IMN

Jazz Journalist Association Nominees Announced!!!

IMN

May 6th, 2008 - IMN Update:

Nominees for the 12th Annual Jazz Journalist Association Awards have been announced and we are pleased to report that the following IMN artists have been nominated:

Liftime Achievement in Jazz
- Wayne Shorter

Up & Coming Musician of the Year
- Christian Scott

Record of the Year
- Pilgrimage, Michael Brecker (Heads Up)

Arranger of the Year
- Dave Holland

Female Singer of the Year
- Dianne Reeves

Small Ensemble Group of the Year (<9 pieces)
- Dave Holland Quintet
- The Bad Plus

Tenor player of the Year
- Joshua Redman
- Joe Lovano

Soprano Saxophonist of the Year
- Wayne Shorter

Clarinetist of the Year
- Anat Cohen

Pianist of the Year
- McCoy Tyner

Strings Player of the Year
- Jenny Scheinman, violin

For a full list of nominees, please visit: http://www.jazzhouse.org/2008finalists.html.

Gilberto Gil and Broadband Touring US this June

IMN

April 28th, 2008 - Gilberto Gil Update:

Public will be invited to record concerts for personal use North American concert dates have been announced for Grammy Award-winning artist Gilberto Gil for June and July 2008. Following his unprecedented solo tour here in 2007, Gil returns with a full band line-up for 11 concerts in major markets, his first such tour since 1999. Performing the repertoire from his latest CD Banda Larga Cordel (June 2008 /Warner Music Latina), Gilberto Gil continues to raise the banner hes been carrying in his most recent works the Broad Band (Banda Larga). Gil has delved deeply into the vertiginous waters of the digital revolution and its accelerated information highway. He wants his music to use all of these means of communication including mobile phones, the internet, cable, digital TV, ringtones, truetones, downloads, etc.

Since the days of Tropicália, Gil has long demonstrated his interest and fascination with this subject. Just listen to Cérebro Electrônica or Futurivel (1969), for instance, or even Cibernética (1974) or Parabolicamará (1991). But the most obvious example is the Grammy Award-winning double album Quanta (1997) in which he assembled a large part of his reflections on art/science and new technologies. The album was previewed by the pioneering launch of Gils website in April of 1996, and through the on-line broadcast, that same year, of Pela Internet, the first Brazilian song to be officially released through the internet in real time.

With the passing of time, Gils interest on these subjects has not only increased but the number of willing interlocutors has multiplied and he has seen various ideas materialize: Digital inclusion, Creative Commons, Free Software, for example. These are just some of the concepts he already had in mind and that were evident in his activities and in the public discourse of Gilberto Gil.

BANDA LARGA (Broad Band), the album and the tour, reaffirm Gils irreversible engagement with the new rules and compasses of the universe of bits and bytes, embracing all of the risks and challenges. This theme that has fascinated him for more than 30 years characterized a previous tour outside of North America, also called Banda Larga, in which Gil made available as much of his work as possible for webcasts, podcasts, cellcasts, etc. The audience for his shows was and continues to be another form for multi-casting, energized to make their own recordings and videos of the performance with digital cameras and cell phones. The traditional It is forbidden to photograph or film this show without previous authorization has been replaced by a warm invitation: Record and film whatever you want however you want. The shows themselves including backstage footage of life on the road will be released on the internet as widely as possible, on diverse platforms ranging from a specially-created tour blog to the parallel universe of Second Life.

The great novelty of the Banda Larga Summer Tour 2008 is really the set list. Whereas the previous tour was created around the greatest hits, this time Gilberto Gil will play a new collection of songs such as Banda Larga Cordel, Não grude não and other more recent compositions, many of them inspired by this theme and by his new experiences around this theme that fascinates him so much. The only major artist of his generation to retain complete control over his intellectual works, Gilberto Gil intends to interact with his audience and provoke interaction.

The Gilberto Gil Broad Band tour will feature Arthur Maia on bass, Alex Fonseca on drums, Bem Gil on guitars, Claudio Andrade on keyboards, Gustavo di Dalva on percussion, and Sergio Chiavazzolli, also on guitars.

