Jazz : NPR

To mark the first day of fall, try this autumn music puzzler. iStockphoto.com hide caption

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All Songs Considered

Autumn Serenade: The Fall Music Puzzler

September 23, 2015 • Do your musical tastes change with the turning of autumn leaves? Try this fall music quiz filled with songs of wistful introspection.

Talented But Overlooked Jazz Artists

July 31, 2008 • We've talked this month about the jazz greats, but what about the others? Many musicians have not won the recognition that they deserve — including Grammy-Award winning Billy Childs and singer Robert McCarther. They join Farai Chideya to help wrap up our series on jazz.

Talented But Overlooked Jazz Artists

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Jazz Singer Nnenna Freelon Shares Influences

July 25, 2008 • Over the years, jazz songstress and six-time Grammy Award nominee, Nnenna Freelon, has earned a reputation as a fierce singer and captivating performer. NPR's Tony Cox talks with Freelon about her career and how female artists have affected the genre.

Jazz Singer Nnenna Freelon Shares Influences

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Understanding Women's Influence On Jazz

July 25, 2008 • Usually when we think of women in jazz, we think of singers like Billie Holiday, Sarah Vaughan, and Ella Fitzgerald. But female jazz players cannot be overlooked: Women have played almost every instrument, in every style, during every era of the music's history. For more, NPR's Tony Cox talks with jazz historian Linda Dahl.

Understanding Women's Influence On Jazz

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Exploring Jazz Music Overseas

July 24, 2008 • As our series on jazz continues, we explore how the sound is developing in far-flung places. For more on the genre's reach abroad, NPR's Tony Cox talks with bass clarinetist and multireedist, Bennie Maupin; flautist and conductor, James Newton; and saxophonist David Murray.

Exploring Jazz Music Overseas

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Inside Jazz Hot Spots Around the Nation

July 17, 2008 • As our series on jazz continues, Farai Chideya uncovers the remaining American jazz meccas and finds out how live venues have shaped the art of jazz. Joining in are Ron Sturm, owner of the Iridium Jazz Club; musician Dennis Winslett; and Peter Williams, artistic director of Yoshi's Jazz Club.

Inside Jazz Hot Spots Around the Nation

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A Jazz Journey From Its New Orleans Birthplace

July 11, 2008 • We continue our jazz series with a look at the legacy of New Orleans jazz music. Farai Chideya talks with three notable Crescent City musicians: Irma Thomas, who is known as the queen of New Orleans soul; trumpeter and bandleader Irvin Mayfield; and Greg Davis, a member of the Dirty Dozen Brass Band.

A Jazz Journey From Its New Orleans Birthplace

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The Intersection of Jazz and Social Protest

July 10, 2008 • Jazz music was forged by social struggle. America's cultural cauldron produced music, which criticized segregation with candor, sadness, and humor. For more, Farai Chideya speaks with jazz expert Robert O'Mealy.

The Intersection of Jazz and Social Protest

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Inside the Culture of Jazz

July 4, 2008 • We continue our series on jazz with a look at a new generation of players who love the music, even though it doesn't sell big. Jazz trumpter Nicholas Payton and drummer Kendrick Scott give us their take on why jazz is still a music of the people.

Inside the Culture of Jazz

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What Is Jazz?

July 3, 2008 • There's no question that jazz is the foundation of black music. But understanding the art form can be a daunting challenge. This month, News & Notes is focusing on America's classical music — jazz. Today, we're taking a crash course with three renowned experts.

What Is Jazz?

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Opinion: Black Protest Is Music. Learning The Melody Isn't Enough

Jazz trumpeter and composer Terence Blanchard. Henry Adebonojo/Courtesy of the artist hide caption

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Henry Adebonojo/Courtesy of the artist

Opinion

Music Features

Opinion: Black Protest Is Music. Learning The Melody Isn't Enough

June 18, 2020 • Terence Blanchard, the acclaimed jazz trumpeter and composer, says the fate of the new civil rights movement will depend on the well-meaning outsiders who show up to support it.

Colin Marshall/NPR

America Reckons With Racial Injustice

The Law Police Used To Discriminate Against Musicians Of Color

WBGO and Jazz At Lincoln Center

June 3, 2020 • The New York Police Department kept musicians of color from the stage for almost three decades by revoking their cabaret cards, a license required to perform for pay in nightclubs.

