Neon Jazz Interviews

Welcome to a new edition of the Neon Jazz interview series with  Jazz Vocalist  Zack Foley .. We caught up with him to talk about his new 2024 CD Silent Boomer X done with bassist Frank Wagner and drummer C.J. Everett. He goes all-in on standard repertoire but in a non-standard way, departing from the conventional “crooner” sound and letting his tenor voice play a role traditionally filled by the...

Welcome to a new edition of the Neon Jazz interview series with Veteran  Chicago Jazz Composer  Maxx McGathey .. We caught up with him about his new 2024 CD Imaginary Eyes that stands as his first project with his name on it. Best known for his work with the doom funk band Gramps The Vamp and his original live scores for classic silent films for presenters NPR/WBEZ, The Music Box Theatre, and the...

Welcome to a new edition of the Neon Jazz interview series with  Montreal-based Jazz Composer & Saxophonist  Benjamin Deschamps .. As a leader of the band No Codes, he talked to the show about his new 2024 CD Usual Suspect. On their second album, this instrumental jazz collective continues to push the boundaries of contemporary jazz. The group’s main artistic philosophy is to explore and challenge...

Welcome to a new edition of the Neon Jazz interview series with  Veteran NYC Jazz Keyboardist and Composer  Rachel Z Hakim .. We caught up with this fascinating musician to talk about her new 2024 CD Sensual. It’s an album that embodies the beauty of family, relationship, and the art of experiencing the fullness of life with every sense. It’s a sonic love letter from Rachel Z to her husband and th...

Welcome to a new edition of the Neon Jazz interview series with  Brazilian Jazz Trombonist & Educator  Felipe Brito ..    From his teaching base in Cape Girardeau, MO, we talked to him about his debut and new 2024 CD Don’t Put Off Till Tomorrow, along with a great life in music. As a performer, he has shared the stage with the likes of Branford Marsalis, Joe Lovano, among a plethora of others. His...

Welcome to a new edition of the Neon Jazz interview series with  Swedish Jazz Multi-Instrumentalist  Gunhild Carling  on the 2024 CD Jazz is my Lifestyle ..  We caught up with this creative force while on tour in France to talk about this impressive new release. Replete with her own artwork and originals, it’s another monumental step for this veteran musician always making the world brighter with...

Welcome to a new edition of the Neon Jazz interview series with  Boston-based Jazz Bassist of Buffalo Monroe  Matt Courtney .. We caught up with this veteran and talented journeyman to talk about the new 2024 CD Buffalo Monroe Meets Willie Waldman, his journey in music and the band in general. They are a jazz-fusion band from Boston that formed in 2020. The founding members of the band are multi-i...

Welcome to a new edition of the Neon Jazz interview series with  Toronto-based Jazz Multi-Instrumentalist & Songwriter  Lennox Campbell-Berzins .. We caught up with him to talk about his new & debut 2024 CD "Lullabies for Lenny" and his life in music. This album is a departure from form for the musician as it stands as a jazz guitar album that implements the rare, unique, and widely undiscovered t...

Welcome to a new edition of the Neon Jazz interview series with  Madison, Wisconsin-based Award Winning Jazz Bassist & Composer  John Christensen .. We get into his new 2024 album Soft Rock that stands as his sophomore album. His debut album was the  celebrated 2018 release of Dear Friend. He always supplies an open-hearted solidity and adventurous spirit to all of his music endeavors. While an ar...

Welcome to a new edition of the Neon Jazz interview series with  Jazz Guitarist, Composer & Educator  Philip Weberndoerfer .. We caught up with this rising jazz musician about his new 2024 CD Tides and a live in jazz. Originally from Germany, he has been thriving in the pursuit of music since his early childhood in the countryside of Bavaria. He has been portrayed as a resourceful visionary with a...

Welcome to a new edition of the Neon Jazz interview series with  Kansas City-based Veteran Jazz Singer & Creative  Cynthia van Roden .. She is a talented vocalist, model, and performer who won the Bar Natasha Idol, a local competition for new cabaret talent, and was nominated by KC Jazz Ambassadors as KC's Favorite Vocalist. She has also worked at Hallmark, where she booked talent and voice overs,...

Welcome to a new edition of the Neon Jazz interview series with  Jazz Saxophonist & Composer  Paul Carlon .. We caught up with him about his new 2024 CD Blues for Vita and a quality life in jazz. He grew up in rural central New York and started started playing music in the 4th grade at school. Paul attempted to follow in the footsteps of his older string-playing siblings by taking cello lessons, b...

Welcome to a new edition of the Neon Jazz interview series with  Swedish Jazz Singer, Songwriter and Arranger  Anna-Maria Nordström .. We caught up with her to talk about her new 2024 CD Mod and her life in music. On her debut album, she has invested her heart, it consists of a collection of musical short stories with a variety of musical expressions, some with lyrics and some without. She came ba...

