By Dan Emerson Photos by Andrea Canter. Along with his many other musical accomplishments, bassist and composer Dave Holland will forever be known as a member of one of Miles […]
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A Midwest native and long-time resident, Joan Griffith has devoted much of her career as musician (bass, guitar and mandolin), composer, and teacher to the sounds and spirit of Brazil. […]
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“I always say that music has saved, saves and will save my life.” –Claudia Medina She grew up in Lima where her father “transferred his love for music to me.” […]
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By Dan Emerson To create his magnum opus album “Musica de Las Americas,” Puerto Rican saxophonist and composer Miguel Zenon took a neck-deep dive into an epic, endlessly intriguing […]
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By Don Berryman Searching In Grenoble: The 1978 Solo Piano Concert is a previously unissued recording of jazz pianist and composer Mal Waldron’s mesmerizing solo performance at the “Five Days […]
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by Don Berryman I can think of few others who embody the phrase “larger than life’ as Charles Mingus does. Imposing in both physical and artistic stature, his influence on […]
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By Dan Emerson In the creative, improvised music world, it’s often true that familiarity breeds success – as measured in artistic achievement, not necessarily commercial success. That’s certainly true of […]
Continue ReadingThe Montreal Jazz Festival, officially titled Festival International de Jazz de Montréal, fills the city with so much music, that it spills over beyond the Festival itself. One of the […]
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by Don Berryman This year we have a treasure trove of previously unreleased live recordings by some of the giants of jazz from the 60’s and 70’s including Ahmad Jamal, […]
Continue ReadingThe past couple of years have certainly been a strange time, and the music industry has been adapting to these pandemic circumstances. Live music events have returned, and this summer, […]
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By Dan Emerson Two-time Grammy winner Kurt Elling is renowned for his formidable vocal instrument which made him an ideal choice to sing and swing with the world-class JazzMN Orchestra […]
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By Dan Emerson One of Cuban-born piano virtuoso Ignacio “Nachito” Herrera’s stated ambitions is to combine his wide-ranging musical influences into one music. With the help of violin virtuoso Karen […]
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Three-time Grammy winning pianist and NEA Jazz Master Ramsey Lewis died in his sleep at home in Chicago on September 12. He was 87. His most recent Twin Cities appearance […]
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By Dan emerson “Please welcome the AMAZING Kamasi Washington.” The sold-out audience waiting for Washington’s late show at the Dakota on August 26 reacted with appropriate enthusiasm for the […]
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“I’ve always been stretching the boundaries of the instrument since day one,” he told Philadelphia Weekly in 2019. “I have my influences, but nobody’s played the organ the way […]
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By Dan Emerson William “Count” Basie’s world-changing sound originated in a raucous Petri dish that will never be replicated – 1930s Kansas City – to become a band that will […]
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The 2022 summer jazz season is upon us! But before it is over, here’s one more (long overdue!) last look back at one of the best major jazz events from […]
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The Twin Cities Jazz Festival brought us some great voices throughout St Paul—Bruce Henry, Lila Ammons, Maryann Sullivan, Ginger Commodore, Connie Evingson… the list goes on. So we’re primed for […]
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I’ve been to my share of jazz festivals in the past 20 years, from small city parks like Burnsville and Apple Valley (MN) to the biggest free fest of all, […]
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By Dan Emerson “Where’s the bass player?” It’s one of the musical questions hanging on the collaboration that has created one of improvised music’s newest and most potent duos: Olympic […]
Continue ReadingIt is almost time for the summer jazz festival season to begin. Before it starts, here is a look back at one of the best major festivals in the New […]
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Vocalists seem to love the Twin Cities, and we’ve already had some top voices visit in the past few months, including Karrin Allyson, Marilyn Maye, Signe Eeg, Sara Gazarek, Gretchen […]
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By Ryan Garmoe We all know Jacob Collier is singularly gifted. His videos took the internet by storm in 2012, and Collier himself has been on a meteoric rise, musically […]
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By Ryan Garmoe This past Saturday, Grammy-nominated musician, emcee, singer, producer, and drummer, Kassa Overall, gave a genre-bending performance at The Cedar. This music refuses definition; It’s equal parts jazz, […]