US Immigration Policy Changes

IMN

April 4th, 2008 - IMN Update:

There was a minor change in US immigration policy submit to legislation at US congress. HR-1312 was passed by the House on Tuesday...the Senate still needs to do the same before it goes to President Bush. HR-1312 is called the ARTS Act, ARTS an acronym for Arts Require Timely Service. Marco Werman of the PRI program, The World, interviewed IMN Director Scott Southard yesterday on this subject.

The interview ran on NPR last night and can be streamed via this link

The Bad Plus to perform on Conan Fri 3/14

IMN

March 13th, 2008 - Bad Plus, The Update:

The Bad Plus will perform on Late Night with Conan O'Brien on Friday night, March 14th.

Joshua Redman Joins the IMN Roster

IMN

March 12th, 2008 - Joshua Redman Update:

IMN is pleased to announce the addition of renowned saxophonist Joshua Redman to our worldwide roster. One of the most acclaimed and charismatic jazz artists to have emerged in the decade of the 1990s, the award-winning saxophonist has toured and/or recorded with eminent musicians such as his father, the late saxophonist Dewey Redman, bassists Charlie Haden and Christian McBride; pianists Chick Corea, McCoy Tyner and Brad Mehldau; guitarist Pat Metheny; and drummers Roy Haynes, Jack DeJohnette, Elvin Jones, Paul Motian, Billy Higgins and Brian Blade. He has recorded over ten albums (on Warner Brothers and most recently Nonesuch) as a leader, including the 2007 Grammy-nominated Back East, the 2005 Grammy-nominated Momentum, and has garnered top honors in critics and readers polls of DownBeat, Jazz Times, The Village Voice and Rolling Stone. From 2000-2006 Redman was the Artistic Director of the non-profit jazz-presenting organization SFJAZZ, as well as a member of the SFJAZZ Collective, an ensemble distinguished both by the creativity of its members and a unique primary emphasis on composition. On his latest album, Back East, Redman paid tribute to Sonny Rollins' 1957 album Way Out West, teaming up with musicians including Brian Blade, Christian McBride, Al Jackson, Joe Lovano, and his late father. The fall of 2008 will see the release of Redman's 13th recording as a leader.

one of the most vital figures in jazz of the new century
-The Los Angeles Times

Esperanza Self-Titled Debut Set for May Release

IMN

March 4th, 2008 - Esperanza Spalding Update:

Every few years, a new artist comes along with talent and potential so great that it challenges and redefines the common perceptions of what jazz is and where its heading. The new light on the horizon may be a compelling vocalist one year, or perhaps an unmatched instrumental virtuoso a few years later, or maybe a brilliant composer a few more years down the road.

Bassist/vocalist/composer Esperanza Spalding is all of these things and more. And she will, in fact, challenge and expand your perceptions of jazz.

Esperanza (HUCD 3140), her debut on Heads Up International, is set for worldwide release on May 20, 2008. Armed with uncanny instrumental chops, a siren voice that spans three languages, and composing and arranging skills that weave together the best elements of the old-school with the progressive, this 23-year-old has crafted a debut album that takes a completely fresh and refreshing approach to jazz by incorporating the rich traditions of soul, pop, world music and so much more.

Her accelerated backstory follows a breathtaking arc. A musical prodigy since her childhood in Portland, Oregon, Esperanza enrolled at Berklee College of Music at 16 and not only excelled there but eventually became the youngest professor in the schools history. Before finishing school, she had already landed coveted touring gigs and recording projects with the likes of Patti Austin, Joe Lovano, Pat Metheny and other luminaries who were, in many cases, the shining lights of their own generations.

But even with all this early success, Esperanza approached her Heads Up debut album with an unwavering work ethic and a fierce sense of commitment to making a recording that not only captures who and where she is now, but offers a glimpse of all that she could yet achieve. In preparing for this album, I worked really hard on my playing, my singing, my composition, everything, she says. Im confident and Im proud of what came out. I feel like it represents me at this time, and it shows the world what Im capable of.

Esperanza is joined in the studio by a crew of A-list session players, including flamenco guitar virtuoso Niño Josele, percussionist Jamey Haddad, drummer Horacio El Negro Hernández, saxophonist Donald Harrison and several other seasoned talents all of whom collectively serve as further evidence of the kind of creative energy and magnetism that she radiates.

