Can we guestimate how many listeners will be out hearing jazz this Labor Day weekend, at festivals free and/or famous around the U.S.? Chicago, Detroit, Tanglewood, Aspen, Vail, Los Angeles, Washington DC (well, Herndon VA), Philadelphia, San Jose, Macinac Island (Michigan) Indianapolis, St. Louis, Wilmington and Bethany Beach (Delaware), San Diego, Tucson, (see also the Latin Jazz […]
Little known great jazz in Chicago’s neighborhoods
The Jazz Institute of Chicago‘s annual club tour is an urban presentation innovation and a treat, revealing an unheralded depth of local audiences, entrepreneurs and artists. On Wednesday night, Dudley Owens blew tenor sax with the largest sound I’ve heard maybe ever, in combo with an older pianist (sorry I didn’t get his name) who […]
Twitter campaign #jazzlives after one year
#Jazzlives — the Twitter campaign aimed at demonstrating that there is a big and enthusiastic audience for live jazz — is one year old. What has it wrought? First: What is #jazzlives and how does it work? To participate in the campaign, audience members at live jazz performances “tweet” – write a post on their […]
Jazz discoveries abound! Soundscape, Creative Music Studio, Varese
Amazing, historic, never-before-public recordings from an under-documented, under-appreciated but highly developmental era of jazz and new music comes to light! Complete sets and interviews from the international stars who gave birth to world jazz and downtown improv at the Manhattan arts loft Soundscape will be broadcast by WKCR-FM  and archived online starting Sept. 6 — and are […]
Larry Harlow’s “A Salsa Suite” success
“La Raza Latina,” composer-pianist Larry Harlow’s hour-plus Latin big band extravaganza, drew thousands to Lincoln Center Out-of-Doors’ penultimate concert last week, proving that driving, multi-layered live music has staying power decades after its creation. “A Salsa Suite” featured vocalists Ruben Blades and Adonis Puentes, choreographed couples and a 40 piece band with strings and extraordinary soloists […]
Live jazz broadcasts — back to future formats
Hail NPR.org for putting 14 Carefusion Newport Jazz Fest sets on the ‘net, and Wynton Marsalis for live-streaming from France’s Marciac Jazz Festival video of his Modern New Orleans concert. Back-to-the-future, as broadcasts allow music fans geographically anywhere (and now any time) to get in on the action.
jazz in italy
In Italy jazz is an object of serious study and practice, aspiration and envy, emulation and celebration, creativity and commercial draw. So I found last week at the Siena Jazz Summer Workshop and Tuscia in Jazz fest in Soriano nel Cimino. At both sites there were top-notch players of several generations from the US teaching […]
Italy here I come
The Siena Jazz Workshop has me present my book Miles Ornette Cecil – Jazz Beyond Jazz (buy it for your Kindle!) Sunday, July 25 at 10 am (yes, in Siena, Italy). Can you suggest unmissable music in Tuscany (or Vetirbo through July 31?
Unusual jazz and beyond music choices in NYC
Hot weather, cool venues through July 30 is theme of my latest City Arts column. Yes, many headliners are on summer European tour, but those who remain reward a hearing . . howardmandel.com Subscribe by Email or RSS All JBJ posts
More on Tuli Kupferberg & Harvey Pekar
Tuli Kupferberg, the wispy hipster comic social critic of ol’ boho downtown NYC who died at age 86 on Monday, will be buried with a public service Saturday 7/17 at St. Mark’s Church in the East Village. According to his family, “There will be no religious element . . Fugs Coby Batty, Steve Taylor and […]
Anti-heroes of jazz-beyond-jazz
Fug Tuli Kupferberg and comic-book depressive/trad jazz fan Harvey Pekar dying the same week thins the ranks of American refuseniks, those Bartleby-like individuals who didn’t drop out of society so much as dive in by insisting on their contrarianism, right or wrong. In my book (or blog) they join Henry Miller, Charles Bukowski, Harry Partch […]
Ayler lives! in the East River
Visionary saxophonist Albert Ayler liked to stare at the sun, which may have led to his drowning at age 34 in 1970. An upstart 7-hour outdoor festival celebrates the heedlessly ecstatic spirit of his music tomorrow, July 10, at Riverwalk Commons of Roosevelt Island, in the very waters where the man-beyond-jazz breathed his last.
Frank Loesser at 100
America’s great vernacular songwriter Frank Loesser was born 100 years ago today. To celebrate, cable tv network TCM is showing the film of his Pulitzer Prize winning musical How to Succeed In Business Without Really Trying, and Neptune’s Daughter which features Loesser’s evergreen duet “Baby It’s Cold Outside” (see and hear below, I hope — much […]