Episode 23-Kris Davis: Creative Processes and Mentorship in Jazz
Strictly Jazz Sounds
In this episode, I spend time with Grammy Award-winning pianist and Berklee College of Music professor of Jazz Kris Davis on 'Strictly Jazz Sounds.' We do a deep dive into her latest project, Run the Gauntlet, dedicated to six influential women jazz pianists, which drops on September 27, 2024. A common thread is woven throughout the hour, mentoring. As a recipient of it herself, Kris Davis discusses the importance of fostering the next generation of jazz musicians. She also provides a detail description of her fascinating composition process. Kris Davis and I spend time discussing her label,...
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Episode 22-Yuhan Su: The Imagination is in the Music
Strictly Jazz Sounds
Award winning vibraphonist Yuhan Su is another Gary Burton/Chick Corea-inspired musician, lured away from classical to the art form where improvisation reigns, jazz. This Taiwanese-born, New York based artist, left her homeland pursuing a jazz education at Berklee College of music, a frequently told story. Yuhan Su draws on her strengths to survive the intense transitions as a single woman migrating to the US to learn a completely different style of music, knowing no one, new to the language and cultures. And she plays the vibraphone, not an easy instrument to lug around given she’s...
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Episode 21-Wayne Escoffery: Fostering Pride in Black American Music-Jazz
Strictly Jazz Sounds
Grammy-Award winning saxophonist Wayne Escoffery is my guest on the 21st episode of Strictly Jazz Sounds. What attracted me to Wayne was his prolific traveling, extensive performances and recordings with his own band (11 recordings), the Mingus Big Band (3 recordings, one a Grammy Award winner), the Black Art Jazz Collective (4 recordings), and as sideman with trumpeter Tom Harrell (7 recordings, co-producing 4) plus works with other notable jazz musicians. He is now a Harlem resident in the neighborhood where Sonny Rollins grew up, Sugar Hill, but he was born and spent his childhood years in...
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Episode 20-Roni Eytan: Jazz Harmonica Colossus
Strictly Jazz Sounds
Roni Eytan, a renowned Israeli-born, New York based jazz harmonica player, performs with a passion that differs from other harmonica artists. Perhaps it’s the region from which he derives-the Middle East and North Africa. His culture greatly influences his compositions and inspires his passions. Roni’s work is influenced by harmonica legend Toots Thielemans but only partially. The folk cultures that make up the regions and his spiritual influences mostly inspire his writing. Roni Eytan stopped by my studio to talk about his harmonica work and how he got interested in this...
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Episode 19-Alexandra Ridout: Her Journey Into Jazz
Strictly Jazz Sounds
Alexandra (Alex) Ridout is a young jazz trumpeter from the UK, now residing in New York City. In this episode of Strictly Jazz Sounds, she lays out her journey as a musician, comparing the experiences and educational backgrounds between the UK and the US. Ridout recalls her time at the Royal Academy of Music in London and Manhattan School of Music, emphasizing her family's influence, especially her jazz musician parents. Highlighting her musical achievements, the conversation includes her participation and victory in the BBC Youth Competition, winning at 17 years old. She talks about her...
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Episode 18-Jocelyn Gould: Striking a Chord
Strictly Jazz Sounds
In this episode of Strictly Jazz Sounds, I have a conversation with Jocelyn Gould, a professional jazz guitarist who fills all the shoes it requires to drive a successful career. Jocelyn shares her journey from pretending to play a cardboard guitar at the age of four to winning a Juno Award for her first album, Elegant Traveler. She later discusses the challenges and triumphs of her career, including her education in the U.S. at Michigan State University, her experiences in New York's rough and tumble jazz scene, and her recent endeavors, including her podcast and latest album releases....
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Episode 17-Yasushi Nakamura: The Shy Bassist with the Groove
Strictly Jazz Sounds
Yasushi Nakamura loves his music. And he truly loves laying down the groove lines behind a hot band like he does for almost a dozen bands. However, being one of today’s first-call bassists means frequent and long show tours that can take him away from his family of two-children and spouse for weeks, even months at a time. It has resulted in an impressive list and number of recordings made on both electric and acoustic or double bass. Pianist and longtime friend, Emmet Cohen, says that Yasushi “…is known in the music community for playing in over a dozen bands and is hardly ever seen...