All of us had the same intentions in the studio, she says. Everybody really gave everything we could give, because we really wanted it to be the best that it could possibly be. It was like a family affair. There are things on there that youll dig if youre a jazz listener, and things youll dig if youre not a jazz listener. Thats the objective to serve as many people as possible with the music.

The album opens with the Ponta de Areia, the Brant Fernando Rocha / Milton Nascimento composition made famous in the jazz world by Wayne Shorter on his Native Dancer album in 1974. Esperanza delivers the lyrics in Portuguese, with a vocal line thats smooth and never the least bit strained. Backed by Haddad, pianist Leo Genovese, vocalist Gretchen Parlato and drummer Otis Brown III, she takes the song on a journey thats exploratory where it needs to be, yet never prone to disharmony.

Fall In is Esperanzas own composition, arranged for vocals and piano, with Genovese creating a lush bed for lyrics that ponder the potential hazards of romantic love but soar at the same time: They say if you live in a dream youre hopelessly lost / Well this aint just any old dream for our paths have crossed / And I may be hopelessly lost / But somehow Ive managed to find heaven / And I wont worry if we fall in love / We will never touch the ground / Just fall into a dream

Esperanza takes the bold step with a 5/4 time signature interpretation of Cuerpo Y Alma (Body and Soul) by singing an American jazz standard in Spanish. The second-to-last syllable is always the one that gets the emphasis in Spanish, and that really doesnt work for American jazz, she explains. Its pretty much the opposite of the way we emphasize English lyrics in American jazz. So that was the challenge whether I could make Body and Soul, this well known American jazz song, swing in Spanish. In the end, I think its pretty killin.

If esperanza is the Spanish word for hope, then Espera is an apt title for a song that defies the cynicism of our age and envisions a better world. She sings: Ill keep the faith, like so many souls who wont be drowned by evil in the world / I have faith in mankind, that we can guide our choices towards a healthy world in time to ease our bind / For only hard work through time can change mens minds / I know if we make some small changes now / Well heal ourselves, some way, somehow

Samba Em Preludio is the silky, atmospheric closer driven by the minimal arrangement of Esperanzas bass and vocals (lyrics sung in Portuguese) accompanied by Spains flamenco sensation Niño Joseles subtly textured guitar. Im proud of my singing on this song, and the arrangement that Niño did is so amazing, she says. I sent him this bare-bones track, and he painted a beautiful landscape with it.

For as bold a statement as Esperanza Spalding makes in her Heads Up debut album, the obvious truth by the end of twelve tracks is that what were hearing is just a taste of whats to come from this bright young star. But as first steps go, Esperanza is a giant leap. They say youre never supposed to apologize for your art, and Im totally unapologetic, she says. I have complete confidence that this is the best record I could make, and I have the same confidence that its just the beginning. There are so many different things that these songs are about, so many different colors, that the only consistent theme throughout the record is me. I had my hand in so many parts of this record, and I was so adamant about keeping it how I originally envisioned it. This record really is as close to me as you can get.

Mattea Returns to Roots with New CD: COAL (4/1/08)

IMN

February 18th, 2008 - Kathy Mattea Update:

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

NASHVILLE, TN - On April 1, 2008, Grammy-award winning singer Kathy Mattea will release her 17th album, Coal, a collection of songs paying tribute to her West Virginian family heritage in the region's coal mining culture. Coal was produced by country singer/songwriter/performer Marty Stuart.

Appropriately, best-selling novelist and fellow West Virginia native Homer Hickam (Rocket Boys and the upcoming Red Helmet, a romantic tale set in a collapsed mine) provides liner notes for the album, which plays like a textured novel itself, and features a trio of Nashville A-list players: Byron House (bass); Bill Cooley (guitar); and Stuart Duncan (fiddle, banjo). Producer Stuart also plays guitar and mandolin, and duets with guest background vocalist Patty Loveless on the track, "Blue Diamond Mines." Tim O'Brien and sister Mollie O'Brien, longtime musical compatriots of Mattea's, share the other background vocals. John Catchings on cello; Randy Leago on keyboards and accordion; and guest steel player Fred Newell round out the album's sound.

