Jazz With Marty Friedman

The Sunday Jazz Brunch Presents Hot Off The Press Air Date: 11/26/2023 on 90.5 WICN 8am-12pm ET   or later in the Archives Here are your very brief summaries of a selection of new material that has arrived at WICN.  Affinity Trio Eric Jacobson leads a trumpet-based trio with piano and bass. The thing you'll notice right away about Mr. Jacobson is his tone. It is extremely clean and precise. With excellent accompaniment, he is a pleasure to listen to.  Donna Singer/Ranses Colon I love the double bass. Here we have basically a duet with vocalist. The sound is exciting as the bass essentially plays rhythm and harmony, as only a bass can do. Don't Hurry Love is a tune you don't want to miss in the second hour of the show. Michael Morreale If you listened to the Musican's Corner a few weeks back with Mr. Morreale, you'll know what a good pianist he is, although he bills himself as primarily a trumpeter. I had asked him if he would consider doing an all-piano album, and

The Sunday Jazz Brunch Presents Muscian's Corner: Debbie Spring Air Date: 11/19/2023 on 90.5 WICN 8am-12pm ET CLICK HERE TO LISTEN Do an internet search for 'jazz viola' and you won't get very much. Four or five names pop up on Wikipedia, mostly violin players who also happen to occasionally play viola. Add to this, over the many thousands of CDs I have listened to during my tenure at WICN, I do not recall ever coming across a jazz viola player.  Until now. Miami's Debbie Spring joins me on this edition of the Sunday Jazz Brunch to talk about the viola in jazz as well as her new CD, Tocamos . You'll hear all about her instrument. And not only is the instrument itself unusual and unique in jazz, but additionally, it is unique even among violas. This is because it has five strings, whereas a typical viola has only four.    Tune in  at 10am ET  to hear this edition of Musician's Corner. What you'll hear when we play the songs from the CD is a beautifully wa

The Sunday Jazz Brunch Presents Sunday's Playlist Air Date: 11/12/2023 on 90.5 WICN 8am-12pm ET If you miss the show, you can always listen for up to two weeks from our online archive . HOUR ONE: Contemplative Morning David Hazeltine, Peter Washington & Louis Hayes-The Classic Trio-05 Catherine's Fantasy 1997 Hélio Alves-It's Clear-06 It's Clear-2009 Dianne Reeves-A Little Moonlight-03 Reflections 2003 Noah Haidu\Standards 2023\Old Folks Jackie Ryan-This Heart of Mine-14 Seasons of the Heart 2003 Joe Locascio\November The Music of Phil Gurlik 2023\Lost River Waltz Ben Black\-Ben-Black-Mystery-and-Wonder 2021\South Paul Winter & Oscar Castro-Neves-Brazilian Days 1998-05 Minha Namorada Carrie Wicks-Barely There-02 Dandelion Gone 2012 Nnenna Freelon\Time Traveler 2021\You Make Me Feel Brand New Cathy Segal-Garcia-Dreamsville-08 You are There 2019 HOUR TWO: New For You Michael Weiss\Homage 2023\We Love Horace Robin McKelle\Impressions of Ella 2023\I Won't Dance

Noah Haidu (Photo by Chris Drukker) The Sunday Jazz Brunch Presents What's Going On Air Date: 11/5/2023 on 90.5 WICN 8am-12pm ET No, nothing here about Marvin Gaye. Sorry! Just some musings this week as we revisit a show from a few months ago.  As I write this I'm listening to songs you'll hear in an upcoming show, like Chris Standring playing Giant Steps , or a new tune from Brian Simpson that just makes me feel good, or a really great version of Cole Porter's Dream Dancing from vocalist Linda Purl. I could go on an on, but wait a minute, aren't I supposed to write about this show? Ok you got me. So about this show. This is the one that includes a Musician's Corner interview with pianist Noah Haidu, showcasing his new CD Standards , which features Buster Williams. If you missed it, then here's a good chance to catch it again, and read about it here . Just before that, check out the juxtoposition of Charlie Parker and Greg Abate, two of my favorite alto sax

The Sunday Jazz Brunch Presents Guest Column: Photography and Jazz II By Mitch Bleier Air Date: 10/29/2023 on 90.5 WICN 8am-12pm ET This is the second in a series of guest columns about the intersection of jazz and other arts - in this case photography. Read the first column here . Contact Mitch at mb626rsd@gmail.com or @mitch.bleier on Instagram. Musicians connect and communicate with the audience mostly with the sounds they produce, but also emotionally. They provide novel sonic experiences and tap into the familiar in their shared cultures. Los Hacheros at Wave Hill Garden Bronx, New York, July 2023 by Mitch Bleier The still photographer tries to communicate the energy, excitement, soul, virtuosity, and other qualities of a performance without the benefit of sound or motion. Usually the photographer is a documentarian, capturing and sharing moments in time for the viewer without her/himself being part of the story. Mario Santana/Sancocho Band at Rosendale (NY) Street Festival Jul

