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John Blake
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John Blake, Jr. has been one of the world’s leading jazz violinists for over four decades. A four-time winner of the Down Beat Critics’ Poll Violinist Deserving Wider Recognition category he was also one of the top two jazz violinists in the 49th, 50th, and 51st Down Beat Readers’ Poll, Classically trained, Blake first gained recognition on early-'70s recordings he made with Archie Shepp and in the mid-70s became established with a global audience during three years recording and touring as a member of Grover Washington, Jr.’s popular “crossover” jazz band. He then spent five years working extensively as a member of various ensembles led by pianist McCoy
Jenny Scheinman Brings the Experience of Awe
by Dean Nardi
Play your violin for us like that wild, joyful hippie girl. You who look as if you might have come from the steppes of Russia instead of the Lost Coast, a remote region of northern California prone to earthquakes and mudslides. You who galloped into school on a snorting mare, its hair used to string the ...
Sara Caswell: The Way To You
by Angelo Leonardi
Formalmente il precedente album da leader di Sara Caswell risale al 2005 (But Beautiful, Arbors) ma questa nuova incisione a suo nome non è il ritorno dopo una lunga pausa. Ci sono infatti le quattro incisioni --dal 2013 al 202-col trio cooperativo 9 Horses e la leadership condivisa con la sorella Rachel del 2014 (Alive in ...
Johnathan Blake: Passage
by Dave Linn
The drummer Johnathan Blake was born in Philadelphia in 1976. His father was the esteemed jazz violinist and educator John Blake Jr. who played in many diverse settings, (most notably Archie Shepp and McCoy Tyner), before releasing seven albums under his name. He died in 2014. Blake (the son) began studying music at a young age, ...
Paula West and the Art of Making Art
by Mathew Bahl
Jazz singing is like a horse race. To the casual eye, all the horses in the stall look the same. But they aren't. Some have more talent. Some are better trained. Some have better jockeys. Some are more exciting to watch. But no matter what we see or don't see, what the odds might be, or ...
Jean-Luc Ponty: Imaginary Voyages, Part 1
by Peter Rubie
Part 1 | Part 2 Jazz is an art form that has been a singular hothouse of musical talent over the decades. There are, and have been, lots of not just great but brilliant players. But perhaps not unsurprisingly, there have been far fewer jazz originals. I mean by that, musicians whose playing has ...
Fit As A Fiddle: How the Violin Helped Shape Jazz, Part 2
by Peter Rubie
Part 1 | Part 2 This is Now I hate to confess this, but I've never been that keen on Stephane Grappelli's playing, as masterful and brilliant as he assuredly was. ("He plays with an accent," violinist and Berklee professor Rob Thomas confided to me when I hesitantly mentioned this to him. What Rob ...
Johanna Burnheart: Burnheart
by Chris May
The violin has an eventful history in jazz. But it is still a niche instrument, despite a line of singular players stretching back to Stephane Grappelli and Stuff Smith (who deserves some bonus points for composing the immortal If You're A Viper"). There are no schools of jazz violinists, simply a succession of one-off stylists, with ...
Monique Canniere: Preachin’ to the Choir
by Chris M. Slawecki
Violinist, composer and vocalist Monique Canniere began her musical career, one suspects, like many other violin players: By playing traditional Celtic music in competitions and folks festivals, which she did from the age of six with her musician father, Vic; and by earning her BM in performance (from Mansfield [PA] University, where she performed as violinist ...
Akua Dixon: Akua Dixon
by Hrayr Attarian
Virtuoso cellist Akua Dixon is one of the few exclusive practitioners of the instrument in jazz. Whether in a supportive role or leading her Quartette Indigo she deftly fuses intimate chamber decorum and spontaneous ingenuity for an elegant and vibrant style that is hard to pigeonhole. She spices her eponymous release with Latin passion and an ...