Final Chorus
November 2010 By Nat Hentoff
Armand Hirsch and Other Young Masters
One of the greatest kicks in my autumnal years is suddenly finding a young jazz improviser who has simply “got it.” That’s why 20-year-old alto saxophonist Hailey Niswanger and 24-year-old Aaron Weinstein each have chapters in my new book, At the Jazz Band...
October 2010 By Nat Hentoff
The St. Louis Blues
I’m too often startled by how much I’ve yet to learn about subjects I’ve covered throughout my life—for example, the blues. Along with writing sections on the blues in my books, I’ve recorded sessions with Otis Spann, Memphis Slim and Lightnin’ Hopkins...
08/06/10 By Nat Hentoff
The Everlasting Louis Armstrong
Nat Hentoff on the educational programs of the Louis Armstrong House and Archives
July/August 2010 By Nat Hentoff
A Fine Arts Museum’s Tribute to Nonpareil Miles
Nat Hentoff on We Want Miles Exhibit and Book
June 2010 By Nat Hentoff
Teaching Satchmo & Duke to 7th Graders
Nat Hentoff on Mick Carlon and his approach to jazz appreciation for middle-schoolers
May 2010 By Nat Hentoff
Jews in the Family of Jazz
For 60 years I’ve been waiting for a book that has finally been published in England: Jazz Jews by Mike Gerber (Five Leaves Publications; info@fiveleaves.co.uk, contact: Ross Bradshaw). Ten years in the making—eight of them on research—with 7,000 names in...
April 2010 By Nat Hentoff
Annie Ross & the Jazz Masters
The most startling phone call I ever received was in 2004 from someone I had never met. He began by saying, “This is probably the best message you’ve ever gotten from your government.” It was Dana Gioia, then chairman of the National Endowment for the Arts...
March 2010 By Nat Hentoff
Vince Guaraldi: That Joyous Thing
Despite writing about jazz musicians for over 60 years, I am sometimes sharply reminded that I’ve essentially missed, or badly underestimated, a vital individualist. It happened again on Nov. 28 as I was listening to National Public Radio’s wide-ranging...
January/February 2010 By Nat Hentoff
Torture Chamber Music
Nat Hentoff looks at how music has been used for torture and what musicians are doing about it.
August/September 2009 By Nat Hentoff
Final Chorus: Listening Guides for M.D.s and Us
When I was a kid, doctors made house calls and learned more about a patient’s living and emotional conditions than they did taking a medical history in an office. These days, many increasingly overburdened doctors can usually give a patient little more than...
