The great Montreal bandleader Vic Vogel calls in sick for his farewell gig. Paul Wells looks back on a legendary career.
Tag Archives: jazz
What we forget about Ornette Coleman
A certain place, and a certain moment, helped create Ornette Coleman. Jazz musicians, and fans, should remember that.
Laila Biali gets personal
Pianist, singer and songwriter Laila Biali on life, death and starting over
The Interview: Diana Krall
Jazz singer and pianist Diana Krall on touring with her kids, paying to see Oscar Peterson and her late father’s legacy
Lady Gaga and Tony Bennett aim for a jazz revival
Can a new ally and a new genre end Lady Gaga’s slump?
Branford Marsalis times two
Paul Wells interviews the jazz and classical saxophonist about his two musical worlds
Keith Jarrett, happy
Paul Wells catches the great pianist on a good night
Music: Obscure notes on the undeath of jazz
The little bio on this blog claims I write occasionally about jazz. This is very close to never true any more. I have almost stopped attending live jazz concerts over the past decade. Most of the music I listen to these days is classical, and while I do still listen to jazz, very little of it is recently recorded. After covering the Montreal International Jazz Festival 17 years in a row, I paused for logistical reasons in 2006 (I was writing a book) and have essentially never bothered to return. This is not because I’m angry at that festival for programming music that isn’t jazz; it’s that I was starting to feel that too many of the jazz musicians were wasting audiences’ time.
Steppin’ out with Tony Bennett
Tony Bennett, 85, sings with Amy Winehouse and Lady Gaga on his new CD, and has taken up sculpting. Try to keep up.
Big band sound with an Indie feel
Vancouver-born Darcy James Argue’s Secret Society is turning heads in the jazz world