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Corky Siegel gets jazzed at the Showcase
August 10, 2010
Chicago blues musician Corky Siegel has worked in many ensembles through the decades, but none quite like the band he launched Monday night at the Jazz Showcase.
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South Shore fest gets a hip new style
August 9, 2010
If there's a more serene, civilized, urbane setting for a Chicago jazz festival than the lawn of the South Shore Cultural Center, I have yet to encounter it.
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Tony Bennett changes venue – with mixed results
August 8, 2010
Clearly, Tony Bennett left his heart in Highland Park.
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Charles McPherson celebrates the legacy of Charlie Parker
August 6, 2010
The bebop era of Charlie Parker has been enshrined in the history books, but it returned vividly to life Thursday night at the Jazz Showcase.
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MAGNIFICENT OBSESSION
August 3, 2010
Thelonious Monk rehearsed there. So did Bill Evans and Stan Getz, Ornette Coleman and Zoot Sims, Charles Mingus and Don Cherry.
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Major cause for celebration: 'Mary Lou Williams at 100'
August 3, 2010
Jazz has been a male-dominated art since the beginning, roughly a century ago — and matters haven't improved much since then.
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Celebrating the most influential woman in jazz: Mary Lou Williams at 100
August 2, 2010
Jazz has been a male-dominated art since the beginning, roughly a century ago – and matters haven't improved much since then.
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Jose Negroni's Caribbean jazz breezes into Chicago
August 1, 2010
Though Andy's Jazz Club has been entertaining listeners for decades, in the past couple of years it has raised its profile, presenting national acts and other touring artists on the way up.
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Experiencing 'The Jazz Loft Project'
August 1, 2010
The exhibition: "The Jazz Loft Project: W. Eugene Smith in NYC, 1957-1965" runs through Sept. 19 at the Chicago Cultural Center, 78 E. Washington St.; free; 312-744-6630.
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A turning point for Chicago trumpeter Pharez Whitted
July 30, 2010
It took a while for Pharez Whitted and his sextet to reach peak performance Thursday night at the Jazz Showcase. But once they did, they sounded unstoppable.
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Music still popping at Skokie Theatre
July 30, 2010
Its financial future may be uncertain, but the Skokie Theatre hasn't gotten out of the music business — at least not yet.
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Yes, Chopin's music can swing – and then some
July 26, 2010
The music world has been awash with 200th anniversary celebrations of Frederic Chopin's birth, but surely none as free-wheeling as Sunday's night's marathon at the Pritzker Pavilion in Millennium Park.
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Tenor saxophonist Ron Blake returns to the scene of his youth
July 23, 2010
Back in the 1980s, tenor saxophonist Ron Blake was an aspiring young saxophonist studying at Northwestern University and sitting in with Chicago masters such as Von Freeman and Willie Pickens.
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Grazyna Auguscik swings Chopin
July 23, 2010
At first glance, the thought of a jazz singer performing music of Frederic Chopin might seem a bit odd.
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Dick Buckley, 1924-2010 Deejay was voice of Chicago jazz
July 22, 2010
For more than half a century, Chicago radio deejay Dick Buckley lured generations of listeners into the world of jazz.
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Chicago deejay Dick Buckley dies at 85
July 22, 2010
Deejay Dick Buckley – the resplendent voice of jazz in Chicago from the 1950s until 2008 – has died at age 85.
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Skokie Theatre in financial limbo — but shows go on
July 21, 2010
The elegantly refurbished Skokie Theatre — which has been presenting jazz, cabaret, theatrical and variety events since reopening in 2006 — has gone into receivership.
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In a tough summer, Chicago's jazz clubs prove defiant
July 19, 2010
Though this has to be one of the toughest summers for Chicago's jazz-club scene, the folks who run the venues are fighting back. Hard.
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Sans Penn & Teller, pianist Mike Jones is magical at Green Mill
July 19, 2010
Green Mill owner Dave Jemilo just about summed it up.
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Andrea Marcovicci celebrates Frank Loesser's 100th with style
July 16, 2010
"Frank Loesser would be so happy," singer Andrea Marcovicci told the crowd Wednesday night at Davenport's, where she's celebrating the songwriter's centennial.
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Pianist Mike Jones takes a break from Las Vegas
July 16, 2010
Virtuoso pianist Mike Jones hopes some recording executives will be in the audience when he plays the Green Mill Jazz Club this weekend — and so do I.
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Andrea Marcovicci: Singing the praises of Frank Loesser at 100
July 12, 2010
Last year, the music world was awash in celebrations of songwriter Johnny Mercer's 100th anniversary.
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Guitarist Fareed Haque brings the world to the Green Mill
July 11, 2010
Last year, the readers of Guitar Player magazine voted Chicagoan Fareed Haque the "best world guitarist."
