Howard Reich

The 10 most rewarding jazz performances of 2019: Greg Ward and Rogue Parade, Jan. 11 at the Green Mill Jazz Club Saxophonist Greg Ward, who presented a full-scale reimagining of...

Last April, it looked as if the remainder of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra's season would be canceled – and that the next one was in question. The longest strike in...

The Jazz Institute of Chicago reached a milestone in 2019: Its golden anniversary. Since 1969, the nonprofit organization has been presenting concerts, educating young musicians and otherwise advocating for the...

Whenever trumpet virtuoso Jon Faddis returns to Chicago, he sparks memories of a beautiful chapter in the city's jazz life. For from 2004 to 2010, Faddis was artistic director of...

All the heavy lifting in Thursday night's Chicago Symphony Orchestra concert came during the first half, which was most notable for an impressive debut. Pianists often like to introduce themselves...

In March of last year, one of the most famous magicians in the world stepped up to the bandstand at the Green Mill Jazz Club. Never before had Penn Jillette...

In Washington, politicians are yelling at each other. On cable TV, talking heads spew venom. On talk radio – well, you get the idea. But in our current troubled times,...

Does Gershwin's Concerto in F swing? Or should it? Because a jazz sensibility pervades Gershwin's concert music, his masterpieces would seem ripe for development by jazz musicians. Yet with the...

The most valuable classical recordings of the year span a vast range, from genre-stretching contemporary music to re-evaluations of standard repertory: Nicola Benedetti: Marsalis Violin Concerto (Decca). Three years ago,...