Saxophonist Walter Smith III, a Berklee College of Music alumnus who most recently taught jazz studies at Indiana University, has been named chair of the Boston school’s woodwind department. He starts May 1. Smith recently released his fifth album as a leader, and he is an accomplished educator, composer, and performer. His résumé includes touring…Read More

Jazz House Kids, the dynamic and growing community arts organization, had just eight students when it first launched in Montclair, N.J., in 2002. Founded by Melissa Walker, a jazz vocalist and educator, the organization has since served more than 50,000 young people, who have performed for over half a million music fans. On April 17, Jazz…Read More

Cecil Taylor, the pioneering free-jazz pianist, was 89 when he passed away last year on this day, April 5. In his memory, Bay Area poet and jazz singer Lisa B released a single, “Cecil Taylor: I Am an Orchestra,” a few days before the anniversary of his death. The single pays homage to Taylor and…Read More

Twenty-two activists, advocates, altruists, aiders and abettors of jazz in 20 U.S. cities were announced as 2019 Jazz Heroes by the Jazz Journalists Association on April 1. The award winners, from Amherst, Mass. to Los Angeles, and from Seattle to south Florida, are presenters, educators, nonprofit administrators, public faces of grassroots organizations, and in several…Read More

Google is paying tribute to jazz great Hugh Masekela today, April 4, on what would have been the anti-apartheid champion’s 80th birthday. The South African trumpeter, who has been described as “the father of South African jazz,” has been honored with a Google Doodle, seen on the search engine’s homepage. At 14, Masekela got his…Read More

Rapper Common, saxophonist Gary Bartz, and singer Sheila Jordan are among the latest wave of artists announced for this year’s Newport Jazz Festival, set for Aug. 2 through 4. Other performers announced by the festival on Tuesday include Tank and the Bangas, Ralph Peterson and the Messenger Legacy, Kandace Springs, Women of the World, James…Read More

The 40th annual Detroit Jazz Festival is going to be a homecoming of sorts, as organizers prepare to welcome back several prominent artists to the festival’s stage. Set for Friday, Aug. 30 through Monday, Sept. 2, the world’s largest free (of charge) jazz festival features bass virtuoso Stanley Clarke as the 2019 Artist-in-Residence. Clarke had…Read More

Keystone Korner, the San Francisco and (later) Tokyo club that hosted many legendary jazz performances in the ’70s, ’80s, and ’90s, is coming back, this time in Baltimore. NEA Jazz Master Todd Barkan—Keystone Korner’s owner since 1972—and Michelin-starred chef Robert Wiedmaier are relaunching the club in the city’s Harbor East section, which is undergoing a revitalization. The…Read More

The 42nd edition of the country’s longest-running free jazz festival will include performances from Makaya McCraven, Stefon Harris, and many more in Atlanta, Ga., this Memorial Day weekend. The Atlanta Jazz Festival is set for Saturday, May 25, and Sunday, May 26, in Piedmont Park. The festival, presented by the City of Atlanta’s Mayor’s Office…Read More

The New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival is currently without a headliner as the Rolling Stones have canceled their appearance. On March 30, Jazz Fest confirmed the band would not perform after reports surfaced that frontman Mick Jagger was experiencing health problems. In a tweet, the band said Jagger’s doctors advised him not to play.…Read More