Dee Dee Bridgewater's new CD out next month

DEE DEE’S FEATHERS
FEATURING DEE DEE BRIDGEWATER, IRVIN MAYFIELD
& THE NEW ORLEANS JAZZ ORCHESTRA
AVAILABLE AUGUST 7, 2015

A STUNNING HOMAGE TO THE PEOPLE AND CULTURE OF NEW ORLEANS
IN RECOGNITION AND HONOR OF THE 10TH ANNIVERSARY OF HURRICANE KATRINA

“It is the underlying story of triumph that makes me most proud of this work.  The waters of Katrina took so much from so many in New Orleans…We can only see this project as a tangible example of rebirth and healing and love, through the art of Jazz.  Love is the greatest story ever told, and this collaboration proves there’s much to be had in New Orleans, and shared with everyone, everywhere.”  - Soledad O’Brien, CNN Anchor/Journalist

Dee Dee’s Feathers, a journey through the history of New Orleans as told through song and the collaboration of Dee Dee Bridgewater, Irvin Mayfield & The New Orleans Jazz Orchestra (NOJO), is set for release August 7th, 2015, via OKeh/Sony Music/DDB Records. Recorded at New Orleans’ Esplanade Studios, a studio in a reconverted historical church in the heart of the city that was badly damaged by Hurricane Katrina, the release of Dee Dee’s Feathers will be accompanied by tour dates worldwide including stops at The New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival, North Sea Jazz Festival, Montreal Jazz Festival, the Barbican in London and New York City’s famed Apollo Theatre on Halloween.

“It was at the groundbreaking ceremony of the future site of the Jazz Market where I had the idea of a collaborative recording,” said Bridgewater.  “I thought that Irvin Mayfield, NOJO, and I needed a musical 'calling card' so to speak, a product that epitomized the joys of our accumulative collaborations. When I shared the idea with Irvin, the seed was planted. After several emails, Irvin's song suggestions, song keys picked out over the phone, we found ourselves at Esplanade Studio exactly one month later. Under Irvin Mayfield's skillful leadership, band members had done the arrangements, and over the course of three days we recorded, filmed, bonded, and laughed our way through the most extraordinary recording experience I've had. The music turned out so good, with my dear friend Dr. John blessing us on a day's notice, Bill Summers’ magical percussive layers, and a host of well- known NOLA characters.   I knew Irvin and his band mates had bathed me, immersed me, baptized me in the waters of the Mississippi, and exposed me to the roots of New Orleans.  For me this album is a celebration of life itself.”

Added Mayfield, “This album is a testament to the continued relevance of New Orleans not only as a thriving city but also as a muse for communicating truth, love and beauty. Dee Dee Bridgewater leads us through a new artistic moment while answering a mandate created over a century ago by Jazz geniuses like Buddy Bolden, Jelly Roll Morton, Sidney Bechet and Louis Armstrong.  She proves through her art that New Orleans is not just a city but more importantly an idea that can make your heart and soul feel better.”

Although steeped in history, Dee Dee’s Feathers is at the same time a modern exploration of the music and culture that makes New Orleans a city and place unlike any other.   Traditional songs such as “Big Chief” (featuring guest artist Dr. John), “Saint James Infirmary” and “What A Wonderful World” – all songs indicative to and steeped in the culture of the Big Easy – co-mingle with new compositions such as “Congo Square” and “C’est Ici Que Je T’aime,” transporting the listener on a sensory voyage through the city, whether dancing in a Second Line or frequenting a storied bordello in the heart of the city’s French Quarter.    

The launch of the album and tour will also be tied-into the opening of NOJO’s New Orleans Jazz Market later in 2015.  The first solely-dedicated space for Jazz and Education in New Orleans, Bridgewater will serve on the Board of Directors for the facility and has made a commitment to furthering music and education in the city in tandem with the facility.

Also being released in tandem with Dee Dee’s Feathers is Mayfield’s new book, New Orleans Jazz Playhouse, a 304-page coffee table book that includes seven CDs of live music recorded at his Bourbon Street Jazz club, Irvin Mayfield’s Jazz Playhouse. The book reflects on Irvin’s unique experiences as a New Orleans native, a Jazz musician, and the many influences in his life including countless musicians, artists, photographers, chefs, teachers, and other mentors.

Unifying and grounding the various stories, poems, and essays are two central concepts that permeate the book: jazz & love. Illustrating Mayfield’s  well-crafted words is a collection of some of the most culturally significant photography and artwork by master craftspeople such as John Scott, Gordon Parks, George Rodrigue, Herman Leonard, Greg Miles, and Erika Goldring, and the book features an introduction by biographer Walter Isaacson, a foreword by novelist Ernest Gaines, and an afterword by trumpeter and jazz-master Wynton Marsalis.

Gina Saputo - Final Steamers Show, July 23

Russ Kassof Trio live @ Saint Peters Church, tomorrow, at 1pm

                  (Dennis Mackrel, Russ Kassof, Jay Anderson)

Message from jazz piano master (and my dear friend) Russ Kassof:
"Please join me with the legendary Bird Fly By Trio - Jay Anderson on bass and Dennis Mackrel on drums as we start our July tour at Midday Jazz Midtown - Saint Peter's Church - Jazz Wednesdays - Produced by Ronny Whyte. Lexington and 54th St. Phone is 212 935-2200. There is a suggested contribution at the door. CD's will also be available." 
Concert starts at 1pm. Not to be missed if you are in the NY area. See u there!

Tomorrow, "Improvising For Singers" Workshop w/ Ellen Johnson @ California State University

One of the best singers in the contemporary jazz scene, the wondrous Ellen Johnson -- who is currently receiving rave reviews for her new album, "Form & Formless" and recently wrote an acclaimed book about Sheila Jordan titled "Jazz Child" -- will be doing some workshops on "Improvising for Singers" this Summer, with Keith Saunders on piano. Tomorrow, July 19, you'll have an opportunity to work on improvising skills or be introduced to the "art" of improvising at the California Jazz Conservatory. Register online or by phone. https://cjc.edu/workshops/?eid=9607

Historic Pic: John, Chick, Carlos & Herbie

John McLaughlin, Chick Corea, Carlos Santana and Herbie Hancock after an historic night at the Montreux Jazz Festival, yesterday. Like Quincy says, "un-be-lie-va-ble!"

R.I.P.: Jadir de Castro (1927-2015)

(born March 26, 1927 in Campos, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil;
died July 14, 2015 in Cabo Frio, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil)

My dear friend Jadir de Castro -- one of the most important drummers and percussionists in the history of Brazilian music -- just passed away today, at age 88. But he was still a kid, always generous, kind, with good humour. And still playing when among friends. I was blessed with the chance to work with this legendary artist in several occasions. The first time was in 1997 when I signed another late friend and great musician, Dom Um Romão, to my JSR label. Dom Um introduced me to Jadir and invited him to play on an album we were recording in my native Rio: Dom Um's "Rhythm Traveller" CD, co-produced by Toninho Barbosa. The album was released the following year, all over the world, receiving critical acclaim and becoming a best-seller in Europe, specially in England, where it reached the Top 10 acid-jazz charts of "Straight, No Chaser" magazine.

