Jazz
At Harvard, the 82-year-old composer-saxophonist joined Vijay Iyer and Dafnis Prieto for a taut, wide-ranging evening of angular melody, open space, and rhythmic surprise
Janis Siegel’s first project since the Manhattan Transfer’s 2023 dissolution honors the lyric-driven jazz practice shaped by Eddie Jefferson and Lambert, Hendricks & Ross.
A six-LP, three-CD collection gives us the bassist leading exceptional small groups in music of rigor, energy, and expansive range.
Claudia Acuña reconnects Chilean roots with American jazz on “Ave de Luz,” while Jorge Drexler explores love, technology, politics, and dance on “Taracá.”
Jazz Concert Review: Brad Mehldau’s Elliott Smith Tribute Finds Light in the Darkness at Groton Hill
With Chris Thile, Blake Mills, Matt Chamberlain, John Davis, and A Far Cry, the pianist transformed Smith’s songs into an expansive blend of jazz, indie folk, and chamber music.
An evening of obscure blues, early jazz, and New Orleans swing eventually overcame an absent vocalist, a substitute washboard player, and a concert-hall setting.
Kamasi Washington, Herbie Hancock, Flea and a lively new generation showed how the festival is stretching jazz’s boundaries without losing its center.
From Tom Morello’s searing set to CMAT’s breakout turn and Dave Matthews’ final-set detour, the festival kept its focus on music that opened outward rather than looking back.
Tyshawn Sorey tops the Frances Davis Jazz Poll at mid-year, spurring a reflection on signal vs. noise in a crowded jazz landscape.
The Annual Francis Davis Jazz Critics Poll at Midyear: Warming Up a Riff — How It Happened, and Why It Matters
Few things more clearly attest to the endurance of the human spirit and the drive for creativity than the uninterrupted and unstoppable torrent of brilliant new jazz albums we’ve already seen this year.
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