Jazz Legends

John Coltrane (born Sept 23, 1926) is easily one of a handful of the most important and influential musicians that jazz has produced. His harmonic and rhythmic innovations have influenced every generation of jazz...

Saxophonist / multi-instrumentalist Eric Dolphy (born June 20, 1928) and trumpeter Booker Little (born April 2, 1938) were frequent collaborators near the end of their all too brief careers. After establishing himself...

Saxophonist Charlie Parker (nicknamed Yardbird or Bird) (born Aug 29, 1920) and trumpeter Dizzy Gillespie (nicknamed Diz) (born Oct 21, 1917) are two of the most innovative musical minds of the twentieth century. Dizzy...

Saxophonist/composer Wayne Shorter (born Aug 25, 1933) is one of the most influential and prolific performers and composer in jazz. His time with the bands of Art Blakey and Mikes Davis firmly established him as one of...

Pianist/composer Kenny Werner (born Nov 19, 1951) has been leading his own trios since 1981. He played with the Mel Lewis Orchestra in the early 1980s and was encouraged by Lewis and Bob Brookmeyer to compose for the...

Oregon was a jazz and world music group started in 1970, featuring multiple woodwind artist Paul McCandless, guitarist/pianist Ralph Towner, bassist Glenn Moore, and percussionist Collin Walcott. The personnel remained...

Everyone in the group writes original music, some of which has been played publicly in the past and some which will be premiered this week. In this episode, the guys discuss what it's like to write their own original...

Saxophonist/composer Michael Brecker (born March 29, 1949) was one of the most recorded saxophonists of all time. Over his four-decade career he appeared on over 900 recordings as a leader and sideman and received...

Pianist, organist, composer, and bandleader Carla Bley (born May 11, 1936) considered herself primarily a composer, saying she was 99% composer and 1% pianist. She associated herself with the avant guard movement...

Composer and lyricist Burton Lane (born Feb 2, 1912) is perhaps best remembered as the composer of the hit Broadway shows "Finian’s Rainbow" and "On a Clear Day You Can See Forever", but he had a long and distinguished...

Pianist and composer Richie Beirach (born May 23, 1947) made hundreds of recordings, both as a leader of his own groups, and as part of a long-standing duo with saxophonist Dave Liebman. He taught jazz piano in Leipzig...

Pianist /composer Keith Jarrett (born May 8, 1945) has had a long and distinguished career performing with his own groups, making a succession of solo piano recordings, and playing with the bands of Miles Davis, Art...

Singer/songwriter/pianist Matt Dennis (born Feb 11, 1914), while not exactly a household name, wrote some of the most enduring gems of the Great American Songbook. "Angel Eyes", "Everything Happens to Me", "Let’s Get...

Songwriter Vincent Youmans (born Sept 7, 1898) was one of the leading Broadway composers of his day, and collaborated with most of the top lyricists of his generation. While he is only credited with around 100 tunes, 18...

Brazilian singer/songwriter Ivan Lins (born June 16, 1945), has been active for over fifty years. His composition 'Love Dance', a hit in 1989, is one of the most recorded songs in contemporary music. He has won several...

Vibraphonist / composer Bobby Hutcherson (born January 27, 1941), was inspired to take up the vibraphone at the age of twelve after hearing Milt Jackson, and became the inspiration for younger musicians like Joe Locke...

Pianist/composer Michel Legrand (born Feb 24, 1932) is credited with composing over 200 film and television scores. He was active in the jazz world for most of his life. A musical milestone was his recording "Legrand...

William “Count” Basie, (born August 21, 1904) was a pianist, organist and composer who lead one of the greatest big bands of all time for 50 years. The band still performs hundreds of dates throughout the world to this...

Songwriter Jimmy McHugh (born July 10, 1894) was one of the most prolific songwriters from the 1920s through the 1950s, credited with over 500 songs. His songs have long been favorites of jazz musicians for their...

Pianist, composer Bud Powell (born September 7, 1924) was one of the primary innovators of bebop. His prodigious technique and strong sense of swing placed him head and shoulders above all his contemporaries. His...

Since even before the advent of “talkies” music has been an integral part of motion pictures. Even small cinemas often had a pianist or organist who contributed musical accompaniment to the action on screen, but with...

Victor Young, born in Chicago (August 8, 1899), started playing the violin at the age of six and was sent to live with his grandfather in Poland when he was ten. He attended the Warsaw Conservatory, and while still a...

Ray Noble, born Dec 17th, 1903, was a British big band leader responsible for composing a number of songs that have become standards. Jazz musicians have long played his tune Cherokee, with its bridge that traverses a...

Woody Shaw (born Dec 24, 1944) was one of the most influential and prolifically virtuostic trumpet players and jazz composers of the twentieth century. In his brief career (he died at the young age of 44) he was pivotal...

The Jazz Evensong Quintet continues its tradition of kicking off a new season with a celebration of traditional jazz. New Orleans is widely considered the birthplace of jazz music, and this style is still universally...