(Jadir de Castro, Dom Um Romao, Gegê, Maria Fattoruso, Laudir de Oliveira, Arnaldo DeSouteiro)

Later on, in 1998, we started to produce Jadir's own album that featured such guests as José Roberto Bertrami on keyboards, Jorge Pescara on bass (my first session with Pescara), and Dom Um Romao on percussion. We kept doing many recording sessions during the 2000s for albums by singer Ithamara Koorax ("Brazilian Butterfly," "Ithamara Koorax Sings Getz/Gilberto" and "All Around The World," among others.) Jadir also did some rare live performances as a percussionist with Dom Um & Koorax (plus Eloir de Moraes, Palmyra & Levita, Marcelo Salazar and DJ Marcelinho DaLua in a small tour in 2003) as well as a drummer with Koorax in long engagements at Sofitel Rio (with Paula Faour and Bertrami on keyboards and Jorge Pescara on bass) between 2005 and 2007.

Jadir Teixeira de Castro started his professional career at age 14 in Rio. He moved to Europe in 1952, touring with the Askanazy's folk group Brasiliana, later joining Roberto Inglez' Orchestra (performing in many concerts for London's BBC and recording the album "Latin-American Music Played By Rogerto Inglez And His Orchestra" for the Parlophone label in 1953), then the Radio-Télevision Française, the St. Moritz's Palace Hotel Orchestra, the Stol Theatre band in Glasgow, touring with the Perez Prado band, and doing a TV special in Rome with Sofia Loren and Gina Lollobrigida.

Jadir also lived in Monte Carlo and Paris, where he played in the Moulin Rouge band and appeared on Brigitte Bardot's debut film, "And God Created Woman" (Et Dieu Creá La Femme, directed by Roger Vadim in 1956) on which he can be seen in the famous long final sequence, playing percussion while Bardot dances in a trance.

            (Jadir de Castro, playing cowbell, and Brigitte Bardot dancing)

That same year (1956), he joined a group led by Silvio Vieira in Hamburg, where he married a German girl, Ilse, the mother of his daughter Ina and his son, Ernst. Returned to Brazil in 1961, joining Rubens Bassini's group Os 11 Magníficos, with Waltel Branco, Humberto Garin, Jorge Ferreira da Silva, Ohana, Humberto Garin and Pedro dos Santos. Toured Russia with Nora Ney & Jorge Goulart, and played with Bené Nunes.

As a composer, he wrote such hits as "Ziriguidum" (I have included the Baby Consuelo studio version on the "Trip To Brazil Vol.4" CD compilation I produced for Verve in 2005), "Nega Sem Sandália" - also known as "Pouquoi" and "E-Samba" (a dancefloor hit in Europe and Asia, with over 30 recordings by people like Elza Soares, Miltinho, Luiz Carlos Vinhas, Junior Jack) and "Lição de Baião" (also a hit in Brazil, recorded by Ed Lincoln, Baden Powell, Adriana Calcanhoto.) Not to mention such instrumental tunes as "Ozônio" and "Repimar," from the cult "heavy batucada" albums that he recorded as a co-leader with Dom Um Romão in the early 70s, and later included in several iconic compilations like "Batucada - The Sound of the Favelas," issued by the London-based Mr. Bongo label.

One of the first Brazilian drummers to record albums as a leader -- long before Milton Banana and even Dom Um --, Jadir de Castro released 14 fantastic LPs for labels like RCA, Philips, Polydor, Barclay, Enir, Pawal and Sideral. Among them, “Jadir No Samba” (reissued on CD by BMG in 2004), “Gênio da Batucada”, “Samba Internacional (Jadir de Castro & Seus Poliglotas Rítmicos), “Les Fabuleux Rythmes De Rio - Ecole De Samba" (with Dom Um Romao), "Samba Século 21," "Batucada nº 2" and “E Agora: Camutéo! – A nova dança!” In 2011, he released the book "Ciências Rítmicas - Memórias" and its companion DVD, "Gênio da Batucada." Rest in Samba.

Arnaldo DeSouteiro Bio / JSR (Jazz Station Records) - Contacts & Infos

            (Arnaldo DeSouteiro during a recording session in 2014)

"People are going to talk about you, especially when they envy you and the life you live. Let them. You affected their lives, they didn't affect yours... you will eventually lose someone you love & love someone you never thought you'd find..."

Arnaldo DeSouteiro - Short Bio

Music Producer (with over 530 albums to his credit according to the All Music Guide), Voting Member of NARAS-GRAMMY and Jazz Journalists Association (NY), Member of LAJS (Los Angeles Jazz Society), Musical Philosopher, Journalist, Jazz & Brazilian Music Historian, Publicist, Public Relations, Composer (having written successful jazz & pop songs, some dance hits like "O Passarinho" for the Italian TV reality show "La Pupa e Il Secchione", and "Samba da Copa" for the "2006 World Cup" in Germany, plus many other soundtracks for movies, soap operas & TV series in the USA -- PBS, BET, Universal Cable etc --, Europe and Asia), Lyricist (he wrote lyrics to Dave Brubeck's "Broadway Bossa Nova" at the invitation of Brubeck himself, among other songs), Arranger, Percussionist, Keyboardist, Programmer, Educator (conducting clinics and panel sessions worldwide as the first Brazilian member of IAJE-International Association of Jazz Educators during its existence). He has also acted as consultant for several companies and jazz festivals all over the world.

Founder and CEO of JSR (Jazz Station Records), a Division of Jazz Station Marketing & Consulting - LA, Calif. Most recently, founded LaCalifUSA Pictures and JSR Casting in 2007 for movie & TV productions featuring music & fashion.

Produced the acclaimed CD compilation series "A Trip To Brazil," "CTI Acid Jazz Grooves," "Brazilian Horizons," "Focus on Bossa Nova," "Focus on Brazilian Music Grooves", "Bossa Nova Singers," "Bossa Nova Guitar","Jazz Rock" etc.

Produced special compilations for Quincy Jones ("Summer in the City - The Soul Jazz Grooves of Quincy Jones"), Chick Corea ("Electric Chick") and Deodato ("Do It Again - The Fantastic Jazz-Funk of Eumir Deodato"), all released by Verve/Universal. His latest CD for Verve is "Bossa Nova USA," released last May, featuring Dave Brubeck's title track performed by Quincy Jones.

Supervised and/or Directed TV specials featuring João Gilberto, Antonio Carlos Jobim, Dizzy Gillespie, Chuck Mangione, Flora Purim & Airto Moreira, Miles Davis, Dom Um Romão, Eliane Elias, Diana Krall, Eumir Deodato, Bjork et al. Worked with producers Creed Taylor, Yoichi Nakao, Susumu Morikawa, Matthias Kunnecke, and photographers Pete Turner, Victor Skrebneski, Robert Mappelthorpe, Duane Michals.

Mr. DeSouteiro has also worked in his native Brazil for TUPI-FM radio station (as musical programmer-DJ as well as hosting his own show, "Jazz Espetacular"), Manchete TV network (anchoring & supervising the "Terça Especial" series for which he interviewed such jazz giants as Dizzy Gillespie, Tony Bennett, Chuck Mangione, Airto Moreira, Flora Purim etc), Globo TV network (screenplay, coordination and mix for the TV special "João Gilberto & Antonio Carlos Jobim - O Grande Encontro" in 1992, the last time these 2 geniuses performed together, plus the texts and screenplay for the "Minuto da Bossa" series), and as the jazz columnist for the "Tribuna da Imprensa" (Press Tribune) daily newspaper during 29 years (from 1979 to 2008). Before moving to the USA, he also worked as Brazilian correspondent of "Keyboard" magazine (from 1985 to 1994), as a free-lancer to Billboard, Cuadernos de Jazz, Swing Journal and International Music Magazine, and as entertainment-in-flight programmer for several airline companies like Varig Brazilian Airlines (from 1983 to 1998).

