New York, Pittsburgh, the Past, Present and Future on the Scene
We share a little bit of everything, harkening back to the recent past, the present and the near future of the jazz scene in and around Pittsburgh - and all over.
That includes our visit to the Jazz Congress and Jazz at Lincoln Center at the beginning of January. We visit with trumpeter and bandleader Etienne Charles. Plus a chat with saxophonists Lakecia Benjamin and Caleb Wheeler Curtis (who ALSO plays trumpet).
Sounds from those folks, plus music of Don DePaolis from Reid Hoyson, the Bad Plus, Oliver Nelson and more.
The Scene - Thursday at 6pm, Sunday at 5pm, Friday and Saturday at noon on WZUM.
"This is Triumphant Music" - Martin Luther King, Jr. and the Inaugural JazzFest Berlin, 1964
"This is Triumphant Music" - Martin Luther King, Jr. and the Inaugural JazzFest Berlin, 1964.
Dr. King’s Essay on the importance of Jazz to humanity and the Civil Rights movement was not a speech, but it was written at the request of the festival organizers. The words are powerful .
An excerpt:
Much of the power of our Freedom Movement in the United States has come from this music. It has strengthened us with its sweet rhythms when courage began to fail. It has calmed us with its rich harmonies when spirits were down.
And now, Jazz is exported to the world.
Oliver Nelson Jr. in the MCG Jazz Spotlight - Beyond "Stolen Moments"
Kate Borger Hearing Double - "Rhythm-a-ning" on WZUM
This week on "Rhythm-a-ning," Kate Borger shares sounds from various parings - including Louis Armstrong and Ella Fitzgerald; Tony Bennett and Lady Gaga, alto jazz masters Phil Woods and Grace Kelly; Dr. John and Rickie Lee Jones, flutists Herbie Mann and Sam Most; pianists Eliane Elias and Chick Corea and many more.
Playing duos and pairs with Kate Borger on Rhythm-a-ning with Kate Borger.
Friday morning at 10:00 and Saturday a 11 on WZUM
The Jazz Scene into the New Year in Pittsburgh
We have a number of interviews and new things to share from the Jazz Congress in New York City, last week - and we’ll have more of those stories, soon.
But we also were telling friends in New York about what’s going on in Pittsburgh - and there are a lot of sounds and stories happening, here - and we’ll touch on just a bit of it.
The Scene - Thursday at 6pm, Sunday at 5pm, Friday and Saturday at noon on WZUM.
A Celebration of Quincy Jones in the MCG Jazz Spotlight
The Jazz Congress in NYC on the Scene on WZUM
Almost live from New York on the Scene this week - as we visited with jazz folks from around the world for the 2025 Jazz Congress hosted by Jazz At Lincoln Center. As is usually the case - Pittsburgh was well represented.
The Scene - Thursday at 6pm, Sunday at 5pm, Friday and Saturday at noon on WZUM.