Jazz and Blues

Latin Jazz is rich with percussion and compelling sounds.  Most of the percussion instruments originate from Africa, and are tied to spiritual and religious ceremonies.  Here are a couple of favorites:

The first in a series of concert broadcasts from Centrum's Jazz Port Townsend features "Dynamic Duos" on KPLU's Jazz Northwest on Sunday, August 5 at 1 PM PDT.   The three duos selected by Artistic Director John Clayton for this unique concert are trombonists Wycliffe Gordon and Jiggs Whigham, guitarists Graham Dechter and Bruce Forman and drummers (drummists?) Jeff Hamilton and Matt Wilson.  

Tommy Johnson’s songs may not be very well known, but he was a hugely influential blues player and also may be the source of one of the most enduring legends of the blues – the Devil and the Crossroads.

While this legend is sometimes associated with Robert Johnson (no relation), it was Tommy Johnson who first cultivated a story about himself that he met the devil at a crossroads, and sold his soul in exchange for his musical ability.

According to Rebeca Mauleon's indispensable "Salsa Guidebook for Piano and Ensemble,"  the Mambo is:

An up-tempo dance style, developed through the 1940s and 1950s, which blended several elements of North American instrumentation and harmony with the Cuban son (a style of popular dance music that combined Spanish and African elements).

This week on Jazz Northwest we'll feature some songs for Summer including the Summer movement from Phil Dwyer's Changing Seasons suite for orchestra.  Pete Christlieb and Linda Small are visiting after Jazz Port Townsend and playing some great Bill Holman charts.  Something new from Pearl Django and other music from Portland to Vancouver BC as well as suggestions for live jazz around Seattle in the coming week.

“Summertime” is considered one of George Gershwin’s finest songs. Collaborating with his brother Ira and lyricist DuBose Heyward, Gershwin composed the piece for his 1935 “folk-opera” Porgy and Bess.

I know. I know. It is widely assumed and believed that smell is the strongest sense tied to memory. But for me (and a handful of musicians that I spoke to), music – in some cases even just a few bars of a song -  can draw upon some of the most powerful memories in a persons life.

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