Flugelhornist and trumpeter Franco Ambrosetti was born on December 10, 1941 in Lugano, Switzerland. The son of saxophonist Flavio Ambrosetti, he studied classical piano during 1952-59 but was largely self-taught on the trumpet which he began playing when he was 17 in 1959. Ambrosetti, who earned an economics degree from the University of Basel, has […]

Mike Lang passed away on Aug. 5, 2022 at the age of 80. He was born on Dec. 10, 1941 in Los Angeles and graduated from the University of Michigan in 1963 with a music degree. Among those who Lang studied with was Lalo Schifrin, a jazz pianist-composer and very busy composer for motion pictures […]

Louis Prima was born December 7, 1911 in New Orleans, Louisiana. The younger brother of trumpeter Leon Prima, Louis Prima had violin lessons starting when he was seven but taught himself trumpet when he was 13. He played in local New Orleans bands until 1932 when he moved to New York, at first joining Red […]

Pianist, leader and composer Dave Brubeck was born December 6, 1920 in Concord, California. Brubeck grew up near San Francisco and took piano lessons early on from his mother but did not learn to read music, hiding that flaw with his great ear. While attending the College of the Pacific, Brubeck was nearly expelled when […]

During the past five years, Joel Ross has emerged as one of jazz’s top vibraphonists. His creative playing is very much in evidence during this version of “Gato’s Gift” from 2022. Joined by pianist Jeremy Corren, bassist Kanca Mendenhall, and drummer Joe Dyson, Ross follows a thoughtful bass solo with his own improvisation which builds […]

Composer and arranger Johnny Mandel passed away on June 29, 2020 at the age of 94. He was born on Nov. 23, 1925 in New York City. Mandel had piano lessons and then spent time playing the trumpet and trombone, studying at the Manhattan School of Music and Juilliard. As a trombonist, he worked with […]

Pianist William Smith was born on November 23, 1893 in Goshen, New York. Smith picked up the nickname “The Lion” for his bravery in WWI combat. Smith, along with James P. Johnson and Fats Waller, was considered one of the masters of stride piano, a solo style born in 1920s Harlem. Always well known among […]

Aimée Allen is a jazz singer who is getting better known each year. She gained early experience singing with an acappela jazz group in college, moved to Paris where she performed regularly, including in her group Les Bossa Novices, and relocated to New York City where she has worked with such notables as Romero Lubambo, […]

Pianist Fred Hersch was born on October 21, 1955, in Cincinnati, Ohio, United States A major and influential pianist since at least the mid-1980s, Fred Hersch has been among the most consistent of jazz performers, always playing music of great value and never compromising his playing for potential commercial appeal. One could say that Hersch’s […]

Bassist Steve Swallow was born October 4, 1940 in Fair Lawn, New Jersey. He studied piano and trumpet before settling on the string bass when he was 14. After studying composition at Yale, in 1960 he dropped out of school, settled in New York, and became a member of the Jimmy Giuffre Trio which also […]