In this edition of Liner Notes, Rabbi and jazz historian Neil Blumofe talks about the life and music of the great Alice Coltrane.
jazz
Pharoah Sanders (10.12.14)
Pharoah Sanders is an American jazz saxophonist who came up along side John Coltrane to experiment with “sheets of sound”, and went on to become one of the most inventive composers and musicians in the Avant-garde movement. In this edition of Liner Notes, Rabbi and jazz historian Neil Blumofe, talks about what we can learn about presence and living in the moment, from the life and work of Pharoah Sanders.
Kenny Dorham (8.31.14)
Kenny Dorham was an American jazz trumpeter who worked with Art Blakey, Charlie Parker and Max Roach among others to help craft the bebop style in mid century America. In addition to his work as a sideman he also formed his own group, The Jazz Prophets featuring Bobby Timmons on piano, bassist Sam Jones, and tenorman J.R. Monterose, with guest Kenny Burrell on guitar.
In this edition of Liner Notes Rabbi and jazz historian Neil Blumofe considers to significance of Kenny Dorham the musician and prophet, and allows us to examine the power in the present moment through his work.
Tony Bennett (8.3.14)
Tony Bennett is an American singer and artist who began his career in the wake of WWII and became well known interpreting jazz standards and show tunes. As his career unfolds, and in partnership with his son Danny Bennett, he continues reinvent, not only himself, but also the history of his generation through his daring collaborations.
In this edition of Liner Notes Rabbi and jazz historian Neil Blumofe talks about what Bennett’s life and work can teach us about continuing to challenge our notions of who we are, and in each moment recognize a new becoming.
Johnny Hodges (7.27.14)
Johnny Hodges was an American jazz alto saxophonist best known for his work with Duke Ellington’s big band and Billy Strayhorn. His sound was so smooth and melodic that Duke Ellington said, just his tone could bring a tear to your eye.
In this installment of Liner Notes Rabbi and jazz historian Neil Blumofe talks about what it means to add your voice to an ensemble, and to know that no matter how big of an impression you make it is but a blink of an eye in the cosmic landscape.
What does it mean to be everything and nothing at all? How do we negotiate our place in this universe, holding at the same time the grandeur and insignificance of each moment? Listening to Johnny Hodges we can understand how important it is to give all we have to making of each piece, and know that it is not the same without us and that we are nothing without it.
Johnny Hartman (7.6.14)
Johnny Hartman was an American jazz singer who is perhaps most well known for his collaborations with John Coltrane, yet he also recorded many solo albums in his relatively short career. His voice was smooth and melodic to spite the fact that he smoked heavily all his life. In this installment of Liner Notes Rabbi and jazz historian Neil Blumofe talks about what listening to and understanding the life and legacy of Johnny Hartman can teach us today.
Eric Dolphy (6.29.14)
Eric Dolphy was an American born jazz saxophonist, composer and bass clarinetist who worked with many jazz greats including Charles Mingus to shape a new direction forward for jazz in the 1960s. In this edition of Liner Notes Rabbi and jazz historian Neil Blumofe talks about what Dolphy’s approach to his music and his life can teach us about courage and determination.
George Gershwin (6.22.14)
George Gershwin was an American musician, composer and visionary whose work at the beginning of the 20th century helped to shaped a collective understanding of the American experience. In this installment of Liner Notes Rabbi and jazz historian Neil Blumofe explores the life and legacy George Gershwin.
Jaki Byard (6.15.14)
Jaki Byard was an American jazz multi-instrumentalist and composer who collaborated with many artists, significantly Charles Mingus. He incorporated a range of styles in his approach, from ragtime to bebop, and swing to stride. He spanned years of musical tradition, bringing history into one moment–an eternal now. In this edition of Liner Notes Rabbi Neil Blumofe explores what the music and legacy of Jaki Byard can teach us today.
Yusef Lateef (6.8.14)
Yusef Lateef was an American jazz mufti-instrumentalist, composer and educator who extended the possibilities of what it meant to understand and expand in the jazz genera with a universal sensibility. In this edition of Liner Notes Rabbi and jazz historian Neil Blumofe illustrates what the music and legacy of Lateef and his music can teach us about moving past our own ideas of fulfillment, beyond any limitations, to understand the possibilities and richness in the present moment.
Alfred Lion and Blue Note Records (6.1.14)
Alfred Lion was a German-Jewish born record executive who made his way to the U.S. via South America in the 1930s. He founded Blue Note Records soon after arriving in America and went on to record many legendary jazz artists; helping to shape the sound, image and meaning of jazz in America. In this edition of Liner Notes Rabbi and jazz historian Neil Blumofe explores the significance of Lion’s vision and Blue Note Records.
Miles Davis (5.25.14)
Miles Davis is considered one of the most innovative and influential musicians of the 20th century. He added his voice to the narratives of our culture at significant points, and offered a perspective which considered the sanctity of silence in each moment. In this edition of Liner Notes Rabbi Neil Blumofe acknowledges what Miles Davis can teach us through this approach, not only in music but in our daily lives.
V&B: Time
“Time is the substance I am made of. Time is a river which sweeps me along, but I am the river; it is a tiger which destroys me, but I am the tiger; it is a fire which consumes me, but I am the fire.” –Jorge Luis Borge
What is time? How can rhythm and time phrases bring us into a dialogue with the past? and how much of our relationship to and our knowledge of time is driven by our intuition? Listen back as KUT’s Rebecca McInroy talks with: cosmologist and astrologer, Kerrie Welch; jazz drummer Brannen Temple; and astrophysicist and psychology professor, David Gilden about Time.