Produced over 530 albums and sessions featuring: Luiz Bonfa, João Gilberto, Dom Um Romão, Thiago de Mello, Dexter Payne, João Donato, Palmyra & Levita, Mario Castro-Neves, Jorge Pescara, Paula Faour, Fabio Fonseca, Claudio Roditi, Rodrigo Lima, Hermeto Pascoal, Ithamara Koorax, Don Sebesky, Sammy Figueroa, Bjork, Anna Ly, Carlos Barbosa-Lima, Pascoal Meirelles, Yana Purim, Pingarilho, Nelson Angelo, Marcelo Salazar, Ron Carter, Antonio Carlos Jobim, Steve Swallow, Herbie Hancock, Hugo Fattoruso, Larry Coryell, Sadao Watanabe, Jurgen Friedrich, Eloir de Moraes, Gazzara, Deodato, Jadir de Castro, Azymuth, Marcio Montarroyos, Sivuca, Laudir de Oliveira, Marcos Valle, Jay Berliner, George Young, David Matthews, Lew Soloff, Alphonso Johnson, Gene Bertoncini, John McLaughlin, Claus Ogerman, Raul de Souza, Gonzalo Rubalcaba and many others.

Produced and supervised CD reissues of albums by Ron Carter, Hank Crawford, Johnny Hammond, Sergio Mendes, Hubert Laws, Grant Green, Idris Muhammad, Joe Beck, Esther Phillips, Lonnie Smith, David Matthews & Whirlwind, Phil Upchurch, Tennyson Stephens, Miucha, Flora Purim, Carlos Lyra, Tamba Trio, Ivan Lins, Raul de Souza, Trio 3-D and many others. As annotator, he wrote liner notes and press releases for albums by Toots Thielemans, Hank Crawford, Stan Getz, Ella Fitzgerald, Pat Metheny, Eliane Elias, Carlos Barbosa-Lima, Jeff Linsky and dozens of others for labels like RCA, CTI, Kudu, Milestone, Fantasy, Verve, Columbia, Irma, Alfa, JVC, Caju, Sonet, Paddle Wheel, JHO, Mercury, Imagem etc.

Mr. DeSouteiro also had the honor to be associated with some of the world's greatest photographers like Pete Turner (who did the cover photos for Rodrigo Lima's "Saga" and Jorge Pescara's "Grooves in the Temple," released on his own JSR label and featured on Turner's new book "The Color of Jazz"), Victor Skrebneski (the CD reissue of "Upchurch/Tennyson"), Bruce Weber (Esther Phillips' "For All We Know"), Robert Mappelthorpe ("Brazilian Horizons"), Alen MacWeeney, William Cadge, and Duane Michals (many of the CTI CDs) and so on. He has appeared in several movies and TV series such as the Award Winning documentary movie "Beyond Ipanema," for which he was interviewed alongside Creed Taylor, Lalo Schifrin, Wayne Shorter, Gene Lees and Norman Gimbel.

Jazz Station Marketing & Consulting, JSR Casting, LaCalifUSA Pictures
CEO & Founder: Arnaldo DeSouteiro
Address:
JSR - LA
9930 Liebe Dr.
Los Angeles, CA 90210

JSR - NY Address:
Arnaldo DeSouteiro
PO Box 1338
Radio City Station
New York, NY 10003

Jazz Station Records (JSR), a division of Jazz Station Enterprises
CEO & Founder · Los Angeles ·
Address:
Arnaldo DeSouteiro
Jazz Station Records - LA
1545 Wilshire Blvd.
Los Angeles, CA 90017
JSR - NY
PO Box 1338
Radio City Station

(PLEASE, DO NOT SEND UNSOLICITED MATERIAL; any unsolicited CD or promo packets will be returned. If you wish to submit material, please contact us through comments on this post or through Facebook. Thx!)
https://www.facebook.com/arnie.gilberto

People are going to talk about you, especially when they envy you and the life you live. Let them. You affected their lives, they didn't affect yours... you will eventually lose someone you love & love someone you never thought you'd find...

Arnaldo DeSouteiro – Biografia ultra-resumida 

Produtor de discos, com cerca de 530 álbuns em sua discografia (incluindo novos CDs, reedições, coletâneas, trilhas sonoras, projetos especiais), conforme consta no All Music Guide, principal e mais acessado website sobre música no mundo. Jornalista e publicitário (formado em Comunicação pela PUC-RJ), tendo escrito para os jornais Tribuna da Imprensa (de 1979 até sua extinção em 2009, com 3.200 artigos publicados), Última Hora, O Globo e O Estado do Paraná, revistas Billboard, Keyboard (USA), Cuadernos de Jazz (Espanha), Swing Journal (Japão), Revista do CD (Brasil) etc. 

Roteirista de shows (João Gilberto, Diana Krall, Ithamara Koorax, Marcos Valle, Eumir Deodato, Bjork etc) e de especiais de TV para as emissoras Globo (Antonio Carlos Jobim & João Gilberto) e Manchete (Dizzy Gillespie, Tony Bennett, Chuck Mangione, Airto Moreira & Flora Purim etc) no Brasil, BET e PBS nos EUA, NHK no Japão (Diana Krall, João Gilberto, CTI All Stars, Dave Brubeck etc).

Nascido no Rio de Janeiro (Brasil) em 1963, radicado em Los Angeles (EUA) desde 1999. Estudou piano clássico e harmonia com sua mãe, a pianista e maestrina Delza Agricola. É membro da Associação Brasileira de Imprensa (ABI) e da Ordem dos Músicos do Brasil (OMB) desde 1979, membro catedrático titular efetivo da Academia Internacional de Música desde 1985, membro votante do Grammy-Naras (National Academy of Recording Arts & Sciences) desde 2006, membro votante da Los Angeles Jazz Society (único brasileiro) desde 2007, e também único brasileiro que é membro votante da Jazz Journalists Association (sediada em Nova Iorque) desde 2002. Atua como consultor e parecerista para diversas empresas, centros culturais e festivais de música no Brasil e no exterior.

Também foi membro honorário e primeiro membro brasileiro da Associação Internacional de Educadores de Jazz (IAJE – International Association of Jazz Educators) durante 12 anos, até sua extinção em 2008, tendo realizado palestras e "panel sessions" nas convenções anuais realizadas nos EUA. 

Fundador e Presidente da gravadora JSR (Jazz Station Records), sediada em Los Angeles – EUA desde 2001, uma divisão da Jazz Station Marketing & Consulting. Dirige também a JSR Casting e a LaCalifUSA Pictures, empresa de cinema que produz conteúdo e trilhas sonoras (composição, produção, seleção) para filmes e séries de TV. 

