Pianist Fred Hersch had recently arisen from a two-month coma, and had spent the better part of a year ravaged by AIDS-related illnesses, when he recorded Whirl, a trio album featuring bassist John Hebert and drummer Eric McPherson. Despite Hersch's medical setbacks, there's nothing weak or infirm about Whirl. With original compositions and a smattering of standards, the album taps directly into a well of sonic consistency and emotional variety...Read More
Dawn of Midi is a trio that plays freely improvised music with a sparse, meticulous approach. Consisting of bassist Aakaash Israni, drummer Qasim Naqvi, and pianist Amino Belyamani, the group creates broad scenes with the minimal amount of tools. Their album First (Accretions, 2010), features pieces whose focal points are timbre and character... Read More
I was just listening to NPR and they are raising funds this month. One of the announcers said something that certainly used to be correct. He said: “Where else are you going to get the mix of National, International, and South Florida News…” It suddenly occurred to me that, while statement used to be true, at least in my opinion, it is no longer true.
I just saw the future of NPR – where it must inevitably go.
On June 29th, 2010, jazz writer Will Layman wrote an article entitled "Jazz Ain't Dead, But Charlie Parker Is -- So Let's Move On, Shall We?" Layman suggests that jazz will not survive unless it finds its way back into the "culture," by which he seems to mean "popular culture."
So last night was the Randy Bernsen and Friends, March Jams On Concert at the historic Cinema Paradiso in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. This was the first of four concerts scheduled this year as part of a Micro-Concert Series to keep Live Music Alive, and in Randy Bernsen's case, to keep Live FUSION Music Alive!
Randy has been in the business for a long time now. He has worked with such greats as Herbie Hancock, Wayne Shorter, Toots Theilemans, Michael Brecker, and famed Jaco Pastorius. And last night's line up was a who's who of the South Florida music scene as well: Javier Carrion on bass, Ed Maina on sax, Samantha Natalie on vocals, Pete Wallace - keyboards, the irrepressible Ivan Zervigon on drums, and Dave Shelley not only played fusion guitar, but wowed on percussions!
