Patrick Jarenwattananon
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As a whole, the trumpeter's high-functioning band reliably serves up modernism as post-bop jazz. It welcomes a guest turn from guitarist Lionel Loueke, making this band a rare six-man quintet.
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If you didn't manage to sneak your way onto a yacht bound for coastal Rhode Island — well, we can't help you get to Newport. But NPR Music can bring you live streaming concerts. Here's what's in store, starting with Robert Glasper and ending with Wayne Shorter and Herbie Hancock.
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Whether career sidemen, appealing experimentalists or critically acclaimed bands finally getting a look, new names are getting invited to the granddaddy of jazz festivals with greater frequency. Hear music from some of this year's crop, including Jonathan Batiste, David Gilmore and Dee Alexander.
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This summer has seen plenty of worthwhile jazz, including a pianist who's been around since the '50s, a Caribbean jazzman, a band of deliberate melody, and a cover from The Jungle Book. Sample recordings from Harold Mabern, Etienne Charles, the band Black Host and Lauren Desberg.
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As a first-call trumpeter in many jazz, Latin and Broadway ensembles, Frink made a lot of bands sound good. But she was better known as someone who made thousands of other trumpet players sound better. The foremost brass instructor in New York City, Frink was 62.
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The blend of flute and vibraphone or marimba brings a transparent, sparkling quality — light and listenable, but permitting depth and mystery. On new albums, Nicole Mitchell and Anna Webber harness this energy, which has a surprisingly rich history
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Jazz has become a point of pride for Americans: a homegrown art form forged from folk traditions. Still, the black jazz pioneers who lived through eras of discrimination have a complicated sense of pride in the U.S. Hear five improvised takes on American patriotic songs, from the reverent to the ironic.
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When a studio engineer and drummer from New Orleans met one of the best trombone players in Richmond, Va., a funky, danceable, street-style brass band was born. Watch 11 musicians squeeze behind NPR Music's Tiny Desk, turn up the funk and fly the "RVA" flag high.
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They met in New Orleans' performing-arts high school, became Donald Harrison's rhythm section as teenagers and have now released their first album. The collective plays original music live.
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Byron has a way of homing in on an artist's legacy and transforming it with intelligence and adventure. In this case, he takes on the music of Thomas Dorsey and of Sister Rosetta Tharpe in concert.