The Jazz Session

There’s a new anthology of the work of guitarist Steve Tibbetts called Hellbound Train . In this interview, Steve talks about putting together that anthology; how world travel has shaped his life and music; the importance of percussion to the music he writes and plays; and more. PATREON Become a Patreon supporter for $5 a month to get a monthly bonus show called This I Dig Of You, on which t...

Ernesto Cervini’s new album, Joy , was inspired by Louise Penny’s detective series about Chief Inspector Gamache. That series has now been made into the show Three Pines . In this interview, Ernesto talks about how the books inspired the music; why he decided to work with vocalists for the first time; composing music based on novels given that some listeners won’t have read them;...

Vocalist Claudia Acuña returns to talk about her album Duo (Ropeadope Records, 2022). In this interview, Claudia discusses the long road to an album of duets; singing music in Spanish for English-speaking audiences; collaborating as a vocalist with instruments that don’t play chords; the influence of Chick Corea; and more. CREDITS Theme Music: The Respect Sextet ( respectsextet.com ) Logo: S...

Drummer Terri Lyne Carrington recently released two albums, two books, and she’s curating an exhibit at Detroit’s Carr Center. In this interview, we talk about her Jazz Without Patriarchy project; New Standards , a book and album featuring jazz tunes by women; her live album with Wayne Shorter and Esperanza Spalding; and the many-layered exhibit she’s overseeing. New Standards Vo...

This episode is sponsored by the TD James Moody Jazz Festival at the New Jersey Performing Arts Center. The festival runs from November 8 through 20 and features a who’s who of talent from the jazz world and beyond. Performers include Fantasia with Jazzmeia Horn; Dee Dee Bridgewater singing with tap dancer Savion Glover; the Jon Faddis Quartet; Yellowjackets; Terence Blanchard with E-Collective an...

Trumpeter Michael Sarian ‘s new album is called Living At The End Of The World . In this interview, Sarian talks about the stories behind many of the tracks; how he figures out which tunes to put on an album; working with Camila Meza; discovering Meshell Ndegeocello; and much more. Patreon supporters also get the premiere episode of This I Dig Of You , on which this month’s guest talks...

This episode is a tribute to trumpeter jaimie branch via a collection of voice messages left by friends, collaborators and fans, plus selections of jaimie’s music. This episode also marks the return of Jason Crane as the host of The Jazz Session in its new monthly format. Please support The Jazz Session by becoming a member at https://thejazzsession.com/join .

Aaron Staebell and Patrick McCurry join Jason Crane to talk about how they measure artistic success. How many people need to listen to or attend something for it to be worth doing? Hear the entire episode by becoming a Patreon supporter at https://patreon.com/thejazzsession .

Aaron Staebell, Patrick McCurry and Jason Crane take you through a nine-track playlist you can put on if you’re in the car with folks who might not think they’re into jazz. You can also listen to the playlists directly on Apple Music and Spotify .

Jason Crane (various locations), Patrick McCurry (Auburn, AL) and Aaron Staebell (Rochester, NY) talk about how they stay connected to jazz despite not living in New York City. You can hear the full episode by supporting The Jazz Session for just $5 a month at https://patreon.com/thejazzsession.

Mackenzie Horne recommends surprising albums by Bill Evans, Abdullah Ibrahim and Kenny Wheeler, plus we talk about how she got into jazz and found it unexpectedly becoming both her work and her passion. This is a teaser version. The full episode is available, along with many other bonus shows, at patreon.com/thejazzsession .

There was one last Track Of The Week left in the hopper from Nicky’s tenure with the show, so I thought I’d send it out to everyone as a little appetizer before the show returns in full in September with new bonus features. The artist is George Cotsirilos and the track is “Igualmente” from George’s album Refuge (OA2 Records). Enjoy! Remember: You can get exclusive bon...

The first summer bonus episode of The Jazz Session is here! Returning host Jason Crane is joined by Patrick McCurry and Aaron Staebell to recommend one mix and two albums to add to your summer listening pile. To hear this episode (and past and future bonus episodes) become a member today for $5 a month at https://thejazzsession.com/join . Thanks!

