Latest Jazz News

Music Review: Concert album from the Tomasz Stanko Quartet explains the jazz lineup’s staying power

Jun. 18, 2024 12:46 PM EDT

Jazz trumpeter Tomasz Stanko ’s first notes on the new album "September Night,” dark and slightly distant, sound as though they’re coming from the hereafter. Stanko died in 2018, and his new album is a previously unreleased recording of a 2004 concert by his quartet. Along with...

Jazz, justice and Juneteenth: Wynton Marsalis and Bryan Stevenson join forces to honor Black protest

Jun. 18, 2024 09:19 AM EDT

NEW YORK (AP) — Black music traditions such as jazz are central to celebrations of Juneteenth, says civil rights lawyer and jazz pianist Bryan Stevenson. That’s why he and Pulitzer Prize-winning jazz artist Wynton Marsalis have debuted “Freedom, Justice and Hope,” a live...

Music Review: The María’s 'Submarine' immerses listeners in a blue world of mellow dance beats

May. 30, 2024 11:35 AM EDT

When the indie pop band The Marías emerged in 2017 with their first EP, “Superclean Vol. 1,” they quickly solidified a sound. It wasn't any one sound, really, but a sonic identity. With lead vocalist María Zardoya’s mellow, romantic vocals serving as the unifier, the band's...

Today in History: May 24, first night game in Major League Baseball

May. 24, 2024 00:02 AM EDT

Today in History Today is Friday, May 24, the 145th day of 2024. There are 221 days left in the year. Today’s Highlight in History: On May 24, 1935, the first Major League Baseball game to be played at night took place at Cincinnati’s Crosley...

Music Review: Brad Mehldau connects Bach, Fauré to jazz on albums, 'After Bach II' and 'Après Fauré'

May. 06, 2024 12:06 PM EDT

Grammy-award winning jazz pianist Brad Mehldau connects the dots as though they were so many 16th notes. His two new albums, “After Bach II” and “Après Fauré,” use classical music as a foundation for solo explorations that draw a through line from Art Tatum to Thelonious...

New Orleans Jazz Fest 2024 kicks off Thursday and The Rolling Stones to headline next week

Apr. 25, 2024 18:20 PM EDT

NEW ORLEANS (AP) — It looks like the third time is the charm as the 2024 New Orleans Jazz & Heritage festival prepares, again, for The Rolling Stones to perform. The festival, which spans two weekends, opened Thursday with dozens of acts playing daily on 14 stages spread...

Music Review: Jazz pianist Fred Hersch creates subdued, lovely colors on 'Silent, Listening'

Apr. 15, 2024 12:38 PM EDT

Jazz pianist Fred Hersch fully embraces the freedom that comes with improvisation on his solo album “Silent, Listening,” spontaneously composing and performing tunes that are often without melody, meter or form. Listening to them can be challenging and rewarding. The many-time...