Neon Jazz Interviews

Welcome to a new edition of the Neon Jazz interview series with  Jazz Virtuoso Viola/Violin Player  Jimbo Ross .. We caught up with him about his long awaited first album as a leader in the 2024 album Jazz Passion & Satin Latin. He returns to his jazz roots with a cast of veteran musicians. He has spent years playing and recording with many of the greats in the industry as a session player and sol...

Welcome to a new edition of the Neon Jazz interview series with  Acclaimed UK-based Jazz Vocalist, Songwriter & Actress  Jacqui Dankworth .. We caught up with her to talk to her about her 2024 album  Windmills , along with a charmed life in the arts. This powerful new album features Memphis-born pianist Charlie Wood’s arrangements for her trio as well as the BBC Big Band, the Carducci String Quart...

Welcome to a new edition of the Neon Jazz interview series with  Veteran Jazz Keyboardist & Composer on the New 2024 Album Unity  Dan Siegel .. We get into his 23rd release as a leader in the new 2024 project Unity. He always covers a broad swath of the jazz spectrum over the course of his four-and-a-half decade career, from straight ahead swing to sleek contemporary sounds. This new album   reuni...

Welcome to a new edition of the Neon Jazz interview series with Guitarist Ryan T. Bailey & Drummer Luis Briones of the LA-based Jazz Band King Llama .. We primarily talked to them about the release of their newest album Fata Implexis. This prog/fusion band specializes in genre-bending, elastic compositions. This project is produced by multi-platinum and GRAMMY-Award winning producer/engineer Denni...

Welcome to a new edition of the Neon Jazz interview series with  French Jazz Drummer, Producer & Composer  Antoine Cara .. We caught up with him from New York City to talk about his new 2024 CD Status Quo, coming to America to further his jazz vernacular and so much more. This new project provides a close and vibrant look at him as player, writer and leader. It brings in heavy cats like guitarist...

Welcome to a new edition of the Neon Jazz interview series with  London-based, New Zealand Jazz Pianist & Composer  John-Paul Muir .. We talked to him about his new 2024 CD Home Now, a good life in music and bounding between homes in London and New Zealand. He is a gifted and highly recognized player across both classical and jazz disciplines. He won First Prize at the Kerikeri International Piano...

Welcome to a new edition of the Neon Jazz interview series with Italy-born, NYC-based  Jazz Bassist & Composer  Giuseppe Cucchiara .. We caught up with him to talk about his new 2024 CD Music for your Soul, roots in Sicily, NYC dreams and much more. He grew up among countless jazz vinyls and varied musical influences from an early age. His father, who happens to be a classical upright bass player,...

Welcome to a new edition of the Neon Jazz interview series with  Jazz Singer/Songwriter, Composer, Playwright and Actor  Marie-Claire Giraud .. We caught up with her about new music that includes a cover of Duke Ellington’s standard Caravan on Plaid Dog Recordings, along with an esteemed life in jazz. Born on the island of Dominica and raised in The Bronx. She started her operatic training in Rome...

Welcome to a new edition of the Neon Jazz interview series with  Kansas City-based Jazz Saxophonist & Educator  Matt Otto  on the 2024 CD The Landscape Listens  .. Recorded in Portugal, this new album features Matt on tenor alongside  Xose  ZOH- SAY Miguélez on tenor and Abe - AHHHH BAY- Rábade on the piano. It showcases a collaboration between three renowned musicians bringing about a musical lan...

Welcome to a new edition of the Neon Jazz interview series with  Veteran KC-based Jazz Trumpeter & Flugelhorn Man  Stan Kessler   on the 2024 Album Two's Company  .. We caught up with a now legendary player, educator and collaborator on the vibrant Kansas City scene. The album features three generations of pianists in Joe Cartwright, Brant Jester, Andrew Ouellette, Brian Ward, Roger Wilder & Charl...

Welcome to a new edition of the Neon Jazz interview series with Veteran  Journeyman Saxophonist & Composer  Stan Harrison .. We caught up with him fresh of the road to talk about his new 2024 CD Some Poor Soul Has a Fire and a gloriously good and luck filled life in music. Born in Philadelphia, raised in New Jersey, and a resident of New York City for the last few decades, has traveled the globe p...

Welcome to a new edition of the Neon Jazz interview series with  Brooklyn-based Jazz Guitarist and Composer  Nico Moreno .. We talked to this native of Columbia about his new 2024 CD Cornerstone, a life in jazz, coming to America and so much more. This new project captures his journey of finding meaning in NYC as it explores modern jazz guitar, blending Latin American sounds and pop-rock elements...