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Episode 16-Terri Lyne Carrington: Changing the Faces of Jazz
Strictly Jazz Sounds
Question: What would jazz music sound like if it had been born in a country without patriarchy; taught without bias and performed on a stage with radical inclusivity? That’s what jazz titan Terri Lyne Carrington says is the foundation behind Berklee College of Music’s Institute of Jazz and Gender Justice. Terri Lyne is the founder and artistic director of the Institute and a professor at Berklee, her alma mater. In this episode of Strictly Jazz Sounds, I spend time with Terri Lyne Carrington, getting deep into this question along with how to lift women and nonbinary individuals in this...
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Episode 15-Brandee Younger: Jazz Harp Meets Hip-Hop
Strictly Jazz Sounds
In jazz, two legendary harp musicians come to mind. Dorothy Ashby and Alice Coltrane. Now, there is a third musician whose image immediately erupts into focus. For harp artist, educator, and Grammy nominated musician Brandee Younger, both Ashby and Coltrane made a tremendous impact on her. And with her latest recording, Brand New Life, on Impulse Records, Brandee Younger embraces Ashby and her impact on the harp. I caught up with Grammy nominated harpist Brandee Younger at the Spoleto Jazz Festival in Charleston, North Carolina. This was a major opportunity for me to learn how the harp,...
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Episode 14-Roxy Coss: Students Are the Music
Strictly Jazz Sounds
For tenor saxophonist, composer, bandleader, educator and artist Roxy Coss, jazz education is everything. When we talked in July, she and her husband, saxophonist, educator and composer, Lucas Pino, just returned from their week-long session as co-directors of the Brubeck Jazz Summit, (yes, that Brubeck-Dave Brubeck) a week-long intensive emersion of jazz education and performance for talented students worldwide. To participate, young people must have exceptional capacity. To teach, your credentials must be superior. In this episode, Roxy Coss shares her deep thoughts and intense...
info_outline2022 was a banner year for drummer Brian Blade. Nine recordings were released with Brian as a leader, co-leader, or side-player that year. As the year was coming to a close, I began to compile my list of “Best Jazz of 2022”. It was then that I realized that Brian had been a very busy man during the last few years. My curiosity was spiked about this. I wanted to talk to Brian about this prolific output of music but, you see, I had already interviewed him in 2022, twice. But, hey, I wanted to find out more about his incredible list of recordings.
We begin exploring the nine releases with the Life Cycles recording that paid tribute to Bobby Hutcherson. It was recorded by this little-known sextet that mostly played in underground night clubs in Manhattan in 2001 with some appearances at festivals around the country. This latest album by Life Cycles was recorded in 2018 by a reassembled group with a couple of additions to the original band.
So, on this eighth episode of Strictly Jazz Sounds, Brian Blade and I have our third conversation in a year. The initial focus of this podcast was to be Brian’s latest released recording by a band he co-led in 2001, Life Cycles. The recording was saluting NEA Jazz Master, vibe and marimba artist Bobby Hutcherson with Life Cycles 1&2: Now & Forever: Honoring Bobby Hutcherson. But a few months had passed since this conversation took place and Brian just released another recording, Mama Rosa.
Brian Blade has had a life well lived and he’s only 52 and still rolling! He’s a multi-Grammy-award winning drummer, group leader, record label founder and owner. He’s recorded and performed with a list of artists too long to list here, but I shall list some very notable ones: Wayne Shorter, Chick Corea, Christian McBride, Joshua Redman, John Patitucci, Brad Mehldau, Danilo Perez, Joni Mitchell, and Emmylou Harris.
What is wonderful about this conversation, different from the last two, is learning more about Brian as a person as well as a musician, an artist. And learning about what’s behind some of the recordings and bands he’s created with people like the late maestros Wayne Shorter and Bobby Hutcherson, as well as the great drummer Joe Chambers, and his relationship with singer songwriter and pianist Norah Jones. Spoiler alert-Brian Blade plays guitar. And he played it with Norah Jones who was not playing piano. She was on drums.
_________________________________________________________________The music you hear on this podcast is from the Life Cycles album:
“Now “ by Bobby Hutcherson and Gene McDaniels and “Forgotten Memories” by Myron Walden. The Life Cycles personnel include: Brian Blade, drums; Jon Cowherd, piano; Myron Walden, saxophone; Doug Weiss, bass; John Hart, guitar; Monte Croft, vibes/vocals; and, Rogerio Boccato-percussion.
BTW, you’ll hear a dog on this episode, as well.
I invite you to subscribe so you are alerted to future episodes and articles written by me as well as events and information I want to pass on to you. I am looking for sponsors so please consider it and email me at strictlyjazzsounds.com. I’m interested in your feedback. I always need to improve what I’m doing. And, finally, support live jazz wherever you are. Thanks for listening.