Remembering James Cotton, the sound of the blues
The blues rarely sounded harder or sharper than when James Cotton brought a harmonica to his lips. His solos burst with invention, the master telling his story with tremolos and...
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Review: Danilo Perez leads provocative tribute to jazz giants at Orchestra Hall
Not all celebrations are loud, raucous and overbearing. Some are subtle, sophisticated and sublime, such as the one Panamanian pianist Danilo Perez led Friday night in Orchestra Hall at Symphony...
Donny McCaslin and Columbia students shake up the Showcase
There's nothing more inspiring in jazz than seeing emerging young musicians collaborating with a master. In the best of circumstances, each generation brings out the best in the other, and...
‘Defiant Requiem’ in Chicago a revival of Verdi sung in concentration camp
Verdi's Requiem never had been performed under circumstances like these. On June 23, 1944, the sick and starving inmates of the Terezin ghetto/concentration camp in Czechoslovakia sang the massive work...
‘Let’s abolish culture’: What cutting NEA, other agencies would do to the arts in Chicago
The arts and humanities in Illinois would be deeply injured by the Trump administration's proposed elimination of the National Endowment for the Arts, National Endowment for the Humanities, Corporation for...
Danilo Perez and friends celebrate Dizzy, Ella, Monk and Mongo
Jazz has been coursing through our culture for more than a century, but this year marks an important centennial. For Dizzy Gillespie, Ella Fitzgerald, Thelonious Monk and Mongo Santamaria were...
Tony Bennett, Pat Metheny top Ravinia’s jazz lineup
Jazz tends to come and go at the Ravinia Festival, some seasons more active than others. This summer a few bookings stand out, most notably Tony Bennett returning to celebrate...
Review: Ernest Dawkins, Vijay Iyer merge their sonic worlds at Constellation
At first hearing, the music of saxophonist Ernest Dawkins' New Horizons Ensemble and pianist Vijay Iyer might seem remotely related, at best. For Chicagoan Dawkins practically personifies the aesthetics of...
Miguel Zenon’s ‘Tipico’ spotlights his remarkable quartet
There may be no better indication of the cohesiveness of alto saxophonist Miguel Zenon's new album, "Tipico," than his quartet's performance Thursday night at the Jazz Showcase. Playing four works...
Miguel Zenon celebrates his colleagues on ‘Tipico’
It isn't easy keeping a jazz ensemble together over long stretches of time, most splintering sooner or later. But when musicians sustain a band for a decade or more, the...