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By Dan Emerson Saxophonist-composer Chris Speed, drummer Dave King and upright bassist Chris Tordini have played off and on as a trio since 2013, along with performing in various other […]
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In November 2011, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) officially designated April 30 as International Jazz Day “in order to highlight jazz and its diplomatic role of uniting people […]
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I remember when I first “found” pianist Lynne Arriale in a used CD bin, a few years after her first release (The Eyes Have It, 1994). I was certain […]
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By Dan Emerson Pianist and composer Craig Taborn says that his steadily-evolving music takes shape through an ongoing “conversation between composed sections and improvisation.” Returning to his Minneapolis hometown on […]
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By Ryan Garmoe This past Monday, two jazz groups with an electric tilt showcased their stuff for the final evening of March Madness Mondays at Icehouse. The evening opened with […]
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By Dan Emerson Freed from the bonds of COVID lockdown, the SFJazz Collective brought plenty of creative and performing energy with its annual (in “normal” times) visit to the Dakota […]
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By Ryan Garmoe A newcomer to Volstead’s Emporium would probably be put off. They would see a line extending from a large metal door located in a back alley behind […]
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On Saturday, September 4, SummerStage and the City Parks Foundation, in association with the 25th Brazilian Film Festival, presented the Dom Salvador Samba Jazz Sextet. The event took place at […]
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Much to the delight of Twin Cities jazz fans, Jazz Fest returns to Mears Park and traditional summer weekend, June 24-25, with primary sponsorship from AARP and KBEM radio. Festival […]
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By Ryan Garmoe Since 2019, something special has been happening every Tuesday evening in Northeast Minneapolis. Jazz musicians gather, share some drinks, and ultimately play tunes from 10pm-1am at Whitey’s […]
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By Ryan Garmoe Two weeks ago on Saturday, bassist Charlie Lincoln led his quartet for the second installment of Saturday Night Jazz at kj’s hideaway. The stellar group featured Ivan […]
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By Dan Emerson Rising-star vibraphonist Warren Wolf plans to show several sides of his musical personality Tuesday-Wednesday, February 8-9 at the Dakota jazz club. On Tuesday night, multi-instrumentalist Wolf will […]
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“Take That Back” is a great title for this band and its debut album, led by Twin Cities’ Joan Hutton and Eau Claire’s Sue Orfield, as it seems that is […]
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By Dan Emerson The popular Saturday Night Jazz series in St. Paul’s Lowertown neighborhood has found a new home in an “old” location. Uprooted by the recent closing of Lowertown’s […]
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By Dan Emerson On their recent tour, 82 year old keyboardist and composer emeritus Bob James and his 20-something drummer, James Adkins, have been swapping vital information. The well-traveled jazz […]
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With the ongoing pandemic, things are still quite uncertain in the world. Yet somehow, despite everything, throughout 2021, in both live virtual and in-person events, jazz still prevailed. It was […]
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By Dan Emerson. Pianist and composer Ethan Iverson will return to the Twin Cities January 13 to perform at Crooner’s in Fridley, about a month before Blue Note Records releases […]
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By Don Berryman A year ago in “20_from 2020 – New Music that Helped” I predicted that in 2021 we would witness an explosion of creativity after all the woodshedding […]
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By Dan Emerson Pat Mallinger Home for a visit at Thanksgiving, Chicago-based tenor saxophonist-composer Pat Mallinger was walking in downtown St. Paul when he came across a new club he […]
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By Bill Stieger. The drummer perches behind his red Gretsch with the posture of a finishing school graduate. His sticks are small, and he balances them on his fingertips. An […]
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(Editor’s note: The November 26 performance has been cancelled due to a disagreement with management over Covid safety procedures, according to Douglas R. Ewart.) By Dan Emerson. Multimedia-ite, multi-disciplinarian, multi-instrumentalist […]
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Jazz at Bryant Park was a series of concerts that were part of a larger FREE series titled Bryant Park Picnic Performances that took place throughout the summer of 2021 […]
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By Don Berryman Drummer Kenny Horst, who owned and ran the venerated Artists’ Quarter jazz club, will appear with his quartet featuring pianist Will Kjeer, saxophonist Pete Whitman, and bassist […]
