Lloyd Swanton of the Necks and The catholics has passed on the following information. SYDNEY MORNING HERALD DRASTICALLY CUTTING BACK ALBUM REVIEWS, we assume that it's sister paper the Age will also be doing the same. "If you are a lover of music, and Australian music in particular, you will be as concerned as I am that the Sydney Morning Herald print edition has all but dropped album reviews." Is it the same with the Age? "The Short List is… Read more

Festival Start date End Date Website Riverboats Music Festival, Echuca Feb 15 2013 Feb 17 2013 www.riverboatsmusic.com.au Adelaide Fringe Fri 15 Feb 2013 Sun 17 March 2013 www.alelaidefringe.com.au Clarence Jazz Festival, TAS Feb 17 2013 Feb 24 2013 http://www.ccc.tas.gov.au/jazz Perth International Arts Festival Mar 2 2013 April 8 2013 http://www.perthfestival.com.au/What%27s-On/#category=[985] 2013 Adelaide Festival Mar 1 2013 Mar 17, 2013… Read more

Jazz Queensland is excited to announce Brisbane’s inaugural International Jazz Festival to be held from May 29th to June 6th 2013. The festival is a much anticipated event among the Qld music community and is poised to be one of the largest and most diverse festivals of its kind in Australia. Jazz Qld president Lynette Irwin says she is thrilled to unveil Brisbane's premier festival of jazz, announcing the first round of key artists to headline… Read more

Having long been a fan of Etta James, it is good to see a show that celebrates her music, which kept on coming despite an often stormy life. Her career spanned around 50 years, rather an achievement given the drugs and turbulence until the latter part of her life. The strength of Vika Bull's voice does justice to Jame’s high octane powerful numbers. Though of course, Etta’s voice was so rich and oozing with sass and soul that finding a musical… Read more

The 11th annual Australian Jazz Bell Awards celebrated our diverse and world-class jazz industry. The 2013 Australian Jazz Bell Award winners are: The winner of the TarraWarra Estate Best Australian Jazz Vocal Album - Chris McNulty with ‘The Song That Sings You Here’ The winner of the Palace Cinemas Most Original Australian Jazz Album - Marc Hannaford with ‘Sarcophile’ The winner of the Ubertas Group Best Australian Contemporary Jazz Album -… Read more

Many who watch popular TV around the country are tuned into the Voice, is it a good thing or bad thing that artists who sit firmly in the jazz cannon, Emma Pask and Josh Kyle have made it through the battle rounds? Or is jazz so far removed from popular culture that it is not on the register? For another take on a classic "Voice" these images celebrate the legendary jazz vocalist Ella Fitzgerald (1917-1996), who would have been 96 on April 25.… Read more

Interview between Joe Zawinal and Matt McMahon in 2002. I first became aware of Joe Zawinul’s music when I heard my brother Michael’s copy of Weather Report’s “Heavy Weather”. I’ve been a fan ever since – enjoying his playing with Cannonball Adderley, Miles Davis, Weather Report and many other projects. His approach to music always exhibited a focus on inventive ensemble playing - from Cannonball’s soulful group to Miles’ open ended,… Read more

Best wishes to Dale Barlow who is representing Australia this year at the request of the Thelonious Monk Institute and Herbie Hancock at the International Jazz day in Istanbul. As you can see from the programme below, I'm performing with Terence Blanchard, Terri-Lynn Carrington, James Genus. Then we're all playing 'A night in Tunisia with Herbie Hancock at the end. It'll be loads of fun! It's a huge event, and will gather momentum over time.… Read more

The Music Council of Australia is conducting a survey of successful contemporary musicians to discover what role music education has played in their careers. They will use the information in our advocacy for better school music education and perhaps also discover gaps that musicians would like filled. Would you be willing to do a survey? It will only take a few minutes of your time and it could help a lot of kids. There are serious problems with… Read more