Produziu discos e sessões de gravação com artistas como Luiz Bonfá, João Gilberto, Dom Um Romão, João Donato, Palmyra & Levita, Mario Castro-Neves, Claudio Roditi, Gaudencio Thiago de Mello, Dexter Payne, Bjork, Rodrigo Lima, Don Sebesky, Hubert Laws, Fabio Fonseca, Marcos Ozzellin, Herbie Hancock, Jorge Pescara, Paula Faour, Anna Ly, Pascoal Meirelles, Yana Purim, Carlos Pingarilho, Nelson Angelo, Marcelo Salazar, Ithamara Koorax, Ron Carter, Antonio Carlos Jobim, Steve Swallow, Herbie Hancock, Hugo Fattoruso, Larry Coryell, Sadao Watanabe, Jurgen Friedrich, Claus Ogerman, Gazzara, Eumir Deodato, Azymuth, Marcio Montarroyos, Sivuca, Laudir de Oliveira, Marcos Valle, David Matthews, Gene Bertoncini, John McLaughlin, Raul de Souza, Hermeto Pascoal, Jadir de Castro, Lew Soloff, George Young, Gonzalo Rubalcaba, Alphonso Johnson e muitos outros. 

Como compositor e letrista, tem parcerias com Dave Brubeck (“Broadway Bossa Nova”), Francesco Gazzara (“O Passarinho”), Mamoru Morishita (“Hotaru”) e Fabio Fonseca (“Samba da Copa”, executado na cerimônia de abertura da Copa do Mundo de 2006). 

Produziu reedições de discos de Sergio Mendes, Flora Purim, Tamba Trio, Ivan Lins, Carlos Lyra, Miucha, Antonio Carlos Jobim, Ron Carter, Idris Muhammad, Hank Crawford, Lonnie Smith, Johnny Hammond, Luiz Bonfá, Phil Upchurch, Tennyson Stephens, Eumir Deodato, Grant Green, Mario Castro-Neves, João Donato, Claus Ogerman, David Matthews, Esther Phillips, Joe Beck, Eric Gale e muitos outros.

Produziu as séries “A Trip To Brazil” (cujo Volume 1 chegou ao primeiro-lugar na parada de world-music na Europa em 1998, superando “Buena Vista Social Club”), “Brazilian Horizons”, “CTI: Acid Jazz Grooves”, “Jazz Club”, e retrospectivas - lançadas mundialmente entre 2006 e 2010 pelo selo Verve – das carreiras de Quincy Jones (“Summer In The City: The Soul-Jazz Groves of Quincy Jones”), Eumir Deodato (“Do It Again: The Fantastic Jazz Funk of Eumir Deodato”) e Chick Corea (“Electric Chick”).

Desde 1981, tem realizado, como free lancer, produção musical para diversas gravadoras, como RCA/BMG, Sony, Verve/PolyGram/Universal, CTI, King, Paddle Wheel, Pausa, Milestone/Fantasy, Warner/WEA, Motor Music, JVC/Victor, Sanyo, Movieplay, Imagem, Eldorado, CID, Alfa, RGE, Mr. Bongo, Terra Música, Blue Moon, Bomba, Cedar Tree, Treasure Trove, Irma, Vivid Sound, Motéma, e Huks Music, no Brasil, Europa, Estados Unidos, Japão, China, Taiwan e Coréia. 

Entre 1982 e 1984, atuou como assessor cultural do Serviço de Comunicação Social da Petrobras. Em 1983, criou, produziu e apresentou o programa "Jazz espetacular", transmitido pela Rádio Tupi FM. Em 1984, assumiu a responsabilidade da programação de bordo (musical e audiovisual) transmitida nos vôos internacionais da Varig, função que exerceu durante 14 anos. Também nesse período (1985 a 1987), participou da comissão de seleção do Free Jazz Festival. 

Escreveu textos de contracapa para discos de diversos artistas, como Toots Thielemans, Ella Fitzgerald, Eliane Elias, Antonio Carlos Jobim, Jeff Kinsky, Paulo Bellinati e Carlos Barbosa Lima, entre outros. Assinou textos para divulgação ("press releases") de artistas como João Gilberto, Stan Getz, Oscar Peterson, Pat Metheny, Bill Evans, Jimmy Smith, Elvin Jones, Stanley Turrentine e Tony Bennett.

Atuou como entrevistador em depoimentos prestados para o Museu da Imagem e do Som (Rio de Janeiro e São Paulo) por João Donato, Stellinha Egg, Maestro Gaya, Eumir Deodato, Airto Moreira, Flora Purim e Carlos Barbosa Lima. Em 2001, recebeu o prêmio de International Man of The Year, concedido pelo International Biographical Centre, de Londres. Foi o primeiro brasileiro a receber essa premiação, oferecida anteriormente a apenas quatro outros produtores: Arif Mardin, Tommy LiPuma, Quincy Jones e Phil Ramone. Ainda nesse ano, a JSR (Jazz Station Records), de sua propriedade, foi considerada uma das cinco melhores gravadoras de jazz do mundo, em relação publicada na edição de dezembro da revista especializada norte-americana "Down Beat", premiação que se repetiu por quatro anos (7º lugar em 2003, 9º lugar em 2004, 5º lugar em 2005 e 6º lugar em 2006).  

Foi entrevistado em vários programas de TV, seriados (incluindo o documentário "Laurindo Almeida, Muito Prazer" exibido pelo canal GNT) e filmes como o premiado documentário "Beyond Ipanema", no qual foi entrevistado ao lado de Creed Taylor, Lalo Schifrin, Wayne Shorter, Gene Lees e Norman Gimbel. Depois de apresentado em diversos festivais de cinema nos Estados Unidos e Europa, "Beyond Ipanema" foi transformado em série de televisão transmitida em território brasileiro pela emissora Canal Brasil em 2014.

Endereço para correspondência:
Jazz Station Marketing & Consulting, JSR Casting, LaCalifUSA Pictures
CEO & Founder: Arnaldo DeSouteiro
Address:
JSR - LA
9930 Liebe Dr.
Los Angeles, CA 90210

JSR - NY Address:
Arnaldo DeSouteiro
PO Box 1338
Radio City Station
New York, NY 10003

Jazz Station Records (JSR), a division of Jazz Station Enterprises
CEO & Founder · Los Angeles ·
Address:
Arnaldo DeSouteiro
Jazz Station Records - LA
1545 Wilshire Blvd.
Los Angeles, CA 90017
JSR - NY
PO Box 1338
Radio City Station

New Jazz Series @ Steve Getz Music Hall

THE STEVE GETZ MUSIC HALL @ LEHMAN COLLEGE, Bronx, NY
New Jazz Series September 2015

STEVE GETZ, Jazz Impresario/Concert Producer, announces the debut of THE STEVE GETZ MUSIC HALL at LEHMAN COLLEGE, Bronx, New York, in September 2015.

Steve is a veteran of the Jazz business, spanning 35 years of accumulated experience as Music Director/Talent Buyer for Jazz Clubs- Fat Tuesday's (NYC); The Blue Note (NYC) and Yoshi's ( Oakland,CA); Agent and Manager of Jazz Artists-Phil Woods; Chuck Loeb; Harry Allen and Sarah Jane Cion; Record Producer-produced award winning recordings of Steve's Father, legendary Jazz tenor saxophonist, STAN GETZ. Btw, in the 70s Steve performed in Brazil as a percussionist on Stan's group! And we were introduced by my much missed friend Luiz Bonfa.