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Steve Turre finds great jazz inside a shell
July 10, 2010
Even if he hadn't picked up his trombone Thursday night at the Jazz Showcase, Steve Turre would have seduced his audience with a far less likely instrument: the conch shell.
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Glen Ellyn fest charts intimate feel
July 9, 2010
Can a perpetually growing jazz festival retain its intimacy?
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Big bands of Chicago aim to ride out storms
July 6, 2010
These are strange, challenging — and perhaps promising — times for Chicago's biggest jazz ensembles.
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Jazz venues plan weekend fireworks
July 2, 2010
Jazz in Chicago does not slow down for the holiday weekend.
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Only open since March, Club Blujazz closes
July 1, 2010
Club Blujazz, which opened last March at 1540 W. North Ave., has closed
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Jazz world unites to salute Anderson
June 30, 2010
Who was Fred Anderson?
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The South Side swings again
June 29, 2010
The tempo of jazz on the South Side has been quickening.
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The Mayne Stage picks up where the Morse Theatre left off
June 27, 2010
Maybe the third time will be the charm.
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Coming soon to the Mayne
June 27, 2010
Below are upcoming shows at the Mayne Stage, 1328 W. Morse Ave. For details, go to maynestage.com or call 773-381-4554.
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Pharez Whitted back with big sound
June 25, 2010
It has been 14 years since Chicago trumpeter Pharez Whitted put out a recording as bandleader — practically an eternity in the music business.
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Tenor saxophonist Fred Anderson nurtured generations of Chicago jazz
June 24, 2010
It may be impossible to fully measure saxophonist Fred Anderson's impact on music in Chicago--and around the world.
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Harry Connick, Jr., finds joy in jazz classics at Chicago Theatre
June 23, 2010
No one in jazz idealizes the past as effectively as Harry Connick, Jr.
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Fred Anderson's illness puts Velvet Lounge in jeopardy
June 21, 2010
What happens to a revered jazz club when its visionary founder becomes seriously ill?
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A jazzy 75th for Ramsey Lewis – with a little help from Dave Brubeck and Nancy Wilson
June 20, 2010
The transcendent moment in Ramsey Lewis' 75th birthday celebration at the Ravinia Festival occurred early in Friday night's marathon concert.
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Great Chicago guitarist picks up the tempo
June 18, 2010
When several of Chicago's top guitarists converged on the Old Town School of Folk Music last year for a marathon concert, there wasn't a spare seat in the house.
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Guitarist Larry Coryell goes to the roots of jazz
June 18, 2010
He may be best known for the jazz-rock fusion of his early work, but guitarist Larry Coryell played mostly straight-ahead fare Thursday night at the Jazz Showcase.
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After illness, Ramsey Lewis finds 'a second life' – at 75
June 14, 2010
Though he'll be celebrating his 75th birthday at the Ravinia Festival this Friday Chicago pianist Ramsey Lewis says he feels reborn – and he has good reason.
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Pianist Denny Zeitlin plunges into the unfamiliar
June 13, 2010
Can a jazz pianist be forward-looking and nostalgic at the same time? Can his music sound warmly romantic and lushy Impressionistic and bracingly dissonant all at once?
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Dave Holland Quintet – a brilliant band soars
June 11, 2010
It's difficult to recall the last time a band received a standing ovation at the Jazz Showcase, a tough room that sets exalted standards for those who take its stage.
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Jazz fans, the doctor will see you now
June 11, 2010
He may be the hardest working man in psychiatry.
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Liza Minnelli at the Chicago Theatre: Unstoppable
June 7, 2010
Her voice quavers a bit, her newly replaced knee won't always cooperate and her artificial hips don't move quite like the originals.
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Riffing on the blues
June 6, 2010
The blues runs through American music like blood coursing through our veins. Without it, there's no jazz, no gospel, no rock 'n' roll — no soul.
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Who says you can't go home again? Judy Roberts did
June 4, 2010
How much have we missed Judy Roberts since she moved to Phoenix in 2007?
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Judy Roberts is back, Chicago
June 4, 2010
Nearly three years ago, one of Chicago's most beloved jazz musicians left town, after entertaining the city for decades.
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Filming 'DuSable to Obama' – with a jazz beat
June 1, 2010
The idea seems so obvious, it's a wonder no one thought of it until now: a feature-length documentary film telling the story of "DuSable to Obama: Chicago's Black Metropolis."
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Liza Minnelli: 'I'm a Broadway baby'
May 30, 2010
Nearly two decades later, it's still a performance that's impossible to forget: A sleek and glowing Liza Minnelli — garbed in a short, summery white tunic — singing like crazy and dancing as if immune to gravity.
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A rough night for Marcus Belgrave, Kirk Lightsey and friends
May 28, 2010
Perhaps as the weekend unfolds, the band that opened Thursday night at the Jazz Showcase will master the music it's performing.