Dezron Douglas & Brandee Younger: Alone Together Duets | JAZZ NIGHT IN AMERICA NPR hide caption

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NPR

Jazz Night In America: Video Episodes And Shorts

Dezron Douglas And Brandee Younger: Alone Together Duets

WBGO and Jazz At Lincoln Center

May 19, 2020 • For Jazz Night in America's Alone Together Duets series, harpist Brandee Younger and bassist Dezron Douglas perform "Toilet Paper Romance" from their living room in East Harlem, N.Y.

Jazz And Art Take Center Stage To Form 'Portraits Of America'

The Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra with Wynton Marsalis performs 'Portraits of America: A Jazz Story.' Frank Stewart /WBGO hide caption

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Frank Stewart /WBGO

Jazz Night In America

Jazz And Art Take Center Stage To Form 'Portraits Of America'

WBGO and Jazz At Lincoln Center

May 7, 2020 • Let's go to the museum with our ears. Members of the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra with Wynton Marsalis explain their work inspired by the collection at the Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art.

Jazz And Art Take Center Stage To Form 'Portraits Of America'

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José James And Taali: Alone Together Duets

José James and Taali perform from home. Courtesy of the artist hide caption

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Courtesy of the artist

Jazz Night In America: Video Episodes And Shorts

José James And Taali: Alone Together Duets

WBGO and Jazz At Lincoln Center

May 5, 2020 • Musical couple José James and Taali perform the song "I Found A Love" while quarantined in their New York City apartment, in the first of a new series of videos from Jazz Night in America.

Mecca Notes and members of the Brass-a-Holics perform "I'll Fly Away" in New Orleans, Louisiana. Armon Dauphin/Courtesy of the artist hide caption

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Armon Dauphin/Courtesy of the artist

Jazz Night In America

Watch New Orleans Give A Brass Band Funeral Send-Off With 'I'll Fly Away'

WBGO and Jazz At Lincoln Center

April 28, 2020 • Members of Brass-a-Holics and Mecca Notes pay tribute to lives lost to COVID-19 with a performance of "I'll Fly Away."

'Smile' With A Performance By Pianist Monty Alexander And Bassist Ray Brown

JNIA Monty Alexander and Ray Brown (Photo Courtesy of the Artist) hide caption

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(Photo Courtesy of the Artist)

Jazz Night In America: The Radio Program

'Smile' With A Performance By Pianist Monty Alexander And Bassist Ray Brown

WBGO and Jazz At Lincoln Center

April 23, 2020 • Hear a concert with pianist Monty Alexander and bassist Ray Brown from 2000. Host Christian McBride picks his favorite songs from the gig that puts both musicians' joy and camaraderie on full display.

Jazz Night in American - Monty Alexander and Ray Brown

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Hear The Monterey Jazz Festival On Tour Perform Live At Jazz At Lincoln Center

Watch the Monterey Jazz Festival On Tour perform live from Jazz at Lincoln Center in New York City. Jazz at Lincoln Center hide caption

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Jazz at Lincoln Center

Jazz Night In America: The Radio Program

Hear The Monterey Jazz Festival On Tour Perform Live At Jazz At Lincoln Center

WBGO and Jazz At Lincoln Center

April 16, 2020 • Hear highlights from a show with the Monterey Jazz Festival On Tour featuring Christian Sands, Cécile McLorin Salvant, Bria Skonberg, Melissa Aldana, Yasushi Nakamura and Jamison Ross.

Hear The Monterey Jazz Festival On Tour Perform Live At Jazz At Lincoln Center

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Camille Thurman Finds Her Voice On A Journey To Jazz At Lincoln Center

Frank Stewart

Jazz Night In America

Camille Thurman Finds Her Voice On A Journey To Jazz At Lincoln Center

WBGO and Jazz At Lincoln Center

March 19, 2020 • We explore the jazz roots of saxophonist and vocalist Camille Thurman's home borough of Queens and hear her play with both the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra and with her band.

Camille Thurman Finds Her Voice On A Journey To Jazz At Lincoln Center

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Chick Corea performs in Boston. NPR hide caption

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Jazz Night In America Videos

Chick Corea: Back In Boston

WBGO and Jazz At Lincoln Center

August 22, 2019 • The legendary pianist has lived many lives as a musician, from post-bop wunderkind to free-jazz maverick to fusion explorer to chamber-jazz eminence.

Chick Corea: Back In Boston

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Camila Meza performs in Brooklyn, N.Y. NPR hide caption

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Jazz Night In America

Chilean Singer-Songwriter Camila Meza Sets A Brooklyn Loft Aglow

WBGO and Jazz At Lincoln Center

June 3, 2019 • Rising singer, guitarist and composer Camila Meza reverberates songs from her latest record Ámbar off the walls of a light-filled Brooklyn loft.