Seeing The UnSwung Heroes in concert was an emotional roller coaster. Their website promised a New Orleans-style “Dixieland” outfit (forgive them the term—we haven’t really
Many of us have not heard from Matthew de Lacey Davidson for some time. Though he is now retired from performing, his ragtime recordings are
The pandemic has brought naught but misery to a lot of musicians, no doubt about it. When artists look back on these two years—and hopefully
Keenan McKenzie has his own bands: the Riffers are a popular dance-oriented swing combo with a three-horn front line, while the Keenan McKenzie Orchestra is
For some musicians, jazz is the music they play but for multi-talented Gunhild Carling, jazz is her life. She grew up surrounded by it and
What is authentic swing music? It depends who you ask. Plenty of modern outfits advertise themselves as “authentic” swing musicians—many of them function bands, sporting
While The Syncopated Times this year celebrates its fifth anniversary, Jane Monheit marks her 20th year as a professional jazz singer with the release of
The Fungus Five plus Two (“our music grows on you,”) the Gutbucket Syncopators, Waldo’s Ragtime Orchestra, and The Gotham City Jazz Band are only a
Ask a top swing dancer (or any swing dancer) what first brought them to the hobby, and most will reply: “the music.” Less often does
“I’m going to miss this epidemic,” more than a few jocular Facebook and Instagram visitors are sentimentally waxing about the eventual end to the miraculous,
Danny Tobias has been a fixture on the jazz scene for a long time, playing with Kenny Davern, the Midiri Brothers, and many others. Unlike
Growing up in Massachusetts, Dan Gabel was introduced to the mellow sounds of Tommy Dorsey’s trombone at the age of 10 when he was in
Jazz is pretty powerful stuff: it can move us to tears, or it can move us to dance all night long. But can it help
Was your 2020 a bit of a let-down? Mine was. I’d just moved to a new city. I had big plans for my little business,
When Japanese bombing of Pearl Harbor occurred December 7, 1941, I was ten years old. I had an older brother who graduated from high school
Multi-talented Ramona S. Baker is the daughter of Clint Baker (“Preserving the Fire of Early Jazz,” TST, June 2020) and sister of Riley Baker (“Swingin’
A new, informed, traditional-jazz/blues/ragtime duo is not taking New York’s shutdown sitting down, but they are taking it in their “stride.” Against all odds, they’re
For the years when Jean and I could stay awake until after 11:00 pm, we were big fans of The Tonight Show, especially its band;
It’s tempting to describe Jen Hodge—female bassist, bandleader, composer, arranger and singer—as a rare phenomenon. But that’s not how she saw herself, growing up surrounded
When the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic hit the United States, like thousands of musicians, Tony DeSare saw his jammed packed tour schedule quickly dwindle down to
Lew Shaw thanks his lucky stars that he was born in 1926. That meant he came of age—as a man and as a music fan—at
Benedikt Brydern is the rare musician that has carved out a niche in hot jazz and swing and is also in demand in other genres.
Michael Steinman is a videographer and writer whose JAZZ LIVES blog attracts avid readers from around the globe. Hal Smith: For those who have been
Pre-Banjo Years Music and playing music came fairly early in my life, but not on the banjo. I vaguely remember taking a year of piano
