It seems that jazz in Sydney has definitely turned the corner as a far as venues go. The signs have been there for some time but with the announcement that new club Foundry616 will kick off soon in Ultimo - perhaps the optimism is justified. Numerous venue closures have occurred over the years – including the popular Side On Café – so it has been a slow process of growth since 2010, with 'Venue 505' and then the 'The Dome' helping to revive the… Read more

It was an unbelievable coup. When volunteer VJ's impresario Mark Ginsburg announced the advent of The Ernie Watts Quartet, I was staggered. There could be no more deserving venue than VJ's, but how did it get the jump on the more obvious ones? I still don't really know. And it doesn't really matter. The important thing is, it did. Ernest James Watts is a phenomenon. He's won two Grammys (somewhat ironically, for Best Pop Instrumental and Best R… Read more

Saxophonist/composer Matt Keegan was awarded the 2011 MCA/Freedman Fellowship for Jazz. Below are observations from his project. This article was originally published by the MCA and we thank them for allowing us to share this piece. In 2011 I had the honour of being nominated for the Freedman Fellowship for jazz. My winning proposal was to initiate a cross cultural creative development project between a group of my musical peers from India and… Read more

Jazz. And Jerusalem. For most of us, the last probably wouldn't be the first city we'd think of, in a word association test. Yet, by all reports the Israeli scene is thriving. Omri Mor, who's just shy of thirty, has been playing most of his life. Since the age of seven, to be precise, which puts him in a kind of Mozartian category. For a young Jewish man, his musical tastes are surprisingly catholic. Not surprising, given the breadth and depth… Read more

Questions whilst on the road for winner of eight Grammy Awards: five Grammy Awards and three Latin Grammy and creditor of many doctorates, Dionisio Jesus "Chucho" Valdés Rodríguez is natural from Quivican, Havana Province, Cuba. Born in 1941, Chucho is a pianist, composer, professor of music, musical arranger and director of his own groups began his musical training in his former years, at home, under his father influence of his father "the… Read more

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