The Schedule of Artists Performing A Tribute To Stan Getz:
9/11  Fri  Andy LaVerne Trio "Plays The Stan Getz Song Book" Featuring Ralph LaLama,Tenor Saxophone;Carol Fredette,Vocals;Judy Niemack,Vocals.
9/ 12 Sat "MODERN GUITAR MASTERS"-Vic Juris & Dave Stryker Quartet
9/ 18 Fri   "JAZZ  VOCALIST JAZZ WORKSHOP" 1 Hosted by Marion Cowings (vocals) with Roseanna Vitro (Vocals) and Audrey Silver (Vocals)
9/19 Sat  "JAZZ VOCALIST JAZZ WORKSHOP" 2-"DIVINE VOCAL DUETS"- Nicole Pasternak Featuring John Di Martino Piano; and Nora McCarthy Featuring Ray Gallon,Piano.
9/25 Fri    Santi DeBriano Trio (Master Bass Player) with Roni Ben-Hur,Dudaka Fonseca
9/26 Sat   Harry Allen Quartet (Tenor Saxophone) "TENOR MADNESS" with Grant Stewart (Tenor Saxophone)

Further Dates To Be Announced

Tickets are now $25 General Admission and $20 Students and Seniors
Show Times: 8 PM and 10 PM
All Shows will be in The Studio Theater

Address:
Lehman College,CUNY  250 Bedford Park Boulevard West, Bronx,New York 10468

For Further Information: Contact: Steve Getz- EMail: stevegetz7@gmail.com
www.stevegetzmusic.com

Celebrate Independence Day with Jorge Sylvester's ACE Collective, tomorrow, in NY

Celebrate Independence Day with Jorge Sylvester ACE (Afro Caribbean Experimental) Collective Extended Edition on Tuesday, July 7 at Jazz Tuesdays in the John Birks Gillespie Auditorium at 53 East 11th Street (between University Place & Broadway).  There will be 2 shows at 8:00 and 9:30 pm.  Call 212-222-5159 for advanced sales and information.

The ACE Collective is a group of improvising musicians created and led by saxophonist/composer/arranger Jorge Sylvester. An extension of the ACE Trio (alto saxophone, electric bass and drums), the ACE Collective includes three additional independent rhythmic and melodic elements: the voice, trumpet and piano expanding its harmonic colors, its scope of sound and its textural capacity. The music is original, new and experimental and draws from the Afro-Caribbean Diaspora, jazz and the free music art forms.

The Jorge Sylvester ACE Collective is:
   Jorge Sylvester - Alto Saxophone and Compositions
   Nora McCarthy - Voice and Compositions
   Waldron Mahdi Ricks - Trumpet
   Jay Rodriguez - Tenor Saxophone and Bass Clarinet  
   Pablo Vergara - Piano
   Marvin Sewell - Electric Guitar
   Gene Torres - Electric Bass
   Kenny Grohowski - Drums

A native of Colon, Republic of Panama, Sylvester's original compositions are indicative of the vast cultural mixture that is Central America. The ACE Collective utilizes the rich spectrum of rhythms from the Caribbean and other Latin American countries as a vehicle to create new and undiscovered rhythmic melodic lines within the jazz tradition. Collective and free improvisation is an essential part of the concept utilizing juxtaposition and retrograde as main components of the experimentation.

Afro-Caribbean rhythms and their relationship to the avant-garde music form have not been documented. Unlike the work of composers such as Charles Mingus, Duke Ellington, Dizzy Gillespie and others who used Afro-Caribbean rhythms in their works without experimenting with their rhythmic pulse, the compositional structure of the music of the ACE Collective goes beyond an absolute interpretation, and delves deeper into the core of the rhythms breaking them down and expanding the pulse into a myriad of complex configurations that tap into the original primal properties of the music itself, reflecting its history and its origin, unraveling its many transmutations and adaptations over time and discovering new possibilities and applications within the tradition itself that are related to the avant-garde.

The poetry reflects the message of the compositions by telling the story of each piece and its historic relevance to the music adding an important educational dimension. Other compositions that are significant to the history of jazz music are also occasionally introduced into the performance highlighting certain lesser known but meaningful composers from the Caribbean.

Admission is 15.00, $10.00 for students.
Tickets will be sold at the door, or call 212-222-5159 for advanced sales and information. For more about "Jazz Tuesdays",check out our website at www.jazzbeat.com.

Jazz Tuesdays
in the John Birks Gillespie Auditorium
The New York Baha'i Center
53 East 11th Street (between University  Place & Broadway)
Two shows: 8:00and 9:30 p.m.

DJ Roger Sanchez @ Light Nightclub, July 11

SAT JULY 11
AFTER PARTY W/ ROGER SANCHEZ

LIGHT NIGHTCLUB
LOCATED IN MANDALAY BAY
3950 S. LAS VEGAS BLVD

LAS VEGAS, NV 89119

I'm flattered that Mr. Sanchez, one of the best DJs in the world, helped to make one of my productions, Dom Um Romao's "Lake Of Perseverance," a big hit not only in the jazz field but also in the dancefloor charts all over the planet, by including its title track on his best-selling CD "Release Yourself, Ibiza 2002." Thx, Bro!

Christos Rafalides & Manhattan Vibes, Tonight @ 55 Bar in NYC

MONDAY / JULY 6TH at 10pm

55 BAR (55 Christopher Street, NY, NY)

Christos Rafalides & Manhattan Vibes

Christos Rafalides, vibraphone /compositions
Thana Alexa, vocals
Manuel Valera, piano
Gianluca Renzi, bass
Peter Kronreif, drums

R.I.P.: Garrison Fewell (1954-2015)

Garrison Fewell, guitarist, author, and educator, died today, July 5, 2015 at the age of 61.

Fewell grew up in Philadelphia. At the age of eleven he learned to play guitar and in 1967 began to perform as a professional musician in his hometown. In 1972 he went on a tour of the Middle East. After his return to the United States, he studied jazz guitar with Lenny Breau and Pat Martino at the Berklee College of Music. Upon his graduation in 1977 Fewell joined the guitar department at Berklee where he taught for 38 years and authored two active textbooks on jazz guitar:  Jazz Improvisation for Guitar - A Melodic Approach, and Jazz Improvisation for Guitar - A Harmonic Approach. He also wrote for music magazines such as Guitar Player, Guitar Club, Chitarre and Axe.

In 1988, he joined the academic exchange program in Rotterdam, working with Cees Slinger, and played at the North Sea Jazz Festival in a duo with pianist Dave Frank. In 1989 he moved to Paris, taught at the American School of Modern Music, and performed in ja zz clubs in the city. On a tour of Italy, he performed at the Umbria Jazz Festival in Perugia.

Fewell worked in duo with pianist Alex Ulanowsky on a teaching program in jazz theory and improvisation. They also played concerts and held workshops in Holland, Belgium, Italy and Austria. In 1991 he received a grant from the National Endowment for the Arts and taught at the Jazz & Rock School in Freiburg and taught counterpoint and the music of Johann Sebastian Bach and Charlie Parker at the conservatories of Leipzig and Weimar. In 1992 he taught in Cologne and Aachen and also played with David Friesen on the Zelt-Musik-Festival in Freiburg.

In 1993, Fewell was joined by Fred Hersch, Cecil McBee and Matt Wilson on his debut album (Accurate) A Blue Deeper Than the Blue  and subsequently recorded as leader on Reflections of a Clear Moon (Accurate) in l997, Birdland Sessions (Koch) in 2000, City of Dreams (Splasc(h)), and Red Door Number 11 (Splasc(h)) in 2003. In 2009 he founded the Variable Density Sound Orchestra and recorded two albums on his own Creative Nation Music label, in 2009 and on Sound Particles 47 in 2013. He has worked with Achille Succi, Roy Campbell, Jim McNeely, George Cables, Steve Laspina and Billy Hart.