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By Dan Emerson. Photos by Tim Campbell Saxophone icon Charles Lloyd never seems to rush into anything. But he must have been especially eager to start his late show Wednesday […]
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By: Dan Emerson for Jazz Police Unlike those of us who whiled away their COVID-19 hiatus streaming episodes of Tiger King or similar fodder, B-3 organ wizard joey DeFrancesco apparently […]
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The Litchfield Jazz Festival presented their 26th annual edition via livestream from the Telefunken Soundstage in South Windsor, CT on July 31. 2021. One of the few good things to […]
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“She had huge listening ears and an even bigger heart.”–Wendy Lewis, Twin Cities vocalist About 17 years ago, I formally met Pamela Espeland and her husband John Whiting after months […]
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Although there were downpours in Newport, RI the night before the Newport Jazz Festival (NJF), on Friday, July 30, the sun rose brilliantly for the return of the NJF, after […]
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Seems we are getting back to “jazz normal”, at least a lot closer to it. Some high powered gigs with local and national heroes/heroines coming up! Crooners keeps three stages […]
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The first Twin Cities Jazz Festival back in 1999 wasn’t even supposed to be a jazz festival, just an “event” to promote the music. Three hundred were expected on Peavy […]
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by Don Berryman As last year brought to us found recordings from the mid-century, including Art Blakey and the Jazz Messengers’ Just Coolin’, Sonny Rollins in Holland, and Charles Mingus […]
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Yes, there are bigger events than jazz gigs across the Metro this weekend, generating more ink, more hype, more COVID concerns… like the the State Fair and Immersive Van Goh. […]
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Under the leadership of area photographer Steven Peterson, the Upper Midwest Black and White Music Photography Contest is underway! Launched to support Midwest musicians and venues, the contest also celebrates […]
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There’s a lot of great music, including hot jazz, around the metro this week but I need to specifically salute Jazz Central Studios and founder/director/veteran drummer Mac Santiago. Operating the […]
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I sort of retired “The Lead Sheet” when COVID shut down live music. And while I am no longer willing to commit to a weekly “heads up” regarding area jazz, […]
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By Bill Stieger Any local jazz aficionado who hasn’t had the pleasure of hearing pianist Will Kjeer is hereby forewarned: get out to see this up-and-coming performer while he’s still […]
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On the weekend of June 11-12, 2021, the Jazz Forum nightclub in Tarrytown, New York presented the Christian Sands Trio. This was the third weekend since the grand re-opening of […]
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By Don Berryman for Jazzpolice.com I just listened to 5 1/2 hours of Frank Kimbrough’s compositions performed by some of the best jazz musicians of our time. I recommend it. […]
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By Don Berryman for jazzpolice.com “Artists like Roy Hargrove and Mulgrew Miller are what make our music what it is. Sometimes people think about jazz as this isolated sound for […]
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By: Bill Stieger for Jazzpolice.com – Photos by Andrea Canter “As long as Jerry Bergonzi is around, no tenor player can rest on his laurels.” – Saxophonist Michael Brecker. Master […]
Continue Reading2020 was filled with empty stages, indoors and out. Jazz artists and jazz fans started 2021 with dim prospects for gigs and festivals as venues remained closed. Yet Crooners Lounge […]
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[From IJD and JAM press releases] The 10th Anniversary of International Jazz Day, the world’s largest annual celebration of jazz, will take place on April 30th, with thousands of worldwide […]
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The Litchfield Jazz Festival presented the Emmet Cohen Trio virtually on Friday, December 18, 2020, featuring Emmet Cohen on piano, Kyle Poole on drums, and Philip Norris on bass. Saxophonist […]
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The Jazz Forum in Tarrytown, NY celebrated yet another marvelous birthday with David Amram & Friends. This time, it was Amram’s 90th birthday, with a November 14 live-streamed set. Although […]
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2020 was an unprecedented and challenging year for live, in-person music events. Due to the pandemic, most jazz festivals held in 2020 were presented online. Occasionally, a few live, socially […]
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By Bill Stieger. “You want to play JAZZ? That music is too good. Now, you’ll really starve” – William Stieger Sr. The consequences of aging accumulate with each passing year. […]
