swing

Some folks—even jazz fans—wouldn’t know that 'Robert Chudnick' was the real name of the musician whose handle was Red Rodney.  The once well-known jazz trumpeter from Philadelphia was born back on September 27th, 1927.

August 12, 2019. Eyal Vilner grew up in Tel Aviv, loving the music of the swing era. But he didn’t fully appreciate what it meant to swing until he started swing dancing himself. Now, fully indoctrinated, his 16-piece big band is a driving force behind New York City’s surprisingly robust Lindy hop scene. Their latest, Swing Out!, provides a dozen very clear reasons why.

July 8, 2019. When trombonist, vocalist, and bandleader Pete McGuinness was growing up in West Hartford, Connecticut, he wanted to be Duke Ellington. So it’s probably no coincidence that with the release of his third big band album, Along for the Ride, McGuinness shows a musical sensibility that mirrors the Duke’s.

March 4, 2019. Catherine Russell is part singer, part musical anthropologist, part necromancer. On her new album, Alone Together, she breathes new, 21st-century-infused life into the Swing Era music of bandleaders like Artie Shaw, Benny Goodman, and Louis Jordan, allowing us to travel back in time without leaving the present.

January 14, 2019. Clarinetist Paul Cosentino’s Boilermaker Jazz Band has been making swinging renditions of jazz gems for over 25 years. I Love the Rhythm In A Riff pays homage to riffs created by well-known bandleaders, and love songs made famous by beloved vocal stars.