Trombonist Steve Davis is one of my favorite musicians playing jazz today. We share similar bloodlines, having both studied with Jackie McLean at the Hartt School in Connecticut. After graduation in 1989, Jackie recommended Steve to his old boss Art Blakey, making Steve one of the last musicians to join the Jazz Messengers before Blakey’s [...]

Winnipeg is about to welcome an outstanding jazz musician, gifted educator, and all around great person. Drummer, composer, and bandleader Quincy Davis has been a staple of the New York jazz scene for 10 years, and it is truly exciting to know that his considerable talents on the bandstand and in the classroom will now [...]

I often liken learning jazz to learning a language. If you took a class in Russian and the instructor only opened the textbook, you might piece together a certain amount, maybe even approximate a few sounds. But if I dropped you off in Moscow, you’d be lost. You might recognize a few signs, but you [...]