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Chicago pianist celebrates Miles Davis
May 28, 2010
It's practically becoming a cultural rite in Chicago: the annual Memorial Day celebration of Miles Davis' birthday, led by the brilliant Chicago pianist Robert Irving III.
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Jon Faddis to leave the Chicago Jazz Ensemble
May 25, 2010
Trumpet virtuoso Jon Faddis, who has served as artistic director of the Chicago Jazz Ensemble since 2004, will leave that position when his contract expires in August.
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DuSable marks 75 years of creating legends, from Nat 'King' Cole to Von Freeman
May 24, 2010
Can a public school change the course of music history?
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Danilo Perez takes Dizzy Gillespie into the 21st Century
May 23, 2010
Few jazz artists of the 20th Century did more to globalize the music than Dizzy Gillespie. His collaboration with Cuban percussionist Chano Pozo in the 1940s produced classic tunes such as "Tin Tin Deo" and "Manteca" – and launched a revolution in Afro-Cuban jazz.
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Jazz master Ira Sullivan teaches youngsters how to swing
May 21, 2010
How does the magnificent Ira Sullivan sound with a big band?
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Taking Dizzy's music to exotic places
May 21, 2010
In a way, it was almost inevitable that the Panamanian pianist Danilo Perez would organize "Things to Come: 21st Century Dizzy," an exploration of the music of Dizzy Gillespie playing Friday night at Symphony Center.
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Michael Jackson's legend to visit the ivory tower – in Chicago
May 17, 2010
The currents of black musical culture course through the song and dance of Michael Jackson.
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Jean-Michel Pilc thunders at the piano
May 16, 2010
An explosion went off at the Green Mill Jazz Club over the weekend, which is exactly what pianist Jean-Michel Pilc intended.
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Jean-Michel Pilc thunders at the piano
May 16, 2010
An explosion went off at the Green Mill Jazz Club over the weekend, which is exactly what pianist Jean-Michel Pilc intended.
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Jazz swings back onto TV in HBO's drama 'Treme'
May 16, 2010
At last, an antidote to Ken Burns' dismal, 2001 TV documentary, "Jazz."
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Brazilian rhythms meet Chicago jazz in Claudio Roditi's work
May 14, 2010
The music of Brazilian trumpeter Claudio Roditi addresses the audience gently, like a warm breeze wafting onto a white sandy beach. Yet Roditi's playing also bristles with ideas, has improvisations rich in content and harmonic sophistication.
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Colossal pianist Pilc storms Chicago
May 14, 2010
Among the great jazz pianists performing today, a few stand out for their colossal mastery of the instrument. Hyper-virtuosos such as Chucho Valdes, Gonzalo Rubalcaba and Marcus Roberts set an exalted standard for everyone else.
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Davis honors Mandela anew
March 9, 2010
Two summers ago, the genre-defying Chicago trumpeter Orbert Davis unveiled one of the most inspired works of his career: a symphonic celebration of Nelson Mandela's 90 years.
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Ron Hawking finally offers songs from his own heart
February 3, 2010
It has taken a very long time, but veteran Chicago singer Ron Hawking finally has found his own voice.
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A Chicago jazz wish list for 2010
January 5, 2010
In a perfect world, here's what would happen in Chicago jazz in 2010:
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Coming soon: A renamed, revived Morse Theatre
January 4, 2010
The refurbished Morse Theatre -- shuttered in March in a dispute between its operators and its principal owner -- will reopen in spring as the Mayne Stage.
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DownBeat magazine's 75-year history is one for the books
December 29, 2009
Seventy-five years ago, a new Chicago publication began chronicling a fast-growing music: the big bands.
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Letters: Honoring Marian Catholic's marching band
November 19, 2009
Readers from across the country responded to "Marching to Glory," a three-part series by Tribune critic Howard Reich on the Marian Catholic High School marching band and its journey to the Grand National Championships, led by band director Greg Bimm.
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Grand National championships: Victory defined
November 16, 2009
On the eve of war, leaders rouse their troops to vanquish the enemy, but not this time.
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Marching to glory with the Marian Catholic High School marching band
November 12, 2009
The kids in the Marian Catholic band look as if they're about to collapse.
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Michelle Obama subject of jazz ode
September 3, 2009
The Obama presidency may have sparked controversy in recent months, but the hope and promise it represents for many Americans were plain to hear Tuesday night at the Spertus Institute.
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Lincoln, Obama linked in two jazz celebrations
July 28, 2009
For Chicago jazz listeners, Presidents' Day arrives Thursday.
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Telling Michelle Obama's story -- in language of jazz
July 14, 2009
Jazz tributes to Barack Obama have been pouring in since well before the Inauguration, but later this summer Chicago will hear something different: An evening-length work honoring First Lady Michelle Obama.
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