From 1994 to 1999 Fewell held summer courses in Warsaw at the invitation of the Polish Jazz Society and played with Polish artists at the Solo / Duo / Trio Festival in Krakow. In 1995 in Hungary he collaborated with pianist Laszlo Gardony and appeared at the Tatabanya Jazz Festival with Dusko Goykovich and Zbigniew Namyslowski. He also held joint summer courses and appeared at Copenhagen's Jazzhus Montmartre . At the invitation of the International Association for Jazz Education (IAJE)  Fewell taught with Bill Dobbins in the late 1990s and founded a conference of the European IAJE in Maastricht. From 1995 to 1999 he held jazz workshops at the Montreux Jazz Festival , where he performed with his trio. In 1996 he toured with Tal Farlow on Musikmeesse in Frankfurt am Main.

Around 2000 he turned to more improvised music, joining John Tchicai on their 2005 S oul Note recording Big Chief Dreaming.  A trio with Tchicai and Charlie Kohlhase followed in 2006, producing the live recording Goodnight Songs (Boxholder).  As a co-leader, his subsequent recordings include The Lady of Khartoum with Eric Hofbauer in 2008 (CNM), John Tchicai's Five Points in 2009 (NuBop), Estuaries with Steve Swell in 2013 (dEn), and Tribal Ghost also in 2013 (No Business).

In recent years Fewell divided his time between teaching at Berklee, holding private concerts at his home, playing at clubs in the U.S., and an extensive playing and teaching schedule from his home in Bergamo, Italy.  The last and perhaps most significant project was the 2014 publication of his book Outside Music, Inside Voices: Dialogues on Improvisation and the Spirit of Creative Music, a series of interviews with John Tchicai, Han Benninck, Dave Burrell, Joe McPhee, Matthew Shipp, Roy Campbell, Irene Schweitzer, Milford Graves, Henry Grimes, William Parker, Oliver Lake, Henry Threadgill, and many others. He also recorded a fantastic duo album with Italian singer Boris Savoldelli, "Electric Bat Conspiracy."

Fewell is survived by his wife, Emy, and son, Alex.

A memorial service will be held at 11:00 am on Sunday, July 19th at:
SGI USA                                                    
930 Commonwealth Avenue                                
Boston 02215                                                        
(617) 264 2000

Happy 4th of July!

Wishing everyone a Happy 4th of July weekend! Enjoy it with your Family & Friends & remember to open your hearts and your home to someone who is alone. Holidays are meant for laughter and fellowship, be that BLESSING to others.

Bossa Nova CD of the Month - "João Donato: Blue Bossa / The Collection of Standards"

Bossa Nova CD of the Month
João Donato: "Blue Bossa - The Collection of Standards" (King Records KICP 1729/30) 2015

Produced by Kazuo Yoshida
Arranged by João Donato
Recorded from Sept 3 to 10, 2014 @ Estúdio Tambor by Jorge Guerreiro, assisted by Fábio Roberto
Mixed by Kazuo Yoshida @ Ouzak Studio
Mastered by Hiroyuki Tsuji @ King Sekiguchidai Studio
Artist Management: Ivone Belem
Coordination: Tatiana Horácio
A&R: Katsumi Miyata
Design: Hiroshi Ohno & Satoru Kimura
Artwork: Tadashi Sato
Featuring: Joao Donato (piano), Luiz Alves, Ricardo Pontes (flute & alto sax)

The album title may suggest a project of jazz and/or GAS standards, but this 2-CD set with 27 tracks also includes overdone bossa classics ("Desafinado," "Wave," "Girl From Ipanema," "A Felicidade," "Corcovado") and Donato's striking originals "Minha Saudade," "Amazonas," "Emoriô," "A Paz," "No Coreto," and "Vento No Canavial."

However, as I expected, the best moments come from the title's promise: Kenny Dorham's Blue Note jazz standard "Blue Bossa," several GAS classics recorded by Sinatra ("Fly Me To The Moon," "But Not For Me," "'S Wonderful") and some odd choices ("Besame Mucho," "Smile") that, surprisingly, work well in this mixing pot.

The highlights are two songs that Donato has always loved ("Tenderly," "Tea For Two"), a piano solo rendition of "The Shadow Of Your Smile" (wish there were other solo tracks!) used to close the album, and specially a delightful version of "How High The Moon" featuring the great interplay between Donato's acoustic piano and Ricardo Ponte's flute; both perform exquisite solos, with Donato starting his statement with a quote of Deodato's "Estrelinha" that he had recorded in 1976 for the never released "Prossiga" album.

Crossover CD of the Month - "Anders Bergcrantz Plays The Painter by Anna-Lena Laurin"

Crossover CD of the Month
"Anders Bergcrantz Plays The Painter by Anna-Lena Laurin" (Vanguard Music Boulevard VMBCD 108)
JAZZ STATION MASTERPIECE SEAL

Composed by Anna-Lena Laurin
Norrlandsoperan Symphony Orchestra
Conductor: Mats Rodin
Anders Bergcrantz Quartet featuring:
Anders Bergcrantz (trumpet), Robert Tjäderkvist (piano), Patrik Grundström (bass) & Ulrik Ording (drums)
"The Painter" commissioned by Noorlandsoperan

12" Vinyl Reissue of the Month - "Hubert Laws: Afro-Classic"

12" Vinyl Reissue of the Month (180gram vinyl LP)
Hubert Laws: "Afro-Classic" (CTI/Speakers Corner) 1970/2015
Release Date: July 28, 2015, licensed through Sony Music

Produced by Creed Taylor
Recorded & Mixed by Rudy Van Gelder @ Van Gelder Studio (Englewood Cliffs, NJ) on December 1 & 11, 1970
Cover Photo: Pete Turner
Album Design: Bob Ciano

Arranged by Don Sebesky
Featuring: Hubert Laws (flutes), Bob James (Fender Rhodes electric pinao), Ron Carter (bass & cello), Freddie Waits (drums), Airto Moreira (percussion), Richie 'Pablo' Landrum (congas), Dave Friedman (vibes), Gene Bertoncini (acoustic guitar), Fred Alston Jr. (bassoon) et al.

Hubert Laws' second album for CTI, "Afro-Classic" was the follow-up to pop-oriented "Crying Song," and Laws' first collaboration with master arranger Don Sebesky, who created fascinating musical landscapes. It's a groundbreaking record, a mixture of classical themes and jazz, handled with an airy CTI approach – and set to arrangements by Don Sebesky that are simply mindblowing!

The album's a wonderful example of the way that CTI really pushed the boundaries of instrumental expression in the 70s – taking Laws wonderfully breathy work on flute, and mixing it with some well-crafted backings that feature Bob James (Fender Rhodes), Ron Carter (acoustic bass & cello), Freddie Waits (the drummer on Laws' touring band at that time), Airto (percussion), Dave Friedman (vibes, sometimes using the fuzz pedal) and the secret weapon of the session, Gene Bertoncini on the acoustic guitar.

This ensemble is handled by Sebesky, who really brings some magic to the record – a sense of sound, space, and timing that's still a heck of a lot more mature and sophisticated than most instrumental recordings coming out today!

