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Newport Jazz 2021: Day 1

Two years ago around this time, they had a jazz festival in Newport, R.I., the same way they have for decades. One year ago, as … Read More “Newport Jazz 2021: Day 1”

Live Review: The 65th Newport Jazz Festival, for the First Time

I have a confession to make: Before this year, I’d never been to the Newport Jazz Festival. Growing up in and around Boston with a jazz-fan dad, I was certainly aware of the festival and its long history. I listened to classic albums recorded live at Newport. Every year our local public television station would … Read More

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Live Review: George Wein’s “One More Once” at Newport

On Thursday, August 1, the evening before the official start of the 65th Newport Jazz Festival, George Wein, the festival’s original organizer and longtime leader, … Read More “Live Review: George Wein’s “One More Once” at Newport”

2018 Newport Jazz Festival: Special Recap

In between bouts of torrential rain and sticky heat, hundreds of musicians played for tens of thousands of listeners over the course of three days (Aug. 3-5) at the 2018 Newport Jazz Festival in Newport, R.I. Writers and photographers for JazzTimes were there for the entirety of the festival; Jim Macnie shared his top 10 … Read More

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Field Notes: Newport 2017, Day Three

“I view the [jazz] tradition as being like the roots of a tree,” the bassist Christian McBride told JT writer Nate Chinen in 2013. “But you can’t just have the roots. Something’s got to grow out of that: different branches, leaves, the tree’s going to get taller.” That’s a familiar set of metaphors that are also … Read More

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Field Notes: Newport 2017, Day Two

There’s a very true cliché that jazz musicians, producers, promoters and other industry folks like to deploy in case of emergency, when something that had been carefully planned goes awry. It goes something like: Jazz musicians can improvise, so this unexpected logistical hiccup is really just another opportunity for inspired spontaneity. It came in handy … Read More

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Field Notes: Newport 2017, Day One

There’s a story, an angle to the Newport Jazz Festival this year, other than the long-running narrative about it being an enduring institution of jazz and, by extension, a pearl of American culture. Twenty-seventeen marks the first edition under the artistic directorship of bassist, composer and broadcaster Christian McBride, alongside the festival’s feted co-founder George … Read More

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