Welcome to a new edition of the Neon Jazz interview series with  Twin Cities-based Jazz Pianist and Composer  Kavyesh Kaviraj .. We caught up with this rising talent to discuss his new 2024 CD Fables out on Shifting Paradigm records. He puts his life and stories into his music, carefully weaving all of his influences into a boundary-breaking modern jazz outfit. This debut album unfolds after a lon...

Welcome to a new edition of the Neon Jazz interview series with Virtuoso Colombian Jazz Pianist, Vocalist & Tutor Jesus Molina .. We caught up with this world-class musician to discuss his new 2024 CD Selah.  This 27-year-old is a one-man force of nature. He is a Berklee College of Music grad and Latin Grammy Cultural Foundation award winner who has already carved out an impressive career. Thi...

Welcome to a new edition of the Neon Jazz interview series with  Veteran Jazz Clarinetist & Composer  Harry Skoler  on the 2024 CD Red Brick Hill  .. The last time we caught up with him was in 2022 and now he has a transformative and cathartic new recording. Things of beauty can come from the release of one’s traumas. He experienced the loss of a friend as a teenager, a passing that deeply impacte...

Welcome to a new edition of the Neon Jazz interview series with  Jazz Artist, Composer, Educator & Cultural Seeder  Jonathan Suazo .. We caught up with this rising jazz star about his new 2024 CD Ricano Live in 2023, surviving COVID, growing up in Puerto Rico and beyond .. This award-winning artist opened up about this album that is a unique Afro Caribbean Jazz concept that blends the sounds of Pu...

Welcome to a new edition of the Neon Jazz interview series with  NYC-based Jazz  Bassist, Composer & Band Leader  Clovis Nicolas .. We caught up with this busy musician to talk about a host of projects, like his new 2024 CD Contrapunturist, getting through COVID, his life in jazz and so much more.  Born on the Ivory Coast and raised in France, he decided to be a professional musician after pursuin...

Welcome to a new edition of the Neon Jazz interview series with  Jazz Harmonica Player  Yvonnick Prene  on the 2024 album Jobim’s World  .. Originally from France and based in New York City area for over 15 years, he is again releasing another album of growth and reverence. On his 6th album with Sunnyside Records, his material is based around the music of Antonio Carlos Jobim and features Geoffrey...

Welcome to a new edition of the Neon Jazz Interview Series .. On this episode, we talk with  ansas City-based Jazz Guitarist/Singer Rick Mareske and Bassist John Miles  ..  We caught up with this veteran KC duo to talk about their latest 2024 release called A Stroll in the Park. We took time out to get into this new album, their history in Kansas City, what is going in in their live music lives an...

Welcome to a new edition of the Neon Jazz interview series with Grammy®-nominated Composer & Educator Tom Nazziola on the new 2024 album Reflections on Love .. For many years, Tom has been infatuated with the reharmonization of standards thanks to his beloved teacher, Ray Cassarino. As a tribute to him, as well as a chance to express himself in a different way compositionally, he reharmonized elev...

Welcome to a new edition of the Neon Jazz interview series with  Veteran Jazz Saxophonist, Arranger & Educator  Leigh Pilzer .. We caught up with her to talk about the new 2024 CD Beating the Odds, getting through COVID, living jazz and beyond. This Washington, DC native and veteran artist has been around the best like the Smithsonian Jazz Masterworks Orchestra, The DIVA Jazz Orchestra, the Bohemi...

Welcome to a new edition of the Neon Jazz Interview series .. On this episode, we talk with  Veteran Los Angeles Jazz Pianist  Chad Edwards .. We caught up with him about his new 2024 CD Wyoming Roads and a divine world he has had in the jazz arts. He has been active in the LA area jazz scene for over four decades, performing in a wide range of musical settings. While studying at Princeton Univers...

Welcome to a new edition of the Neon Jazz interview series with  Brooklyn-based Jazz Drummer, Musician & Producer  Layton Weedeman  of Yellow Couch Music  .. We caught up with him about his latest project Somewhere Along The Lines highlighting a groovy, chill and full of color product done with a handful of skilled musicians listening deeply and communicating openly. At its core, Yellow Couch Musi...

Welcome to a new edition of the Neon Jazz interview series with Chicago-based Smooth Jazz Guitarist & Vocalist Michael Ross. Looking at Michael’s work with Award-Winning Jazz Songwriter Scott Fivelson, we get into a few songs that he constructed and storied Chicago Musician Michael Ross has had success with. The songs are “Secret Entrance to Your Heart” and “No Hugs for You”. Scott has produced an...