Everyone wants to impress their friends on an instrument. Thanks to New Orleans jazz pianist Jon Batiste, you can learn the basics of piano in 9 Easy Steps. After following these instructions, you too can play like the award-winning Stay Human bandlander. Topics discussed include: how to care for your your piano, theory basics, and jazz harmony. Jon Batiste Teaches You How to Play Piano
Browsing: Mainstream Jazz
In this absolutely fire video, Joshua Redman and James Carter throw almost every saxophone technique possible at the Thelonius Monk standard “Straight, No Chaser.” From the highest altissimo notes imaginable to growling at the deepest, bluesiest ranges of the horn, the two former young lions of jazz go at each other shot for shot in an enthralling improvisation battle. On an extend band break, the two jab at each, laugh at each other, growl at each other, honk at each other all with saxophones to create one of the highest energy jazz performances on Youtube. Joshua Redman, James Carter –…
+ This Day in Music: George Gershwin died this day in 1937. + The 37th edition of the Festival International de Jazz de Montréal was a resounding success for all involved, read the festival summary here. + A benefit concert for Black Lives Matter on Wednesday in New York City is tragically timely in light of recent events. + Angèle Dubeau & La Pietà’s albums have now been streamed more than 30 million times across more than 100 countries. + Read Kiersten van Vliet’s review of Gershwin arrangements for solo piano by British composer Michael Finnissy, played by Dirk Herten. “Finnissy, who celebrated…
George Gershwin’s songs are so ubiquitous that it is hard to imagine an experience of his work untouched by adaptations, whether in film or in the concert hall. This set of 13 tunes was transcribed by English composer Michael Finnissy over the same number of years, between 1975 and 1988. Finnissy is perhaps best known for his transcriptions, from his English Country Tunes (1982–85) to his completion of Mozart’s Requiem (2013). Finnissy, who celebrated his 70th birthday earlier this year, hailed Dirk Herten’s performance as “thoughtful, sensitive, [and] delicately-shaded,” while praising his refined touch. He continued, “I feel like a…
Montreal, Saturday, 9 July 2016 – When it comes to musical pleasure, nothing delivered like this 37th edition of the Festival International de Jazz de Montréal, presented by TD in collaboration with Rio Tinto! For 11 days and nights, from June 29 to July 9, 2016, jazz unfolded in all its sounds, shapes and styles… a Festival of effervescence and serenity, full of raw, passionate, challenging, inspiring, impressive musical moments! With a program this eclectic and packed with options, with young newcomers and veterans, Montréalers welcoming tourists, and fans of jazz, electronica, blues, hip-hop, etc. rubbing shoulders under the stars of our…
Gershwin, one of the main catalysts for jazz to become America’s music, was a composer and pianist who bridged popular and classical modes. His prolific compositions are now considered jazz and pop standards, most notably the “rhythm changes” in his tune “I got Rhythm” that would become a seminal chord sequence for bebop development. Notable works include An American in Paris, Porgy and Bess, and Rhapsody in Blue. Ella Fitzgerald – “Summertime”
+ Canadian violinist and winner of the OSM’s Manulife Competition in 2004, Nikki Chooi has been named the new concertmaster of the Metropolitan Opera. + China’s Cultural Revolution made listening to Beethoven a political crime, but half a century later, the relationship between Chinese people and western classical music has evolved in unpredictable ways. “When it comes to ways of listening, the Chinese have long been open to other cultures and to change – not in a revolutionary way, but through a process that builds on its long musical tradition.” + Video of the Day: Lullabies with Alessio Bax on…
+ Cleveland Classical talks with guitarist Denis Azabagić about winning prizes, his wife and duo partner flautist Eugenia Moliner, and practice philosophy. “I remember when I came to the U.S. more than a decade ago. I opened the yellow pages and found an ad that said, ‘Learn to play the piano without practice.’ I thought, who in the world could put out such an ad? I mean how can you lie like that — because that’s impossible. We would all like to get our things in life the easy way, but music is something that certainly doesn’t happen like that.…
On July 6th 1937, Benny Goodman recorded New Orleans swing standard “Sing, Sing, Sing” in Hollywood with his band. Goodman would go on to make this song an anthem of sorts for the Big Band and Swing era. His famous quote goes “‘Sing, Sing, Sing’ (which we started doing back at the Palomar on our second trip there in 1936) was a big thing, and no one-nighter was complete without it.” Benny Goodman – “Sing, Sing, Sing”
In light of the ongoing Montreal Jazz Festival, here’s a wonderful live performance of the pianist Bobby Timmons’s “Dat Dere” by Art Blakey and the Jazz Messengers. Wayne Shorter on tenor saxophone offers a virtuosic solo spanning the whole instrument’s range and tone palate; Lee Morgan on the trumpet slurs poignant licks; and Timmons brings his usual hard-grooving, crunchy block chords. Add in legendary Jymie Merritt on bass and, of course, Art Blakey on drums and you have a superteam that colours beyond the bounds of the hard bop classic’s lines before the idea of superteams came to be. Art…

