Event reviews, movie reviews, and anything that isn’t an Album Review or Book Review.
I remember reading Bill Hoffman’s fine column last year in The Syncopated Times describing his first visit to a West Coast Ragtime Festival (WCRF) and
This film has received a lot of kudos and I can understand why: it’s an excellent piece of filmmaking. There are no energy let-downs throughout
Rhonda and Jeff Cardinal did it, they pulled off the 2020 virtual Jazz Jubilee by the Sea. When Covid hit in March we really thought
W.C. Handy lived the American Dream during the time that the nature of that dream crystallized around larger than life men like Thomas Edison and
Just when you thought it could not be done, the Sutter Creek Ragtime Pandemic was held on August 15, 2020. This event reminds me of
The Basin Street Regulars had finally lined up a band for its March Sunday session and it looked like it was going to be a
What is the best way to spend a Thursday night on the California Central Coast? The best way is by a warm fire, with a
On the second weekend in February the Doubletree Hotel in downtown Fresno was filled with the “Sounds of Mardi Gras.” All four venues are located
A plenitude of pleasures delighted fans who filled Rancho Cordova’s elegant Marriott Hotel and then some as the 33rd annual West Coast Ragtime Festival opened
I have attended quite a few jazz festivals over the years, but none like the Mike Durham’s Classic Jazz Party in Whitley Bay. If I
I just returned from Suncoast Jazz Festival in Clearwater, Florida. Let’s cut to the chase. It was outstanding in every respect; organization, music, venue and
If you’re reading The Syncopated Times, you’re no doubt familiar with the Whitley Bay Classic Jazz Party in Newcastle-Upon-Tyne, England. Co-organizer Jonathan David Holmes and
Most musicians can name milestone moments in their careers where they were introduced to something that changed their perspective on the art. One that stands
Jazz Jubilee by the Sea, held October 24 to 27 on California’s Central Coast, presented a spectrum of early jazz and swing but spotlighted trad,
For those who have not had the pleasure of attending the Classic Jazz Party, it’s hard to explain what a sheer joy and intense musical
The 2019 Jazz Jubilee by the Sea was a real blow-out. World-renowned New Orleans busking-band Tuba Skinny made their first-ever West Coast festival appearance. In
The last thing I expected from my 10th annual visit to the Pershore Jazz Festival was the premiere of an unreleased Benny Goodman tune. Yet
A surfeit of syncopation descended on Southern California’s Orange County on September 7 as RagFest 2019 attracted a goodly complement of enthusiasts to revel in
How does one summarize a four-day festival? Let’s start with the setting. The program lists 35 bands, not all OKOM, or at least my kind
When Marty McGinnis, President of the Valley Jazz Club, announced that Wally Holmes was coming out of retirement, I couldn’t believe my ears. I asked
Northern California’s gold rush town of Sutter Creek, in the Sierra foothills southeast of Sacramento, hosted its annual ragtime festival August 9-11 this year under
Ascona has been described as “ridiculously picturesque” and it is. On the shores of Lake Maggiore in Southern Switzerland, with the mountains sweeping down to
Peter and Will Anderson, twin reed virtuosi, warmed up for their annual Songbook Summit concert series with a well-attended show in the Shea Performing Arts
Veronica Swift, just 25 and the most sought-after young jazz singer on the scene, hit the RIJF for the second time in two years, playing
