Nate Chinen is the director of editorial content for WBGO and a longtime contributor to JazzTimes, which published 125 installments of his column “The Gig” between 2004 and 2017. For 12 years, he was a critic for The New York Times; prior to that, he wrote about jazz for the Village Voice, the Philadelphia City Paper, and several other publications. He is the author of Playing Changes: Jazz for the New Century (2018) and the co-author of George Wein’s autobiography Myself Among Others: A Life in Music (2003).
Nate Chinen on social media
Rudresh Mahanthappa left his cape and tights at home. But on this late-January afternoon, he’s leaping into action without them. The alert, brawny sound of … Read More “Rudresh Mahanthappa: Being a Hero Is Hard Work”
To some observers, jazz was in mortal danger after the 1960s, until Wynton and the Young Lions arrived. Nate Chinen sees things differently, and in … Read More “Nate Chinen on ’70s and ’80s Jazz”
Sometimes, when it comes to the impeccable, incontrovertible jazz singer Cécile McLorin Salvant, the devil really is in the details. Survey her performing career, which … Read More “Cécile McLorin Salvant: The Ghost Writer”
First comes the beat: Jack DeJohnette whips up an elliptical funk rhythm, combining a metronomic ride cymbal with a hiccupping kick and snare. Larry Grenadier … Read More “Hudson: Upstate New York’s Supergroup”
Maybe it was the sight of Cecil Taylor, resplendent in shiny fabrics, at one end of a cavernous gallery at the Whitney Museum of American … Read More “Transcendence in Common: The Year in Gigs”
Jason Stein’s Locksmith Isidore walked onstage one night in October in semidarkness, to the bombast of a blockbuster rap hit. “Started from the bottom, now … Read More “The Gig: Jason Stein”
Melody and mood guide the singer’s latest, “All the Dreams”
Nate Chinen reflects on the unsung brilliance of the late pianist
“Unheard Bird” is a holy grail for Charlie Parker devotees
Jeff Parker, a guitarist best known for his work in the experimental Chicago rock band Tortoise, favors a clean tone with a judicious hint of … Read More “Jeff Parker: The New Breed”
Can the piano phenom find his personal voice while coming of age in the spotlight?
Two new collections illuminate the range of a groundbreaking critic
A young guitar god you need to hear
Jazz’s past bests its present in worthwhile if flawed new book
Expansive focus
On the state of the studio
The New Orleanian settles comfortably into the role of talkshow bandleader
DeJohnette, Salvant, Lloyd, Schneider and D’Angelo among the year’s best
Body & soul
The embodiment of a dialogue between jazz and pop
An egoless plane
Nate Chinen on trumpeter Marquis Hill
The jazz of King
Sorting out the Billie Holiday centennial onslaught
Consummate lead player, a surefooted improviser, an impeccable technician and a generous mentor
What’s in a domain name?
Jazz, hashtags and protest: a means of expression
From Marsalis to Lage to Iyer, plenty of memorable nights
Is his “You’re Dead!” a corrective or an anomaly?
Magical mundane