The tragic Sago Mine disaster, which killed twelve miners in 2006, brought back memories of the Farmington Mine disaster of 1968 near Fairmont, WV - an event that still haunts the then-9-year-old Mattea, whose grandfathers were miners and whose mother worked for the union. "When Sago happened, I got catapulted back to that moment in my life and thought, 'I need to do something with this emotion, and maybe this album is the place to channel it.' I knew the time was right."

Mattea carries on the Appalachian tradition of the "songcatcher" with Coal. The album features traditional and contemporary songs, many of them by songwriters with Appalachian roots. Songs by Jean Ritchie, Billy Edd Wheeler, Hazel Dickens, Si Kahn, Utah Phillips, Merle Travis and Darrell Scott were all chosen to articulate "the lifestyle, the bigger struggles," and "to speak to the sense of place and sense of attachment people have to each other and to the land."

Mattea's own connection to and respect for the land (and for the fate of Earth) was renewed in 2006 after she attended Al Gore's now-landmark global warming power-point presentation at Vanderbilt University. She "walked out with a burning commitment to take this message to as many people as I can." She trained with Gore and top scientists, and now travels with the Climate Project presenting the slide-show lecture to audiences across the United States. "I want to spread the word of hope to regular people. We really can be part of the Solution," Mattea says of the education project. "Even the smallest action empowers us to change our world."

Of the new album, Mattea reckons, "It's a coming together of a lot of different threads of my life." Coal will be released on Mattea's newly formed label Captain Potato Records. Distribution and marketing will be handled by Thirty Tigers/RED.

###

Angelique Kidjo Wins a Grammy, at Image Awards

IMN

February 11th, 2008 - Angélique Kidjo Update:

Last night at the 50th Annual Grammy Awards Angelique Kidjo won her first Grammy, for best contemporary world music album, after five nominations. She dedicated her award to her parents in Benin, to the African continent, to "the women of Darfur, the women who are fighting every day to give their kids an education," and to late Billboard editor Timothy White, whom she said encouraged her from the earliest days of her stateside career. With the Grammy win, "I really believe I can do anything," said Kidjo, who starts a U.S. and European tour at the end of February. from Billboard

Angelique Kidjo will be performing a song from her Grammy Award winning album, Djin Djin, at the 39th annual NAACP Image Awards. The Image Awards will be broadcast live Thursday Feb 14th at 8pm EST on FOX.

Christian Scott - All-Star musician

IMN

February 10th, 2008 - Christian Scott Update:

On Saturday, Feb. 16, New Orleans trumpeter Christian Scott, whose 2007 album Anthem was inspired by Hurricane Katrinas effect on the region, will perform the U.S. national anthem for the NBA All-Star Saturday Night. The performance will be broadcast live before a nationwide audience on TNT at 8 p.m. ET.

Dianne Reeves Knows

IMN

January 25th, 2008 - Dianne Reeves Update:

Jazz vocalist Dianne Reeves will hit the road in February for a series of U.S. and European shows to celebrate her upcoming release, When You Know, including a special Valentine's Day show at the legendary Apollo Theatre where she'll preview songs from the new album.
Reeves will kick off her journey February 9 at the Wharton Center for Performing Arts in East Lansing, Mich.
Stateside stops include the Princess Theatre in Decatur, Ill. (February 23), Kobacker Hall in Bowling Green, Ohio (March 14), the New Orlean's Jazz & Heritage Festival at the city's Fairgrounds Racetrack (May 4), Royce Hall Auditorium in Los Angeles (May 22) and Herbst Theatre in San Francisco (May 24).
The singer's special Valentines Day performance at New York City's Apollo Theatre is part of the venue's Art & Soul Performing Arts Series. Tickets are $45 and $55 and are available through the Apollo box office or at Ticketmaster.com.
Tickets for some other U.S. shows are also available at Ticketmaster.com.
Reeves' European calendar includes stops at Grand Rex in Paris (April 7), Barbican Hall in London (April 9), Konzerthaus in Vienna, Austria (April 15), Kammermusiksaal in Berlin (April 21), and City Theatre in Brugge, Belgium (April 23).
When You Know, which is slated for release in April, is Reeves' first album of new compositions in six years.

