Used to be jazz musicians were U.S.’s best ambassadors. Pianist Keith Jarrett’s prickly reaction to ardent fans’ cellphone photography as his trio walks onstage at the Umbria Jazz Festival — see it on Youtube.com (56 secs) — reverts to another type: ugly American.
Realities of the profession (writing), part 1
Introducing an occasional series about the challenges (and satisfactions?) of freelancing on the arts — An exchange with Dr. Lewis Porter, jazz pianist, professor of music at Rutgers University (NJ) and founder/director of that school’s Master’s in Jazz History and Research Program (also biographer of John Coltrane, on book advances, academic vs.commercial publishers, working cheap and pressing for more.
Miles way beyond, and raw
Great day in the mail! On The Corner, the most outre project of American master Miles Davis, is restored” in a 6-cd boxed set.This recommendation is completely unsolicited, but I’m tellin’ you: his all-star jam-band stills sounds prophetic after 35 years, and even unedited it’s energies are razor sharp, infinitely more exciting than most of jazz (much less pop or new music composition) today.
Cubist-jazz photo portraits
Lourdes Delgado, photographer of the series “Jazz in New York: A Community of Visions”, has launched a new line — or should that be “cube”? “Geographic Portraits,” collages of large format negatives, with strong reference to the Cubism of Picasso (beloved in her hometown Barcelona) and George Braques. Her first such image is on display through August 11 in the 13th Annual International Women’s Exhibition at the Soho20 Chelsea Gallery — to see the photos, click “continue reading.”
Echoes of Sudan and the ’60s, free in New York parks
Exiled singers, dancers and musician from Sudan, that hell on earth, rallied for peace and unity at Central Park Summerstage. Greyed rockers, still rousing on oldies radio, turned Coney Island into a bit of heaven for eager oldsters. Who’s curating the great free summer concerts in New York? Who’s attending them?
Delta Blues on the Hudson
John Hammond Jr. impressed me some 20 years ago with his solo blues harp-guitar-vocal act that seemed about as close to the style of Delta blues songster Robert Johnson as exists. He did it again, just last night.
Americana, cello solo and string trio varieties
“Americana” doesn’t gibe with “homeland,” a term which always reminds me of nativist propaganda. The Wikipedia definition of “homeland” alludes to that nuance: “When used as a proper noun, the word, as well as its cognates in other languages (ie. Heimatland in German) often have ethnic nationalist connotations.”
Diversions, tangents, expeditions
Jazz Beyond Jazz
Jose Reyes’ Jazz Con Class
Roanna Forman’s Boston Jazz Blog
David Hadju’s The Famous Door
Matt Miller’s tuneOUToptIN
Richard Mitnick’s Musicsprings
A Blog Supreme (NPR)
George Grella’s The Big City
Sebastian Scotney’s LondonJazz
Alex W. Rodriguez’s Lubricity
Ralph Mirlello’s Notes on Jazz
Jazz Beyond Jazz
What if there’s more to jazz than you suppose? What if jazz demolishes suppositions and breaks all bounds? What if jazz – and the jazz beyond, behind, under and around jazz – could enrich your life?
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Jazz Beyond Jazz
I’ll be speaking about the legacy of Billy Strayhorn on The Barber Shop Show hosted by Richard Steele, live from Chicago’s Lawndale neighborhood at noon Friday Nov 6 2015 (rebroadcast 3 pm Sunday) on WBEZ ChicagoPublicMedia.org.
Needledrop & video-viewings of Ornette, Old and New Dreams and their world — I’ll vj with esteemed aficionados Kate (Hyde Park Jazz Assoc.) Dumbleton, Lofton (WHPK) Emenari and Neil (Playboy Guide to Jazz, et al) Tesser at noon to 3 pm Sat Nov 15 at the Logan Center penthouse (915 E. 60th St., Chicago). Part of HotHouse’s Old and New Dreams festival.
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