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By Don Berryman The Weight Of Light by Benoît Delbecq was released on February 13th and Beyond, the debut recording of Futari, a duo of pianist-composer Satoko Fujii and vibraphonist […]
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The pandemic of 2020 has forced a tsunami of change for everyone in the performing arts. With nightclubs, theaters, and museums closed, or operating at limited capacity, Twin City jazz musicians […]
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Experience Jazz is a genre-bridging music ensemble program for aspiring musical artists with a common desire to make new music rooted in jazz, blues, pop and hip-hop, to create […]
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“What making music for people does, I’ve observed, is it stimulates what’s natural in all of us. It’s native sense, in every person. You don’t have to be a professional […]
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Author’s Note. Much of this article is drawn from my interview with Davis in 2006, with thanks to Al Iverson for providing much of the background information. “Support them all. […]
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By Don Berryman 2020 was the Year of the Rat which seems fitting for this year of plague. Concerts have been canceled, jazz clubs closed and it was a time […]
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On Saturday, July 25, 2020, the Litchfield Jazz Festival held a virtual event. During this pandemic, it is wonderful to see organizations still bringing music to the people. This is […]
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A couple of months ago, there was the sad, but expected, news that this year’s Montréal Jazz Festival (officially the Festival International de Jazz de Montréal – FIJM) was cancelled […]
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On Saturday, June 20, and Sunday, June 21, 2020, the Village Vanguard presented the Vijay Iyer Trio online. Before the Saturday concert started, Vijay addressed the current state of live […]
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Adam Linz is a double bassist and an eminent force on Twin Cities jazz and creative music scenes. Linz has been a part of some of the area’s most exciting […]
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Christian McBride and DJ Logic © Kevin R. Mason On Wednesday, May 20, the National Jazz Museum in Harlem presented an online […]
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Adam Linz is a double bassist and an eminent force on Twin Cities jazz and creative music scenes. Linz has been a part of some of the area’s most exciting […]
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It is fortunate that during this time when live concerts and festivals are being cancelled, there are many online events to keep the music going. On Monday, May 18, 2020, […]
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Writer’s Note: This was one of the last live events in the New York area before the pandemic became full-blown. I hope you enjoy it as a reminder of […]
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Writer’s Note: Here is another look back at a jazz event, and I hope the article will entertain you, especially if you are sheltering at home, or in quarantine. […]
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Writer’s Note: With all that is going on with the growing concerns over the virus pandemic, it is nice to look back at one of the many excellent free concerts […]
Continue ReadingAs the announcement of art events cancellations appear from Europe, the question is how could this event affect the arts. Locally here in San Francisco, there is the question of […]
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On Sunday, November 24, 2019, the 8th annual contest named after the legendary Sarah Vaughan, “The Divine One,” gave five vocalists an opportunity to compete for a $5,000 cash prize […]
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On November 16, 2019, multi-instrumentalist/composer David Amram celebrated his 89th birthday at the beautiful, intimate, art-filled Jazz Forum nightclub in Tarrytown, New York. Since opening in 2017, Jazz Forum has […]
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Good things have a way of sticking around. And few things are better than the music called hard bop which flourished roughly from 1955 to 1965. Luckily for those of […]
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Review: JC Sanford Quartet Keratoconus (Shifting Paradigm Records) I had to learn a couple of things about JC Sanford before I could fully appreciate his 2019 release Keratoconus. For starters, […]
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Either “the coolest old guy or the oldest cool guy…” — Pioneer Press Like a bobo doll, saxophonist Irv Williams seemed as if he would bounce back for an eternity. […]
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[Updated November 1, 2019] I hear these questions a lot: Where does one find live jazz in the Twin Cities? And how do you learn about it? Look no farther! […]
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© Andrea Canter “One of the most brilliant, creative artists of our time…” – Christian McBride “Perhaps more than any other pianist, Ms. Allen’s style — harmonically refracted and rhythmically […]
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