This article appears courtesy of Pollstar.com

STEVEN BERNSTEIN To Release DIASPORA SUITE

IMN

January 24th, 2008 - Steven Bernstein Update:

The ever-prolific trumpeter, arranger, composer and bandleader Steven Bernstein is back with his latest recording Diaspora Suite, the fourth installment from his critically-acclaimed Diaspora series on Tzadik Records. True to the high standards set by its predecessors, Diaspora Suite further evolves the concept of radical Jewish music, however, this time around Bernstein contributes all twelve original compositions. The music was recorded in one day during a marathon session at Bay Studios in Bernstein's hometown of Oakland. He was joined by a nonet of fellow California-native musicians, including Jeff Cressman on trombone, Peter Apfelbaum on tenor saxophone and flute, Ben Goldberg on clarinets, Nels Cline, John Schott and Will Bernard on guitars, Devin Hoff on bass, and Josh Jones and Scott Amendola on drums and percussion. Channeling the Sephardic tradition of darkness and light, Bernstein presented the musicians with a loose sketch of the music they'd be recording and left the rest up to divine intervention, not to mention the adroit improvisational skills of his collaborators. Bernstein allowed the music to be heavily influence by the music he grew up with. The very idea for such an approach was an evolution in and of itself. First, Tzadik Records' founder, John Zorn, strongly encouraged Bernstein to focus exclusively on original material for his next Diaspora project. With that thought in mind, the Diaspora Suite concept snapped into focus for Bernstein when performing at Robert Altman's memorial service. He'd previously worked with the legendary movie director scoring the music for his film Kansas City. Altman had always been a proponent of improvisation within his work, creating a framework for the storyline, but largely allowing the actors to develop their characters on the screen.

CD Release Shows Scheduled for:
January 27 at Bottom Of The Hill in San Francisco
February 10 at The Jazz Standard in New York City

http://www.stevenbernstein.net

Preservation Hall Named One of the Best

IMN

January 22nd, 2008 - Preservation Hall Jazz Band Update:

MSN City Guides recently featured an article bestowing the title of "America's Best Music Venue" on ten lucky performance spaces. The usual suspects are included; places like Carnegie Hall in New York City, Red Rocks in Morrison, CO, and The Great American Music Hall in San Francisco, CA. Amongst the breadwinners is Preservation Hall in New Orleans, LA, home of our own inimitable Preservation Hall Jazz Band. Not a bad honor for a place that only seats 73 people!

Check out the article here.
More about Preservation Hall Jazz Band.

Matthew Santos on Kimmel Live! Wed w/ Lupe Fiasco

IMN

January 8th, 2008 - Matthew Santos Update:

Matthew Santos will be joining Lupe Fiasco on Jimmy Kimmel Live! (ABC) Wednesday night. The duo will perform "Superstar" from Lupe's latest record The Cool, which was released last week on Atlantic Records.

IMN APAP Showcases

IMN

January 8th, 2008 - IMN Update:

IMN is pleased to announce a showcase (Anat Cohen), and a couple of special engagements (Sex Mob and Jenny Scheinman) during and around the Arts Presenters Conference.

Anat Cohen
Please join us for Anat Cohen's showcase:
Sunday, January 13, 2008 @ 7:30 PM
Iridium Jazz Club - 1650 Broadway (at 51st Street), New York, NY

Sex Mob
Please join us for a SPECIAL ENGAGEMENT:
Hal Willner presents Sex Mob with Mystery Guests:
Friday, January 11, 2008 at 8 & 10 PM
The Stone - The corner of Avenue C and 2nd Street

Jenny Scheinman
Please join us for two SPECIAL ENGAGEMENTS
Singing Show, Jenny Scheinman - Tuesday, January 8, 2008 at 7pm
Jazz Quartet, Jenny Scheinman Tuesday, January 15, 2008 at 7pm
Barbes 376 9th Street (corner of 6th Ave), Park Slope, Brooklyn

PHJB @ BCS Bowl

IMN

January 4th, 2008 - Preservation Hall Jazz Band Update:

The Preservation Hall Jazz Band with special guest Clint Maedgen will perform the National Anthem at the prestigious BCS Bowl college football championship played in the Crescent City on January 7, 2008, 7:00 PM (CST). In this national collegiate championship game the LSU Tigers take on the Ohio State Buckeyes at the New Orleans Superdome. Tune in for this fierce match up and check out the Preservation Hall Jazz Band.