The record's an incredibly baroque set of tracks featuring arrangements by Don Sebesky that mix complicated lines on flute with electric piano from Bob James, into a swirling mass of sound that's warm, soulful, and fuzzy. The record's incredibly hip, even on material like Francis Lai's mellow pop ballad "Theme From Love Story" (written by Francis Lai for the blockbuster movie), then a monster hit on the Billboard charts. "Creed thought it would be an interesting idea to incorporate some of the classical music that had been used in the film," Laws remembers. "So, we also recorded Mozart's Flute Sonata In F and the Allegro from Bach's Concerto No.3 in D."

James Taylor's "Fire & Rain" features an hipnotic groove propelled by Carter's bassline. On the 15-minute long jazz adaptation of Bach's "Passacaglia In C Minor," the album tour-de-force, Laws (on electric flute), Carter (doing an unbelievable electric cello solo) and Bertoncini (great performance on acoustic guitar) soar away into another plane of being!

Regarding the voluminous "Passacaglia," Hubert once told: "The chord changes are pretty much like some fourth changes we would use today in some jazz pieces. The feel, the ambiance of the piece was first created by the opening theme, which almost sounds religious. After that, we took Bach's music in a different direction, rhythmically and harmonically. That album really set a precedent for me, because it blended both elements of classical and jazz, and I began to be identified with that more than anything else."

Jazz flute and CTI were never the same after this album, that would be followed by the even better "Rite Of Spring," recorded in 1971 with the same arranger and almost all the same musicians (Jack DeJohnette replaced Freddie Waits.) Both became genuine classics in the CTI catalog. And, 45 years later, Hubert Laws continues to be acclaimed as "the most accomplished flutist ever to play jazz," like Leonard Feather once wrote when reviewing the "California Concert" by the CTI All-Stars to the British newspaper Melody Maker. Amen.

Blu-Spec CD of the Month - "Lalo Schifrin: Towering Toccata"

Blu-Spec CD of the Month
Lalo Schifrin: "Towering Toccata" (CTI KICJ 2336)

Rating: **** (musical performance & sonic quality)

Produced by Creed Taylor
Engineered by Rudy Van Gelder @ Van Gelder Studio (Englewood Cliffs, NJ)
Cover Photo: White Gate
Album Design: Carole Kowalchuk, Sib Chalawick

Arranged & Conducted by Lalo Schifrin
Featuring: Lalo Schifrin (acoustic piano, Fender Rhodes, synths), Clark Spangler (keyboards), Anthony Jackson & Will Lee (electric bass), Steve Gadd & Andrew Smith (drums), Sue Evans, Don Armando & Ralph MacDonald (percussion), Eric Gale & John Tropea (guitars), Urbie Green (trombone), Joe Farrell & Jeremy Steig (flutes), John Blair (vitar), Ronnie Cuber (baritone sax) et al.

Schifrin goes disco and takes J.S. Bach with him. The follow-up to his CTI masterpiece, "Black Widow," and another jazz-funk classic thay yielded such acid-jazz anthems as "Midnight Woman," that I've included in the best-selling CD compilation "CTI Acid Jazz Grooves."

CD Reissue of the Month - "Cannonball Adderley: Big Man - The Legend of John Henry"

CD Reissue of the Month
"Cannonball Adderley's Big Man - The Legend of John Henry" (Fantasy/Real Gone Music RGM 0353) 1975/2015

Starring Joe Williams, Randy Crawford & Robert Guillaume
A Folk Musical with Music by Julian & Nat Adderley
Lyrics by Diane Lampert & Peter Farrow
Produced by Julian 'Cannonball' Adderley, Nat Adderley & David Axelrod
Recorded & Mixed by Jim Stern @ Fantasy Studios (Berkeley, CA)
Art Direction: Phil Carroll
Cover Art & Design: David Lance Goines

CD Reissue Produced by Gordon Anderson & Bill Kopp
CD Design & Liner Notes: Bill Kopp
Remastered by Joe Tarantino

Featuring: Cannonball Adderley (alto sax), Jimmy Jones (piano), George Duke aka Dawilli Gonga (keyboards), Carol Kaye (electric bass), Walter Booker (acoustic bass), Roy McCurdy (drums), Airto Moreira (percussion, caxixis), King Errison (congas), Billy Fender & Don Peake (guitars), Allen DeRienzo, Oliver Mitchell & Oscar Brashear (trumpets), Dick Hyde & George Bohanon (trombones), Don Menza, Jay Migliori, Jackie Kelso & William Green (reeds) plus strings & chorus
Vocals: Joe Williams (John Henry), Randy Crawford (Carolina), Robert Guillaume (Jassawa), Judy Thames (Whore) and Lane Smith (Sheriff, Bull Maree)

Vocal Jazz CD of the Month - "Tiffany Austin: Nothing But Soul"

Vocal Jazz CD of the Month
Tiffany Austin: "Nothing But Soul" (Con Alma Music CAM 001) 2015

Produced by Howard Wiley
Recorded by Nino Moschella @ Bird and Egg Studios (Richmond, CA)
Mixed by Adam Muñoz @ Fantasy Studios (Berkeley, CA)
Mastered by Ken Lee @ Ken Lee Mastering (Oakland, CA)
Artwork: Amy Woloszyn
Photos: Bill Reitzel

Featuring: Tiffany Austin (lead vocals), Howard Wiley (tenor sax & vocals), Glen Pearson (piano), Ron Belcher (bass) & Sly Randolph (drums)

One of the fastest rising jazz singers in Northern California, with a tradition-rooted yet thoroughly modern style, Tiffany Austin brings a wealth of experience to her debut CD Nothing But Soul, released on June 2nd by her Con Alma Music label.

The Los Angeles native, currently based in Berkeley, worked with producer Howard Wiley to adapt and expand on her November 2013 SFJAZZ "Hotplate" concert for which she reimagined compositions by the great American songwriter Hoagy Carmichael. Nothing But Soul is made up of six Carmichael tunes -- "Baltimore Oriole," "Stardust," "Skylark," "I Get Along Without You Very Well," "Georgia on My Mind," and "Sing Me a Swing Song (And Let Me Dance)" -- as well as two non-Carmichael numbers that he recorded as a vocalist: Henry Sullivan and Harry Ruskin's "I May Be Wrong (But I Think You're Wonderful)"; Johnny Cash's "I Walk the Line"; and "Tête-à-Tête," a wordless a cappella duet by Austin and Wiley based on the chord changes of Charlie Parker's "Confirmation." 

"Hoagy is a treasure trove of classics," says Austin. "When I looked at his catalog, I realized that I'd been hearing, singing, and even piano-plunking away at his tunes for a great chunk of my life -- 'Heart and Soul,' for instance! I wanted to share that wonder of finding treasures in plain view with other folks, while adding some other musical flavors to the recipe. It's also fascinating to me that Hoagy achieved his law degree," adds Austin, who earned her Juris Doctorate at the University of California Berkeley's Boalt School of Law in 2012, "and still decided to pursue a career in music. Whatever your calling is, there's something in your bones that tells you there is nothing that will make you happier in life. And it takes a lot of courage to follow it."

Born in Los Angeles, Tiffany Austin studied classical voice while attending Los Angeles County High School for the Arts. During her junior year at Cal State Northridge, from which she would graduate with a B.A. in creative writing in 2003, she went to England on an exchange program and began singing in London clubs. After a brief stint back in Southern California, she moved to Tokyo in early 2004 and spent the next five and a half years singing a variety of music, including some pop, jazz, and gospel music, six nights a week.