A brief farewell and a special announcement from The Jazz Session’s host and producer, Nicky Schrire, as the podcast’s 14th Season comes to an end.

Sebastian Scotney is the editor and founder of London Jazz News , an online site that publishes a daily ?ow of news, previews, reviews and interviews. The archive of published articles now stands at over 8,000 pieces, and the publication involves a substantial team of contributors. Seb is also a freelance writer who has penned reviews for the Artsdesk, liner notes for artists like Lars Danielson,...

New York Voices are a jazz vocal quartet comprising four of my favourite musicians and people-Darmon Meader, Lauren Kinhan, Kim Nazarian, and Peter Eldridge. They’ve been described as “the gold standard for jazz vocals”, “timeless”, and “masters of their art.” They recently celebrated their 34th birthday and seem to go from strength to strength. Collaborations with Bob Mintzer, and the WDR Big Ban...

I get slightly dizzy thinking about trumpeter Dave Douglas’ creative output. He is a performer, a recording artist whose release record is prolific, an educator (including a ten-year stint as artistic director of the Workshop in Jazz and Creative Music at The Banff Centre in Canada), and a pioneer of artist-run labels with Greenleaf Music which is nearly 20 years old. His musical collaborations ar...

In honour of Mother’s Day, which occurred on 8 May, I am delighted to have gathered eight jazz musicians who also all happen to be mothers. These mums are of varying nationalities and at the top of their creative games. Laila Biali (Canada), Sarah Elizabeth Charles (USA), Christine Jensen (Canada), Lina Nyberg (Sweden), Linda May Han Oh (Australia), Tomoko Omura (Japan), Zoe Rahman (UK), and Sara...

Oded Lev-Ari is the co-owner and director of Anzic Records, a label he has run for the past decade alongside clarinetist Anat Cohen. The label describes itself as “a New York City based recording label specialising in good music” and has released albums by artists including Anat, the vocal trio Duchess, the trumpeter Avishai Cohen, Joel Frahm and Ernesto Cervini. As well as helming Anzic Records,...

Saxophonist and songwriter Matthew Herd hails from Scotland but lives in London where he leads the band Seafarers. Featuring some of the finest UK-based jazz musicians, like vocalist Lauren Kinsella and drummer Dave Hamblett, the group just released their second album, aptly titled “II”. Recorded at Peter Gabriel’s Real World Studios, it builds on the groups first album that combined contemporary...

Nikki Iles is a pianist, a professor of jazz at the Royal Academy of Music and the Guildhall School of Music & Drama in London, and a composer. In some ways, I think of her as a British jazz gem, but that would do a disservice to the fact that she’s very much loved in other jazz communities around the globe. Her musical work in the UK has seen her become a leading figure in the British jazz tr...

SFrench soprano saxophonist Emile Parisien danced onto my radar when I saw him perform in duo with accordionist Vincent Peirani at the 2014 Berlin Jazz Festival. He was virtuosic, superbly musical, and, most importantly, gave me a newfound appreciation for the soprano saxophone. He has been recording as sideman and leader for the Munich-based ACT label for ten years and his latest album “Louise” i...

South African writer, teacher, media consultant and creative industries researcher Gwen Ansell is a former Louis Armstrong Visiting Professor at the Center for Jazz Studies, Columbia University, and the author of Soweto Blues: Jazz, Politics and Popular Music in South Africa and the textbook Introduction to Journalism. She is also the person to whom I defer whenever asked about anything relating t...

Tierney Sutton is a Los Angeles and Paris-based vocalist with a sensational career under her belt-and music more to come, I might add. She has released fourteen albums, nine of which have been nominated for Grammy Awards for Best Jazz Vocal Album. Her fifteenth album comes out on 6 May 2022 and is called “Paris Sessions II”. Like the first volume, it features guitarist Serge Merlaud and bassist Ke...

I want to preface this interview by saying that I don’t care much for the hype machine or popular opinion and am led, predominantly, by my interest in an artist and the question of whether or not I enjoy their music. Such was the case when a publicist contacted me about one of their artists-a capable musician with a pretty banal musical approach. I explained to the publicist the kind of music I en...