Allan Harris for JazzTimes. He has reviewed CDs recently by George Burton, Miguel Zenón, Nate Smith, Vinnie Sperrazza, Peter Brendler and more for The New York City Jazz Record and Stereophile. He’ll soon publish a long Q&A with altoist Rudresh Mahanthappa for the South Asian American Digital Archive.

Mirian Arbalejo‘s site has been nominated one of the 100 Best Art & Culture Blogs in Spanish Language (Bitacoras Awards). She has covered the International Jazz Festival in Madrid, her city. Mirian just finished her first novel (coming soon). She was one of the speakers at the inauguration of jazz photographer Esther Cidoncha’s exposition at Institut Français.
Nancy Barell is continuing to air her program “Jazz Spotlight On Sinatra” on Purejazzradio.org on Tuesdays at 7pm and Thursdays at 11am. Also on WFDUhd2 on Sundays at 8pm (this is a new time) and Mondays at 9am. Interested artists can contact her on the JJA site.
Stephanie J. Castillo and her film Night Bird Song: The Incandescent Life of Thomas Chapin have signed an educational distribution deal with Kanopy.com that will stream a classroom-length version into 3,200 schools, libraries and institutions. Jazz at Lincoln Center will screen NIGHT BIRD SONG on March 10, 7 p.m. at its Irene Diamond Educational Center. Castillo continues to seek worldwide distribution opportunities. In January, she sat on a JJA panel on Jazz Journalism Basics led by JJA President Howard Mandel.
Anna Celenza is excited about the release of her latest book Jazz Italian Style: From Its Origins in New Orleans to Fascist Italy and Sinatra (Cambridge University Press). The book reveals how Italians made jazz their own, and how, by the mid-1930s, a genre of jazz distinguishable from American varieties and supported by Mussolini flourished in Italy. She’ll be giving talks related to the book this spring in Florida, New Orleans, NYC, Washington DC and Rome, Italy.
Sharonne Cohen published a Players profile on Montreal saxophonist Al McLean and his new recording with Azar Lawrence in DownBeat magazine, and reviewed a performance by drummer Billy Hart with an ensemble of local musicians at Montreal’s Upstairs jazz club, also for DownBeat. She is currently working on a preview of pianist-composer Cameron Graves’ new album for VICE/Noisey.
Yvonne Ervin wrapped up the third annual Tucson Jazz Festival on Jan. 22. Four sold-out show highlighted the 11-day festival: Kamasi Washington, George Benson, Dee Dee Bridgewater and Tower of Power. She was also nominated for a Governor’s Arts Award in January.
Ken Franckling published his annual look back at the year in jazz for allaboutjazz.com. He reviewed and photographed Southwest Florida concerts by guitarist Martin Taylor in Naples FL and singer Veronica Swift in Fort Myers with the Dan Miller-Lew Del Gatto Quintet, plus multi-instrumentalist Ira Sullivan (Charlotte County Jazz Society), a Larry Coryell-Russell Malone-Nate Najar guitar summit (South County Jazz Club), as well as the Eddie Metz Trio with Harry Allen (Jazz Club of Sarasota), on his Jazz Notes blog.
Sid Gribetz presented a five hour radio broadcast celebrating the career of George Wallington on WKCR radio in New York City on January 15.
Steve Griggs had his 50th anniversary of Coltrane in Seattle article reprinted in Stories of Music Volume 2 (Timbre Press). He will perform a program of stories and music inspired by the Japanese American WWII incarceration at the Japanese American Cultural and Community Center of Washington on the 75th anniversary of the Executive Order putting the military in charge of relocating Japanese Americans.
James Hale wrote articles for DownBeat on the Toronto Jazz Festival and the jazz program at the Chicago Jesuit Academy. For SoundStageXperience.com, he wrote reviews of BassDrumBone’s 30th anniversary recording and Brian Eno’s Reflection.
Robin Lloyd is now programming and hosting an hour-long show of Latin Jazz called Jazz Caliente on Saturdays at 5pm PT on 88.5 KNKX, writing a weekly Jazz Caliente web post and posting on Facebook. She’s also still hosting the afternoon KNKX Mid Day Jazz (with a touch of blues) program daily from noon to 3pm PT.
Fran Morris Rosman and everyone else at Ella’s Place are thrilled with the opening of the Ella and Her Songbooks exhibit in Carmel, Indiana – part of The Great American Songbook Foundation.  “Fabulous multi-media exhibit. We are grateful to Lisa Lobdell, Chris Lewis and the magnificent Michael Feinstein.  Go visit!!”

Joan Watson-Jones hosts “The Jazz Room” on www.cyberstationusa.com Internet Jazz Radio. In February she’ll talk with Stephanie J. Castillo about her film Night Bird Song, Paul Combs about his book Dameronia; The Life of Tadd Dameron and saxophonist Lou Donaldson. Archived shows at www.dqrm.com/thejazzroom.

Jim Wilke‘s live broadcast recordings of The Three Sounds from The Penthouse in Seattle were released on Resonance Records on limited edition vinyl in November (sold out), and CD in January.  Jim also contributed liner notes for the release of these broadcasts recordings from the 1960s.  New location recordings by Brian Lynch & Thomas Marriott, Dave Douglas and The Westerlies, Denise Donatelli, and Nancy King have recently aired on Jim’s Jazz Northwest show on KNKX: jazznw.org.

Member Updates are edited by Michael J. West. 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 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.)

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published.

Latest from Member Updates

Skip to content