Episode 35-Joe Lovano: Still on the Rise
Strictly Jazz Sounds
Having a virtual conversation with someone like Joe Lovano invites you to take in more than the words. You find yourself looking around the room with him — the basement, the books, the CDs, maybe a few records, family photos, and a trombone resting naked on top of a bookcase like it had just stepped away from the bandstand. Behind Joe, as we begin talking, there’s a music stand with sheet music on it, though I couldn’t quite make out the title. Somehow, that feels right. With Joe Lovano, there is always music in view, and always something still being discovered. Grammy Award winning...
info_outline
Episode 34-Martin Ludlow: Reclaiming LA's Jazz Legacy
Strictly Jazz Sounds
Los Angeles has long been one of America's great jazz cities, yet its place in the music's history is often overshadowed by New Orleans, Chicago, Kansas City, and New York. In this episode of Strictly Jazz Sounds, Steve Braunginn sits down with Martin Ludlow, President and CEO of Bridge Street, Inc., to discuss the vision behind the inaugural LA Jazz Festival and why he believes it's time for Los Angeles to take its rightful place on the global jazz stage. Their conversation explores the rich legacy of Central Avenue, the Dunbar Hotel, Leimert Park, and the generations of musicians who have...
info_outline
Episode 33 — Jeremy Pelt: Jazz, Leadership, and Legacy
Strictly Jazz Sounds
When someone says jazz is dead, or that they cannot find great jazz being made today, I always think of the artists, mentors, and leaders who continue to move the music forward. Jeremy Pelt is one of those essential voices. Welcome to Strictly Jazz Sounds, the place where the music talks. I’m your host, Steve Braunginn. In this episode, I’m honored to welcome trumpeter, composer, bandleader, educator, and author Jeremy Pelt, one of the most compelling voices in contemporary jazz. With his recent work holding the number one spot on the JazzWeek chart for eight out of nine weeks, Jeremy has...
info_outline
Episode 32-Jenny Scheinman: Improvising Nature Through Jazz
Strictly Jazz Sounds
Today on Strictly Jazz Sounds, we enter the musical world of violinist and composer Jenny Scheinman — an artist whose music is shaped as much by landscape and community as by jazz tradition, classical music and folk. Before collaborating with musicians like Bill Frisell, Jason Moran, and Brian Blade, Jenny grew up off-the-grid in rural Humboldt County, surrounded by redwoods, wildlife, and acoustic family music. That environment taught her the art of deep listening — something that still defines her improvisational voice today. We talk about how nature, silence, and influences ranging...
info_outline
Episode 31-Jaleel Shaw: Painting the Invisible in Jazz
Strictly Jazz Sounds
Episode 31-Jaleel Shaw: Painting the Invisibility in Jazz Jazz for Philadelphia native and alto saxophonist Jaleel Shaw is a soulful, boundary-pushing journey. His impressive collaborations include NEA Jazz Masters Roy Haynes and Terri Lyne Carrington, Grammy Award-winning artists: bassists Dave Holland and Christian McBride, and pianists Kris Davis, Robert Glasper, and Jason Moran. Shaw's musical story emerges from his mother’s insistence on raising her son in a household where diverse music was heard throughout his young years, leading to lessons on multiple instruments-piano, the...
info_outline
Episode 30-Mark Turner: Jazz and Race-Tells It Like It Is
Strictly Jazz Sounds
Welcome to Strictly Jazz Sounds. In this episode, we spotlight saxophonist Mark Turner, an LA native known for his technical brilliance and soulful undertones. Turner’s music is influenced by R&B and jazz from his upbringing, as well as legendary saxophonists like Warne Marsh and John Coltrane. Mark’s humility and self-deprecation are evident, but his artistry shines through, especially in his latest project, Reflections On: An Autobiography of an Ex-Colored Man, produced in collaboration with Jimmy Katz and Giant Step Arts. The episode explores how Turner’s experiences as an African...
info_outline
Episode 29-John Patitucci: The Soul, Spirit and Sound of Jazz
Strictly Jazz Sounds
It’s a challenge to describe bassist John Patitucci. He’s a 2025 Jazz Journalists Association Award winner for Electric Bassist of the Year, and four-time Grammy Award winning artist, one of today’s elite bassists, not just jazz but in all of music, but that’s too limiting. John is a bassist with not only excellent rhythm but a complex, angular rhythmic style with dynamic and warm tones and a style that moves people emotionally as well as physically. No, that’s too inadequate. John describes himself as, “a man of faith.” But when I step back, I realize all the above pretty much...