Mary Lou Williams (5.11.14)
Mary Lou Williams was a a giant in the jazz world in the beginning of the 20th century. As an arranger, composer and pianist she worked with Duke Ellington and Benny Goodman and went on to mentor jazz legends like Thelonious Monk, Charlie Parker and Miles Davis.
In this installment of Liner Notes Rabbi, jazz historian and musician Neil Blumofe explores how the idea of a “Mother” can be extended beyond our biological lines to include those who love and nurture us, and help to bring us up in this world so we can in turn help and love others.
Happy Mother’s Day!
Professor Longhair (5.4.14)
Professor Longhair, born Henry Roeland Byrd in Louisianan in 1918 was a piano player who shaped the sound of New Orleans’ jazz in the early 20th Century. Much of how we imagine New Orleans, and especially Marti Gras, is flavored and textured by the rhythm created by Professor Longhair. In this edition of Liner Notes Rabbi Neil Blumofe explores what it means explore the New Orleans of today through the ghosts of it’s past.
V&B: Coleman Hawkins and The Art of Failure
Coleman Hawkins, the great saxophone player, helped to establish jazz as a stand alone art form, distinguished from swing — the popular music of the day. With his originality, lyricism, and his keen sense of appreciating the latest trends, his work was the influence and foundation for bebop and the most expressive jazz ballads. And yet, what is the dearest price given for the artist who expresses his art?
Join Rabbi Neil Blumofe and KUT’s Rebecca McInroy for conversation and superlative live music recorded live at the Cactus Cafe in Austin, Texas. It was an evening dedicated to discovering jazz and appreciating the beauty of this incredible and accessible American art form.
Featuring:
Shelly Carrol, saxophone
Ephraim Owens, trumpet
Red Young, piano
Roscoe Beck, bass
Brannen Temple, drums
Lionel Hampton (4.20.14)
Lionel Hampton was was an American jazz vibraphonist, pianist, percussionist, bandleader and actor. In 1936 he was discovered by Benny Goodman and with Goodman’s band he created a space for the vibraphone in popular swing music. He was also a outspoken advocate for Israel in the 50s as well as a civil rights leader.
In this installment of Liner Notes Rabbi and jazz historian Neil Blumofe explores how Hampton’s hard work and dedication to not only his music, but to an ethos of revolution and freedom, allows us to recognize the importance of the private day-to-day work that goes into building a life of worth and meaning.
V&B: Benny Goodman and The Art of Intersection
In this Views and Brews Remix feature on Benny Goodman host Rebecca McInroy and Rabbi Neil Blumofe engage in a spirited discussion about Goodman’s life, music and his relationships to his musicians — specifically, pianist Teddy Wilson, vibraphonist Lionel Hampton, and guitarist Charlie Christian-and some of Austin’s best musicians help us relive Goodman’s style. Featuring: Ben Saffer, clarinet Erik Hokkanen, guitar Red Young, piano Roscoe Beck, bass Brannen Temple, drums.
In the 1930’s, the clarinetist and bandleader, Benny Goodman, brought jazz stylings to mainstream America. What was the lasting significance of Goodman’s contributions beyond the Swing Era? In an age of segregation, creeping fear, and xenophobia, Goodman boldly set forth a new agenda for American music, integrating his band and exasperating the assumptions of culture, sophistication, and assumed ways of life.
What does it mean to be a visionary? How do we balance our dreams and our dramatic idiosyncrasies with the everyday and grueling disciplined life that we must live to make an impact? How do we know if we have been successful? What does success really mean?
V&B: Duke Ellington and Billy Strayhorn and The Art of Invisibility
Billy Strayhorn, a long time muse and collaborator for the great bandleader Duke Ellington, brought depth and a languid power to the already sophisticated sound of Ellington’s orchestra. Aching for love and significance, Strayhorn was openly gay in a time of repression and bias, composing ballads filled with longing and disarming vulnerability, which demanded the full attention of both the listener and the performer.
How do we strive when circumstances are stacked against us? How do we make the best of our situation as we continue to dream? How do we continue to hold out hope for consequential love, as we smolder? Sometimes what we need most, is hidden, right in front of us, in plain sight.
During this evening, we engaged in both a spirited discussion about Strayhorn and his relationships to Ellington — discussing his music, and his legacy — and we enjoyed superlative live music with Ephraim Owens (trumpet), Brannen Temple (drums), Red Young (piano), Chris Maresh (bass), Andre Hayward (trombone) and Sam Lipman (Saxaphone).
V&B: Thelonious Monk and The Art of Hesitation
Thelonious Monk is an original and unique voice in the shaping and the sound of American music. Both his compositions and his inimitable piano playing continue to confound and resound decades after their inception, bringing us to ask questions — how far can one go when listening to your own muse? Does the artist have a responsibility to instruct while creating? Can art just be enjoyed or does it have to vex to be effective? When looking to swing, how important is rhythm? What is said in the silences? These are the questions we set out to explore during what proved to be an inspirational night of ideas and music at the Cactus Cafe.
Listen to some of the highlights from the event with KUT’s Views and Brews Remix featuring Rabbi Neil Blumofe in discussion with KUT’s Rebecca McInroy along with musicians Rich Harney (piano) Roscoe Beck (bass) Brannen Temple (drums) and Sam Lipman (Saxophone) and special guest Ephraim Owens (trumpet).