"As I worked in those styles I could hear a different quality coming out in my voice, and I wanted to explore that further," says Austin, who also received lyric writing commissions and recorded for television, film, and album projects during this period.

"I also fell in love with Japan, and when I left there it was with tears in my eyes," she adds. "I was struck by how the artisans I met would not settle for anything but the best of themselves and their craft, and would work with such patient diligence. That work ethic resonated with me, and I find myself summoning up memories of Japan when I brace myself for big challenges."

In 2009, Austin returned to the United States to attend U.C. Berkeley Law School, with an emphasis in entertainment law and copyright. After graduation, she found herself at a crossroad. "I could have gone into a law firm, which can be rewarding, particularly if you're helping an underserved community, but my calling has always been to do music," Austin says. "I don't just want to make decisions based on money. I want to feel connected to my art and my community. I want to really be in touch with my soul.

"Although cliché, it's true," she continues, "that law school teaches you how to think, how to work efficiently, how to teach yourself, and how to be tenacious. Since graduating, I've started my own music company (Con Alma Music), put together my album, deepened the study of my crafts (vocalist, lyricist, songwriter), and began independently studying harmony. I feel like every bit of my education and experience has come together, in a marvelously unlikely way, to make me an artist."

In Northern California Tiffany has appeared at the SFJAZZ Center, Yoshi's in both Oakland and San Francisco, the Yerba Buena Gardens Festival in San Francisco, and the Healdsburg Jazz Festival, and in January 2014 traveled to New York to perform with choreographer Nicole Klaymoon's Embodiment Project at Jazz at Lincoln Center. Besides working with innovative local bandleaders Marcus Shelby and Howard Wiley, Austin has sung with the bands Orgone and MoonCandy, and has recorded with, among others, Orgone, The Monophonics, The Droptones, and on UnderCover Presents Sly and the Family Stone's Stand! tribute project.

The CD release concert for Nothing But Soul is scheduled for 7/17 at the Red Poppy Art House in San Francisco, and 8/29at the Sound Room, Oakland.

Photography: Bill Reitzel

Web Site: tiffanyaustin.com

Instrumental Jazz CD of the Month: "Bjørn Solli - Aglow: The Lyngør Project Vol 1"

Instrumental Jazz CD of the Month
Bjørn Solli: "Aglow: The Lyngør Project Volume 1" (Lyngør Records LYRE 01)

Rating: ***** (musical performance & sonic quality)

Produced by Bjørn Vidar Solli
Executive Producer: Ronnie laurendz
Recorded on May 13 & 14, 2013 @ Brooklyn Recording (Brooklyn, New York) by Andy Taub, assisted by Don Piper.
Mixed in October 2013 and Mastered in June 2014 @ Point Sonic Sound (Brooklyn, NY) by Michael Perez-Cisneros
Front Cover Photo: Ole Brodersen
Session Photos: Haggai Cohen-Milo
Cover Design: Ingeborg Neuenkirchen Rosenberg

Featuring: Bjørn Vidar Solli (guitar), Seamus Blake (tenor & soprano sax), Ingrid Jensen (trumpet), Aaron Parks (piano), Matt Clohesy (bass) & Bill Stewart (drums)

A top-class guitarist whose warm tone evokes something like "Jim Hall meets Pat Metheny," Solli leads a fantastic group in this perfect album of intriguing original tunes. The opening track, "Windjammer," is a killer post-bop theme, also featuring Seamus Blake on the tenor sax. Ingrid Jensen enters the scene on the third track, the blues "To The Lighthouse," and keeps shinning on the epic ballad "Calenture," the outstanding "Battle of Lyngor" and the lovely ballad "A Dog Named Fanny." The rhythm section is equally impressive, playing in a cohesive and fiery way throughout the album, one of the most interesting and appealing jazz releases of the year.

It all started in 2007 when Bjørn Solli went to visit a friend on an island in the south of Norway. The group of islands is known as Lyngør and the place had a profound effect on the Norwegian guitarist/composer.  Initially it was the sheer beauty of the place that struck him, but he was soon equally enamored with the people.  Solli quickly made many friends on the archipelago and started having annual concerts there, bringing with him musicians from New York, Shanghai and Rome to play on the pier every August. Out of this grew the Lyngør Jazz Club and in 2012 they commisioned Solli to compose music inspired by Lyngør and to record an album. Over the next 15 months, Solli spent frequent retreats on the island and was given an opportunity to assemble a band of amazing musicians.

He had been touring and recording with several of the band members for years and was very familiar with each musician’s sound. Knowing each band member’s unique approach and strengths, allowed Solli to compose specifically for each musician. By giving the band freedom to interpret the music as they wished everyone brought a fresh perspective to the material and made wonderful contributions to the shaping of the tunes. This album is a perfect representation of Bjørn Solli – the musician and the composer – and is his most personal effort to date. It has great variety and offers plenty of swing, contemplative ballads, singable waltzes, South American rhythms, gritty blues and more; all held together by Solli’s acute sense of melody, evocative harmony and passion for groove.

Musician Bios:
Bjørn Solli – guitar – One of Norway’s foremost jazz guitarist for the last 10 years – 5 of those years he spent in New York working with some of the world’s best musicians. He has received numerous awards and has toured around the world in places such as China, Australia, India, Nepal, Vietnam, South-Africa, USA, Russia and most of Europe. Solli has released 4 albums with his organ trio SOLID!, the latest of which features Seamus Blake. www.bjornsolli.no

Seamus Blake – tenor & soprano saxophones – The New York based tenor saxophonist/composer is recognized as one of the finest exponents of contemporary jazz. His music is known for its sophistication, bold improvisations and “sheer swagger”. John Scofield, who hired Seamus for his “Quiet Band,” called him “extraordinary, a total saxophonist.” He was also the winner of the 2002 Thelonious Monk Competition and has released 6 albums on Criss Cross as a leader. www.seamusblake.com

Ingrid Jensen – trumpet (3, 4, 8 & 9) – Ever since her debut recording in 1995, Jensen has been one of the most original voices in jazz trumpet. She has had a busy career leading her own bands and has been nominated for several Juno Awards. Jensen has been a member of the Maria Schneider Jazz Orchestra and performs with an array of top players such as Gary Bartz, Terri Lyne Carrington, Billy Hart, Victor Lewis and Billy Taylor. ) www.ingridjensen.com

Aaron Parks – piano – One of the most gifted and unique pianists on the scene today. Since becoming a member of Terrence Blanchard’s band in his teens, Parks has released his own albums on Blue Note and ECM and toured and recorded with Kurt Rosenwinkel, Joshua Redman and many others. www.aaronparks.com

Matt Clohesy – bass – Born in Australia, Clohesy has been living in New York since 2001 and is one of the city’s busiest and most accomplished bassists. He is a long time member of Seamus Blake’s band and Darcy James Argue’s Secret Society, and has played with such notable bandleaders as Geoffrey Keezer, Kurt Rosenwinkel and Maria Schneider. www.mattclohesy.com

Bill Stewart – drums – Stewart has been one of the most important drummers in jazz for over 25 years. His fantastic musicianship and original concept combined with an amazing groove has led to steady gigs with the likes of Michael Brecker, Joe Lovano, Pat Metheny, John Scofield and a 25-year association with the Larry Goldings Trio.