info_outline
Episode 28-Zev Feldman: Guardian of Jazz Legacies
Strictly Jazz Sounds
Producing a historical recording requires enormous patience, investigative powers like an investigative journalist. The journey is long, emotional, and exciting when the recordings are discovered, and the final package completed. This is what Zev Feldman does. He is the producer for and co-president of Resonance Records, a record label that releases archival recordings that are previously unissued. The Resonance catalogue includes John Coltrane, Bill Evans, Wes Montgomery, Freddie Hubbard, among many other legendary musicians. In this episode, Zev Feldman and I discuss his insights...
info_outline
Episode 27-Erena Terakubo: The Little Woman with a Big Sound
Strictly Jazz Sounds
Alto saxophonist Erena Terakubo, from Sapporo, Japan, began her recording career early, releasing her first album when she was only 15 years old. Inspired by a saxophone-playing M&M doll, Erena developed an interest in music that led her to become a notable figure in contemporary jazz. Her journey inclu0des playing in big bands in Sapporo and preferring jazz over classical music. In this episode, Erena Terakubo exuberantly shares her early influences, including J Fusion and musicians like Charlie Parker and David Sanborn. She shares insights into her life in the United States, cultural...
info_outline
Episode 26-Chien Chien Lu and Richie Goods: A Real Team
Strictly Jazz Sounds
Taiwanese vibraphonist and percussionist Chien Chien Lu, along with Pittsburg, Pennsylvania native bassist Richie Goods, have crafted a sound that is both captivating and rhythmic. Their music draws from a rich tapestry of cultural influences including Taiwanese, American, and African-American traditions, especially within the jazz sub-culture. Chien Chien Lu and Richie Goods are dedicated to expanding their musical repertoire, creating a unique connection that resonates deeply with listeners. In the fall of 2024, Chien Chien Lu and Richie Goods visited Columbus, Ohio, where they met with...
info_outlineHaving a virtual conversation with someone like Joe Lovano invites you to take in more than the words. You find yourself looking around the room with him — the basement, the books, the CDs, maybe a few records, family photos, and a trombone resting naked on top of a bookcase like it had just stepped away from the bandstand. Behind Joe, as we begin talking, there’s a music stand with sheet music on it, though I couldn’t quite make out the title. Somehow, that feels right. With Joe Lovano, there is always music in view, and always something still being discovered.
Grammy Award winning tenor saxophonist and composer Joe Lovano joins Steve Braunginn for an expansive conversation about artistic growth, jazz history and his new ECM recording, Paramount Quartet.
After more than 50 years of touring, recording and helping shape modern jazz, Joe Lovano says he still feels that he is “on the rise.” The Paramount Quartet, different from any other that he's had, features guitarist Julian Lage, bassist Santi Debriano and drummer Will Calhoun, bringing together four musicians from different generations and musical backgrounds. Lovano explains how an initial trio performance with Debriano and Calhoun inspired him to add Lage, a former student in one of his Berklee College of Music ensembles, and create what he describes as an entirely new musical situation.
Lovano takes listeners inside the recording session with ECM producer Manfred Eicher in southern France. He discusses the importance of sequencing, silence, spontaneous orchestration and approaching a composition differently each time it is played. He also contrasts the “nightclub sound” of his Blue Note years with the recital-hall atmosphere he associates with ECM.
The conversation reaches back to Lovano’s childhood in Cleveland, Ohio and the influence of his father, tenor saxophonist Tony “Big T” Lovano. Joe discusses the scholarship fund he created in his father’s honor and reflects on Cleveland’s often-overlooked contributions to jazz through artists such as Tadd Dameron, Albert Ayler, Jim Hall and Bill DeArango.
Lovano also shares memories of Paul Motian, Elvin Jones, Wayne Shorter, Sonny Rollins and Charlie Haden, whose composition “First Song” opens the new album.
Throughout the interview, Lovano returns to a central principle: improvisation is not about displaying everything a musician knows. It is about listening, leaving space, sharing ideas and finding “the melody in your heart and your rhythm spirit.”
ECM Records generously provided three tracks of music for this podcast. They are in the order played: Fanfare for Unity-4:12, Amsterdam-6:30, and Congregation-5:36.
Thank you for listening to this podcast. Subscribe and you become one of the first to receive new episodes, jazz articles, photos and my annual Top 20 jazz recordings.