What constitutes a jazz standard? Purists may contend that only an original composition by a jazz musician qualifies—“Confirmation,” “Doxy,” “Sail Away,” “Seven Come Eleven,” as examples. Working musicians and fake books say otherwise; a jazz standard is a song, adaptable to … [Read more...]

Don’t be a musician under any circumstances unless you can bring yourself to be nothing else—Paul Desmond If I were not a physicist, I would probably be a musician. I often think in music. I live my daydreams in music. I see my life in terms of music—Albert Einstein … [Read more...]

The week's eeriest internet experience: being mesmerized by the masthead picture box at the top of Jazz Improv magazine's home page as a dozen great musicians appear and dissolve. While you're there, don't miss the interview with guitarist Russell Malone. It includes his story of sitting in, as a … [Read more...]

I first heard the tenor saxophonist Tommy Smith on opening night of the Portland Jazz Festival earlier this year. Smith was a commanding figure in several areas of the festival, notably so in a guest turn with one of his favorite collaborators. I mentioned that appearance in a Jazz Times review of … [Read more...]

This piece ultimately concerns Ben Webster, but it requires setup. The setup has to do with books. The book discussion group to which I belong operates a bit unconventionally. We don’t use outlines or lesson plans. There is no discussion leader. We are a sort of freewheeling literary … [Read more...]

In the adjoining exhibit, under Doug's Picks, are the Rifftides staff's latest recommendations. We hope that you find them worthwhile. Either way, let us know, please. The e-mail address is also in the right column. … [Read more...]

It bugs me when people try to analyze jazz as an intellectual theorem. It’s not. It’s feeling—Bill Evans Music is, by its very nature, essentially powerless to express anything at all. Music expresses itself—Igor Stravinsky … [Read more...]

My heavily-traveled weekend with an assemblage of couples out for a good time included an evening at Jazz Alley in Seattle eating well and hearing Toots Thielemans, Kenny Werner and Oscar Castro-Neves. Thielemans is a member of that astonishing corps of world-class jazz octogenarians (Hank Jones, … [Read more...]

The islands of Puget Sound are among the glories of the Pacific Northwest. Vashon Island, where we celebratory couples spent the night after we left Jazz Alley, is one of the loveliest. Because the only way to get to it is on the water, Vashon has managed to retain much of its rural and small town … [Read more...]

The veteran Pennsylvania broadcaster Russ Neff is once again doing a jazz program, but he’s streaming it on the internet. He writes that he was inspired by Jim Wilke’s Jazz After Hours to return to jazz radio. I'd not been on the air since 1991 and since no local station was interested in my … [Read more...]

Jessica Williams has entered the blogosphere. She is a most welcome entry. Her blog, The Zone, is unlike any other, just as Ms. Williams is unlike any other pianist. Here is some of what she wrote in a posting called “Making Oneself Available.” Never rehearse a moment. Too much practice kills … [Read more...]

Dick McGarvin writes from Los Angeles: I've been catching up on stuff, including a backlog of Rifftides (high tide?), which brings me to... I'm not sure why, but your letter to Gene Lees about Willis Conover touched me even more than when I first read it in the Jazzletter. Maybe it's because of … [Read more...]

I hate music, especially when it's played—Jimmy Durante Wagner’s music is better than it sounds—Mark Twain … [Read more...]

The pianist Roberta Mandel was at San Francisco State College in the 1940s with Paul Desmond, Jerome Richardson, Cal Tjader, Ron Crotty, Dick Collins and Vernon Alley, among other young musicians who went on to fame. She later sang with Boyd Raeburn’s trail-blazing band in broadcasts on NBC and … [Read more...]

Rifftides reader Jon Foley writes: Thank God someone has finally brought up this subject. I thought I was the only one who thought this phenomenon was ridiculous. What could be more annoying than, let's say, a tenor player finishing a beautiful ballad solo, the crowd completely hushed and enthralled … [Read more...]

Jon Foley explains that his messages tend to come in batches. Yesterday, I was listening to a west coast jazz station over the internet, and a track came on, a quintet, I believe. The rhythm section caught my attention, even when the horns were soloing. When it came time for the piano solo, I was … [Read more...]

Bill Kirchner took time out of his busy schedule to send a response to a review. Thanks for commenting on jazz audiences' "self-conscious rote clapping" after every solo. This to me is the most mindless of all jazz customs. (Where did this idiocy come from--does anyone know?) It usually prevents … [Read more...]

Bill Kirchner's latest CD is Everything I Love. The instrumentation is his soprano saxophone, Eddie Monteiro's accordion and Ron Vincent's drums and percussion. Monteiro equips his instrument with MIDI ( musical instrument digital interface), making it possible for him to sound like a string … [Read more...]

The Jazz Times website now has my reviews of the Bill Charlap and Gary Hobbs performances at the Earshot Jazz Festival in Seattle. Here is some of the Charlap piece: From the first blowing chorus on “Who Cares?” the trio locked into one another. The Washingtons are brothers in time, Kenny … [Read more...]