Written by user on May 27, 2014
While many discographies exist that document the appearances of great jazz artists on recording sessions, they don’t all necessarily document whether a great artist is actually soloing on a given session. Consequently, if you are searching for examples of the beautiful solo work of, for example, altoist Hilton Jefferson (who was an inspiration to many great lead alto players of the big band era), you may find yourself combing through many recordings struggling to determine which moments feature his solo …
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Written by user on May 19, 2014
On May 9, the legendary trumpeter and bandleader Joe Wilder passed away at the age of 92. He leaves behind an extraordinary legacy.
Shortly before he passed, Mr. Wilder witnessed the release of his biography, Softly, With Feeling: Joe Wilder and the Breaking of Barriers in American Music, a collaborative project undertaken with the scholar Ed Berger.
Ed Berger, who is also an instructor at our Swing University program, shares his thoughts on the passing of Mr. Wilder:
With Joe Wilder’s passing at …
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Written by user on October 8, 2013
To many, Freddie Green serves as the epitome of a big band rhythm guitarist. A member of the “All-American Rhythm Section” of the Count Basie Orchestra (along with Basie on piano and initially Walter Page on bass and Papa Jo Jones on drums), Green developed a comping style so distinctively influential that even today, Jazz guitarists will be asked to play in the style of Freddie Green.
To understand what made Freddie Green’s sound and rhythm sense so unique, check out …
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