The Sunday Jazz Brunch Presents An Hour of International Jazz Air Date: 10/22/2023  on 90.5 WICN 8am-12pm ET If you miss the show: click here . But, try not to miss the third hour of The Sunday Jazz Brunch if you want to hear jazz from around the world. That's right, I've got quite a few countries represented here, and you'll want to hear the whole thing, like a trip around the world.  We start off with Armagos, from Greece. His piano playing is ethereal. Then Fahir Atakoğlu, a Turkish artist with a song sung in Spanish. I have Andrea Bocelli with a song in Italian from "The Godfather''. Kristine Mills Andy Narell is from Queens, NY but he might as well be from Trinidad. We'll hear him on the steel pan.  Kristine Mills gives us a unique version of Jobim's Meditation , for a hint of Brazil. The second set opens with a couple of songs in French, one sung by an American, Dee Dee Bridgewater, and the other by an Italian, Mafalda Minnozzi. Karryn Allyson giv

The Sunday Jazz Brunch Presents All The Latest Air Date: 10/15/2023 on 90.5 WICN 8am-12pm ET With respect to jazz, we live in a fantastic time. There is so much talent today. It amazes me how many really good releases we receive at WICN every week. Here are some of the best that have come in recently, all of which you will hear on the next editon of the Sunday Jazz Brunch. Don Braden Who says that computer engineers can't play jazz? Tenor saxophonist Don Braden is a living example that the two can fit together quite nicely.  The Harvard-educated computer engineer is considered a top-flight jazz artist, and this is borne out in his new tribute release honoring the music of Earth, Wind, and Fire and Stevie Wonder.  If you are like me, you grew up with this music, and it is great to hear it given new life by an accomplished artist. Chris Botti Chris Botti (by Randall Slavin) “I turned 60 in 2022, at a time that seemed like a restart for so many things in the world,” says Mr. Botti.  “

The Sunday Jazz Brunch Presents Musician's Corner: Michael Morreale Air Date: 10/8/2023 on 90.5 WICN 8am-12pm ET LISTEN TO THE SEGMENT HERE If you were to interview a jazz trumpet player, the first question you might ask could be 'what trumpet players have influenced you and who do you listen to?' However, after listening to Michael Morreale's original composition Bill Must Have Played This ,  I knew that a pianist was living inside the trumpeter.  Sure, we know that Mr. Morreale loves Miles - after all, a few years ago he released a two-CD set of the music of Miles Davis.  But something tells me that Bill Evans has a special place in his heart.  Two Songs We will talk about two songs from his CD, a horn number called Thad and Mel , and the aforementioned piano ballad, Bill Must Have Played This. As Mr. Morreale tells us, the first track is a tribute to Thad Jones and Mel Lewis. He reminds us that their big band still plays at the Village Vanguard after many decades -

The Sunday Jazz Brunch Presents Musician's Corner: Doug Richards Air Date: 9/24/2023 on 90.5 WICN 8am-12pm ET LISTEN TO THE SEGMENT HERE Doug Richards is a professor of music at Virginia Commonwealth University. He also founded the school’s jazz program in 1980. His former students include Steve Wilson, James Genus, Clarence Penn, and other well-known jazz artists. He is the arranger and conductor on Through A Sonic Prism , his latest release, a big-band tribute to the great Brazilian composer Antonio Carlos Jobim. "Jobim fits in an exalted club with the likes of Barber, Copland, Ellington, Strayhorn, Monk, Mingus, Sondheim, Rodgers, Gershwin, Kern, Ravel, Stravinsky and Mahler,” says Richards.  “During the pandemic I began exploring Jobim’s songs, and when I got to ‘Ligia’ I knew I wanted to construct a framework that would complement its beautiful design. I approached this album mainly as writing for a group of chamber ensembles, often in contrapuntal fashion. Standard hom

The Sunday Jazz Brunch Presents An Intimate Concert You Don't Want to Miss Air Date: 9/17/2023 on 90.5 WICN 8am-12pm ET On Sunday October 1 at 11am Studio 50 will host a very special performance by Mafalda Minnozzi . WICN has formed a bond with this internationally-recognized vocalist.  Her albums are filled with human emotion. She sings songs that we know and love with beauty and compassion.  Ms. Minnozzi will appear live with her music director/guitarist Paul Ricci, and they will perform songs from their new CD, Natural Impression . Purchase tickets by clicking on this link. Even if you cannot make it to the performance, call us anyway to donate to your favorite radio station, WICN. And thanks so much for listening to The Sunday Jazz Brunch. Best, Marty  

The Sunday Jazz Brunch Presents Musician's Corner: Benny Benack III Air Date: 8/27/2023 on 90.5 WICN 8am-12pm ET Benny Benack III LISTEN TO THE SEGMENT HERE On the next edition of Musician's Corner, we have the very talented trumpeter, vocalist, and composer - Benny Benack III, to talk about his new album Third Time's The Charm .  Released in June 2023, the CD features top-flight artists like Peter Bernstein on guitar and Emmet Cohen on keyboards. I have been playing tracks from this CD for the last few weeks, and enjoying them thoroughly. Mr. Benack has been compared to Chet Baker, another artist noted as a trumpeter and singer. He has been chosen in the Downbeat Jazz Magazine 2023 Critics Poll as a Male Jazz Vocalist Rising Star and also as a Trumpet Rising Star. The CD has a mix of jazz and jazzified pop standards, as well as some original tunes. Mr. Benack will pick one out of the fourteen tunes on the CD, a song made famous by singer Tom Jones. You'll find this tal