Nate Chinen
Editorial DirectorNate Chinen has been writing about music for more than 25 years. He spent a dozen of them working as a critic for The New York Times, and helmed a long-running column for JazzTimes. As Editorial Director at WRTI, he oversees a range of classical and jazz coverage, and contributes regularly to NPR.
A 13-time winner of the Helen Dance–Robert Palmer Award for Excellence in Writing, presented by the Jazz Journalists Association, Nate is the author of Playing Changes: Jazz For the New Century, recognized as one of the best books of 2018 by NPR, GQ, Billboard and JazzTimes. He is also coauthor of Myself Among Others: A Life in Music, the award-winning 2003 autobiography of festival impresario and producer George Wein.
Nate maintains a newsletter, The Gig, at Substack. His work also appears in Best Music Writing 2011, Pop When the World Falls Apart: Music in the Shadow of Doubt (Duke University Press, 2012), and Miles Davis: The Complete Illustrated History (Voyageur Press, 2012).
Born and raised in Honolulu, Hawaii, Nate started his career as a music critic in 1996, at the Philadelphia City Paper. There he covered one of the great jazz cities at ground level, writing a steady stream of reviews and features, along with a biweekly column.
He moved to New York City in 1998, and began writing for a range of publications, including DownBeat, Blender, and Vibe. For several years he was the jazz critic for Weekend America, a syndicated radio program. He covered jazz for the Village Voice from 2003 through 2005, when he became a regular contributor to The New York Times. Around the same time, he started his monthly JazzTimes column, The Gig, which ran in 125 consecutive installments.
From 2017 until August 2022, Nate was Director of Editorial Content at Newark Public Radio — managing the full spectrum of editorial coverage at wbgo.org, and serving as a consulting producer for Jazz Night in America, a multimedia program hosted by Christian McBride. He also joined radio veteran Greg Bryant there as co-creator and co-host of Jazz United, which won the JJA’s award for Podcast of the Year in each of its two seasons.
Nate lives in Wynnewood, PA with his wife and two daughters.
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This week's Moment's Notice sees the return of the Exit Zero Jazz Festival for its Fall edition, alongside local acts like Josh Lee & the Extended Family, Donald Harrison and more. -
Growing up in the Ramblewood area of northeast Baltimore, Brandon Woody could hardly have envisioned a future as one of the most heralded young trumpeter-bandleaders in jazz. But he dared to dream beyond what he could see — even after dropping out of college in New York. His 2025 Blue Note debut, For the Love of It All, introduces a powerfully emotive artist and a committed working band, Upendo, primed to represent their hometown. Woody sat down with The Late Set just after a set at the Exit Zero Jazz Festival, ready to open up and dig in. -
Jack DeJohnette, of the most daring and singular jazz drummers of the last 60 years, died on Sunday. -
Moment's Notice this week brings a hefty order of artists pushing boundaries in jazz, including Cécile McLorin Salvant, Thundercat and Jon Batiste. But like always, we're also keeping the local scene in mind, with performances from Lafayette Gilchrist & New Volcanoes, the Alexander Claffy Quartet and more. -
We're reposting Nate Chinen’s illuminating conversation with esperanza spalding, which will be featured in the inaugural episode of The Late Set Radio Hour. Tune in on Oct. 26 — Milton Nascimento's 83rd birthday.
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Philly Joe Jones stood within the first tier of jazz drummers in 1958, when he took an all-star band and a Bela Lugosi impression into the studio. Our Spooky Season soundtracks have never been the same. -
Cindy Blackman Santana and Laufey bring a touch of celebrity to the scene this week, along with their jazz affinities. But our light shines just as bright on the club scene, where Tim Brey and Byron Landham are bringing (and swinging) the goods. -
The Strawberry Mansion rowhouse where John Coltrane lived in the 1950s is finally back in the hands of his family. Last Friday, his son Ravi Coltrane ushered in its new era with words and music. -
Now both in their 40s, brothers Zaccai and Luques Curtis have amassed a wealth of experience, and the mentorship of elders ranging from Jackie McLean to Eddie Palmieri to Ralph Peterson, Jr..In this lively conversation at the Exit Zero Jazz Festival, the two open up about their upbringing in Hartford, Conn.; the hidden circuitries of so-called Latin Jazz; and the industrious spark that led to Zaccai’s Grammy Award-winning album Cubop Lives!
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Moment's Notice this week features two shows as part of the Association for the Advancement of Creative Musicians' 60th anniversary, a unique jazz-cabaret take on 1930s Harlem, a double bill to close out the 2025 Philly Music Fest and more.