Welcome to a new edition of the Neon Jazz interview series with  Veteran Jazz Tuba Player  Jim Self & Seasoned Guitarist John Chiodini  on the 2024 Album  Feels So Good .. Even through Jim recently retired from his teaching position at the University of Southern California after nearly 50 years, he has not slowed down at all. We caught up with him and Jon to talk about this 23rd album of Jim’s as...

Welcome to a new edition of the Neon Jazz interview series with  Veteran Jazz Vocalist  Tania Grubbs .. She opened up about her new 2024 CD The Sound of Love, surviving the pandemic, her career and much more. On this new album, she crafts stories out of well-chosen songs with love and care as she lets the listener feel the spirit of her music. Her voice is an integral instrument in a quintet of eq...

Welcome to a new edition of the Neon Jazz interview series with  Toronto-based Jazz Guitarist  Dan Pitt  on the 2024 album Horizontal Depths  .. We caught up with this busy musician to talk about his new Quintet release  that stands as a solid  follow-up to the band's 2021 album  Wrongs . This project weaves together elements of avant rock and chamber music into a foundations that spans various ex...

Welcome to a new edition of the Neon Jazz interview series with  Jazz Pianist  Richard Pellegrin  on the 2024 Album Topography  .. His new album done with saxophonist Neil Welch on Slow & Steady Records features a collection of compositions and improvisations directly inspired by the landscapes of the American West – especially Whidbey Island, located just north of Seattle, WA. Reflecting “an urge...

Welcome to a new edition of the Neon Jazz interview series with  Percussionist, Educator & Foundation Executive Director of the CNY Jazz Central Orchestra  Larry Luttinger .. We caught up with him to talk about the new 2024 CD If a White Horse from Jerusalem featuring NEA Jazz Master Dave Liebman, the history of the orchestra and his life in music. He has been part of the Syracuse Symphony Orchest...

Welcome to a new edition of the Neon Jazz interview series with U kraine-based Jazz Saxophonist & Composer  Carlo Muscat  on the 2024 Album The Body is Only Light  .. We caught up with this talent to discuss his latest project billed as a testament to the country’s unyielding spirit amidst an invasion. Set against a nation grappling with the harsh realities of war, each track reveals a specific em...

Welcome to a new edition of the Neon Jazz interview series with  Jazz  Violinist & Composer Jeremy Gignoux .. We caught up with him from his base in Canada to talk about his group Calgaréal and their  new 2024 CD Vanishing Points. The band is a  dynamic new Canadian cross-country collective creating wonderful music. It’s the band’s first full album and we cover the history of their union, as well....

Welcome to a new edition of the Neon Jazz interview series with  Acclaimed Bebop Saxophonist  Eric Alexander & Jazz Producer at Flushing Town Hall Clyde Bullard .. We caught up with them to talk about the November 22, 2024 show and recent projects, along with a host of surprises along the way. Flushing Town Hall recently launched an interactive Queens Jazz Trail Map highlighting the homes of the j...

Welcome to a new edition of the Neon Jazz interview series with  Montreal & New York-based Cellist  Sahara von Hattenberger .. We caught up with her about her new 2024 CD 1Q84 and her life in music. Fans of Japanese literature may recognize the title of the new album as having been borrowed from acclaimed author Haruki Murakami’s most famous fantasy novel,  1Q84 . The story begins in 1984 and foll...

Welcome to a new edition of the Neon Jazz interview series with  Italy-born, Ottawa University-based Jazz Guitarist  Gennaro Caggiano .. We caught him performing at the Voo Lounge in downtown Kansas City as a part of a jazz futures show sponsored by the Kansas City Jazz Ambassadors. Subsequently, we caught up with him and found out his fascinating story. From his beginnings on the piano in the old...

Welcome to a new edition of the Neon Jazz interview series with  Jazz Vocalist & Educator  Melinda Rose & Pianist Frenchy Romero .. We caught up with this duo about their new 2024 CD I’m on My Way. They met when there were teenagers and Miami was their fertile stomping ground. WE get into their friendship, music union, the new album and the future ahead. It’s a great story. More on Melinda & Frenc...

Welcome to a new edition of the Neon Jazz interview series with  Jazz Percussionist of Sandbox Percussion   Victor Caccese .. We talked about the GRAMMY®-nominated ensemble  Sandbox Percussion  and their union with the Tyshawn Sorey Trio collaborating on a special Max Roach tribute, performed live. Together, the two groups will explore the extraordinary legacy of jazz pioneer Max Roach, who was bo...

Welcome to a new edition of the Neon Jazz interview series with Veteran Jazz Singer/Songwriter Eugenie Jones As She Unveils a New 2025 Release .. It has been 9 years since we first interviewed at Neon Jazz and much has happened since then. We get into her new 2025 Upcoming CD “Eugenie”. It is a groove-infused journey into passion, betrayal and revenge out on January 20, 2025. We cover her life the...