Neon Jazz Interviews

Welcome to a new edition of the Neon Jazz interview series with  Grammy Award Winning Vocalist  Janis Siegel and  Acclaimed Pianist/Musical Director  Yaron Gershovsky ..  We caught up with this duo to discuss the  new 2024 CD The Colors of My Life – A Cy Coleman Songbook, their final show with the Manhattan Transfer, live shows and so much more about their decorated lives in music.  When The Manha...

Welcome to a new edition of the Neon Jazz interview series with  Acclaimed Jazz Violinist & Composer  Jenny Scheinman .. We caught up with this decorated and veteran musician about her first album in seven years .. the new 2024 CD All Species Parade .. For years, she nursed the idea of a musical homage to Humboldt County, California .. in particular the area known as the Lost Coast, a remote, eart...

Welcome to a new edition of the Neon Jazz interview series with  Chicago-born, NYC-based Jazz Vocal Sensation  Julia Danielle .. We caught up with this rising star on her new 2024 CD Self Titled Debut Album and her life in jazz. It is full of original arrangements of cherished jazz standards. As the 2022 International Ella Fitzgerald Jazz Vocal Competition Winner, Julia got to perform alongside Th...

Welcome to a new edition of the Neon Jazz interview series with  Jazz Bassist, Guitarist, Composer, Producer & Bandleader  Jay Sanders .. We talked to him about his new 2024 CD Evanescent and his life in music. Based in Asheville, N.C., his music is characterized by an effortless ability to fuse jazz, rock, blues, metal, and African influences with years of improvisational study and training. His...

Welcome to a new edition of the Neon Jazz interview series with  LA-based Veteran Jazz Keyboardist  Lao Tizer .. We caught up with him to talk about his new 2024 CD Amplify and his colorful world of music. He is Colorado-bred and embodies what it means to be a 21st-century musician inhabiting the jazz sphere - that being one who embraces musical diversity and has no fear of crossing boundaries. He...

Welcome to a new edition of the Neon Jazz interview series with  Toronto-based Jazz Vocalist & Actress  Amanda Martinez .. We caught up with this very busy creative about her new 2024 CD  Recuerdo and a busy life as both a musician and actress.  Described by World Music Central as "one of the great new voices in Spanish language Latin music," she has been embraced by audiences all over the world....

Welcome to a new edition of the Neon Jazz interview series with  Brooklyn-Berlin-based Jazz Drummer & Composer  Devin Gray  on the 2024 Album Melt All the Guns II  .. Featuring special guests like Ralph Alessi on trumpet and & & Myslaure Augustin on piano, we talk at length about this new batch of politically leaning songs arriving at a time where global democracy is on the line. He expresses his...

Welcome to a new edition of the Neon Jazz interview series with  Veteran & Acclaimed LA-Based Jazz Composer & Musician  Woody Jackson .. We caught up with him to discuss his new 2024 CD Cowboy Yoga at length. We also got into his beginnings on the East Coast and how he came to LA. It’s done in a two-part interview series. Known well for being the acclaimed composer behind the soundtracks for Rocks...

Welcome to a new edition of the Neon Jazz interview series with  Veteran New York Jazz Pianist & Composer  Jon Gold .. We caught up with this esteemed pianist about his new 2024 album Guanbara Eyes and a good life lived in the jazz world. This album showcases his wide-ranging and genre-bending compositional talents in formats ranging from solo piano to full bands with complete string orchestras. ...

Welcome to a new edition of the Neon Jazz interview series with  UK-based Jazz Pianist  Phil Merriman .. We caught up with him to talk about his new 2024 Trio CD called The Roots Beneath and a good life in music. With a foundation grounded in classical technique, he studied jazz piano with John Taylor, steering his focus towards improvisation. Through this experience, he has developed a distinctiv...

Welcome to a new edition of the Neon Jazz interview series with  Celebrated Jazz Trombonist  John Fedchock  on the new 2024 Live Album and November 2024 Kansas City Visit  .. Over an illustrious career in jazz that has spanned over four decades, the influence of legend J.J. Johnson has been huge. On his latest 2024 release called Justifiably J.J.,  he recorded a centennial tribute live in Indianap...

Welcome to a new edition of the Neon Jazz interview series with  Grammy Winning Legendary Drummer & Author  John ‘JR’ Robinson .. We caught up with this drum titan to talk about his new 2024 Book King of the Groove. Celebrating 50 years of making music, he is bringing his incredibly diverse career to light with his first book. It includes a foreword written by the legendary Quincy Jones. Over the...

