Director Stanley Nelson’s new documentary Miles Davis: Birth of the Cool makes for an absorbing watch. Nelson uses rare archival footage, photos and interviews with musicians to paint us a complex picture of this famous and complicated musician and composer. The film is named after the 1957 seminal album Birth of Cool, which is considered as an… Continue Reading
What a great way to start off the 2018 San Jose Jazz Summer Fest with one of America’s well-known party band – Kool & The Gang. The celebration time starts on Friday, Aug 10, 2018 and continues till Sunday, Aug 12, 2018. (This post was updated on Aug 11, 2018 to reflect chances in the schedule.)… Continue Reading
We sat down to speak with Dr. Aaron Lington and Chris Motter on jazz and jazz improvisation. Dr. Lington shares how technology has changed the way people play and learn to play jazz. There is a lot students can do with technology today he shares. Mother shares how he uses technology to transcribe the music on his… Continue Reading
Dr. Aaron Lington and Chris Motter play their version of Bags’ Groove, a well-known jazz tune by Milt Jackson. Dr. Lington shares how they have funkified their version and explains how they improvised this well-known jazz number. Dr. Lington is an educator, composer and arranger, who teaches at San Jose State University. Motter is a… Continue Reading
Today is Ella Fitzgerald birthday, one of the greatest jazz singers in the world. She was born on April 25, 1917 in Virginia Beach. She was 21 years old when she recorded “A-Tisket, A-Tasket,” which sold over a million copies. For the next 50 years she performed and sang in various venues around the world. She recorded… Continue Reading
Dr. Aaron Lington is baritone saxophonist, composer/arranger and jazz professor at San Jose State University (SJSU). He is also involved with the San Jose Jazz and is the director of the San Jose High School All Stars band. And he is also a member of San Francisco bay area’s Grammy winning group Pacific Mambo Orchestra… Continue Reading
This year’s San Jose Jazz Summerfest ((August 8-10, 2014) was a treat for your ears, eyes and soul. For 3 days I heard all kinds of music from jazz, hot jazz, blues, mambo, salsa, zydeco, gypsy and soul in various venues in downtown San Jose. This was the 25th year of the festival organized by San… Continue Reading
The Kamla Show 