Welcome to a new edition of the Neon Jazz interview series with  NYC-based Jazz Guitarist and Composer  Brad Shepik .. We talked about his new 2024 CD "Human Activity: Dream of the Possible.“ On his ninth album as a leader, it stands as a ten-movement meditation on the climate challenges we face, seeking to inspire action for a sustainable future. He has previously recorded eight albums as a leade...

Welcome to a new edition of the Neon Jazz interview series with Hartford-based  Jazz Pianist  Andrew Wilcox .. We caught up with this talent to talk about his debut and new 2024 CD Dear Dr. Hill. This album is in honor of the legendary Andrew Hill. The album as a whole is a missive from Wilcox to the many mentors and influences that have guided him along his path. Originally from Boylston, MA, he...

Welcome to a new edition of the Neon Jazz interview series with  Veteran Jazz Pianist  Orrin Evans  on the 2024 album Walk A Mile in my Shoe with The Captain Black Big Band  .. The fifth release from this twice Grammy-nominated outfit is a reference to a malformation of the left foot that Orin has lived with from birth. Along with the big band, he has a host of special guests like Lisa Fischer and...

Welcome to a new edition of the Neon Jazz interview series with  Veteran Milwaukee-based Jazz Vocalist  Marcya Daneille .. Her career embodies the rich tradition and vibrant innovation of jazz music. With her eclectic background and extensive performance history, her journey in jazz is a testament to the genre's enduring appeal and continual evolution. Born in Germany and seasoned in vibrant cultu...

Welcome to a new edition of the Neon Jazz interview series with UK-based  Rising Star Jazz Vocalist  Helena Debono and  Composer/Arranger  Charlie Bates .. We caught up with this duo to discuss their new 2024 CD A Thousand Nights, their artistic union and much more. Today, they are two of the UK’s most exciting young performers and rising stars in the world of jazz have joined forces to create  th...

Welcome to a new edition of the Neon Jazz interview series with  Kansas City-based Jazz Bassist  Spencer Reeve  .. We caught up with this young, aspiring and hungry player on the thriving Kansas City jazz scene. By way of Fresno, California, he came to the University of Kansas to learn under the veteran sage player Matt Otto. These days, he is playing jazz and more multiple nights each week in the...

Welcome to a new edition of the Neon Jazz interview series with  Veteran Jazz Pianist, Composer & Educator  Michael Jefry Stevens .. We caught up with him about his new 2024 CD Solo Piano CD The Peacocks and quite a life lived in the jazz world. Over the past 40 years, he has been associated with some of the most important figures in modern jazz. Beginning with his first CD release in 1991 as a me...

Welcome to a new edition of the Neon Jazz interview series with  Veteran Jazz Vocalist, Pianist & Educator  Suzanne Pittson .. We talked with this prolific and accomplished artist about her new 2024 CD Emerge Dancing and a great life in jazz. These days she is living in New York and grew up in a musical family, She began piano studies at age 8. She subsequently earned a Bachelor of Music and Maste...

Welcome to a new edition of the Neon Jazz interview series with  New Orleans-based Jazz Bassist, Composer & Educator  Jake Noble .. We talked to him about his new and debut 2024 CD Letting Go of a Dream and his world of music. He is well known as both a bandleader and in-demand sideman. This new project was initially conceived as a platform to honor his greatest musical influences: Bill Evans, Cha...

Welcome to a new edition of the Neon Jazz interview series with  Veteran Jazz Singer  Allyson Briggs .. We caught up with her to talk about the new 2024 CD Promises, Prayers, And Raindrops Allyson Briggs Sings Burt Bacharach. This Fleur Seule Founder has been a dynamic bandleader and business woman in Manhattan for over a decade. In addition to leading her own band, she has been on hundreds of pub...

Welcome to a new edition of the Neon Jazz interview series with  Jazz Bassist & Composer  Matt Booth .. From his base in North Carolina, we got into his new 2024 CD Sun Prints. This is his first album of all original music that is freewheeling and varied, but stays true to the contemporary jazz tradition. As a prominent performer on the New Orleans jazz scene, he found a great deal of success both...

Welcome to a new edition of the Neon Jazz interview series with  Palestinian Oud Player  Abdul-Wahab Kayyali AKA Abboud .. He opened up about the new release called Towards the Light from an adventurous group of Montreal-based musicians called Les Arrivants. They are all from Iran, Lebanon/Jordan, and Argentina, and you'll hear those places in their music. This band of new immigrants to Canada exp...

Welcome to a new edition of the Neon Jazz interview series with  Grammy Recognized Jazz Singer  Tianna Hall .. We got into her new 2024 CD The Vintage Jukebox and a great life in the jazz. This vocal powerhouse based in Houston, Texas has had a very colorful career. She is a distinguished alumna of the University of Houston and has been going solid every since. Dig this story. For More Neon Jazz I...