Category Archives: Lectures

October 8, 2018 · 12:29 pm

Queen Mary 2 Jazz Lectures (Playlist 1: The Great Jazz Singers 1950-Present)

Thanks to everyone who attended my jazz history talks last week on the Queen Mary 2 during its voyage from Quebec to Nova Scotia to New York. I got a few requests to post the playlists, so here’s the first one, covering “The Great Jazz Singers (1950-Present).”

Queen Mary - Jazz Lecture

The Great Jazz Singers (1950-Present) Playlist

“A Tisket, A Tasket” – Ella Fitzgerald w/Chick Webb Orchestra (1938).
“Blue Skies” – Ella Fitzgerald (from Get Happy, 1959)
“You Make Me Feel So Young” – Frank Sinatra, w/Count Basie Orchestra conducted by Quincy Jones (live video, 1965)
“Tenderly” – Sarah Vaughan (live video, 1958)
“I Fall in Love Too Easily” – Chet Baker, from Chet Baker Sings (1958)
“Chega de Saudade” – João Gilberto from album Chega de Saudade (1959)
“Every Day I Have the Blues” – Lambert, Hendricks & Ross w/Joe Williams and Count Basie (live video from Playboy’s Penthouse TV show, 1959)
“No Love Dying” – Gregory Porter (live video from CBS This Morning 2013)
“I Wish That I Could Shimmy Like My Sister Kate” – Cecile McLorin Salvant (live video from KNKX Public Radio, 2014)
“Marrakesh Express” – Accent (video from AccentVocal.com, 2018)
“Look For The Silver Lining” – Tony Bennet & Bill Charlap, promo video for album of the same name, 2015

I moderated a panel at L.I.U.-Post’s “Jazz Day” on March 3

Joining me in the Career Pathways in Jazz panel were (l-r) Prof. Jeff Lederer; guitarist Al Marino, and drummer Brad Sporkin.

I had the pleasure of moderating a panel discussion on “Career Pathways in Jazz” as part of L.I. University-C.W. Post’s annual “Jazz Day” on Saturday, March 3. Joining me in discussing what it takes to make a career in jazz (and other genres of music) were saxophonist/clarinetist and Post professor Jeff Lederer; recent Post music graduate and working guitarist Al Marino; and my friend, the drummer Brad Sporkin. We also had some great contributions from pianist/bandleader Richie Iacona, also a Post professor. Thanks so much to Jeff; LIU Director of Music Education Dr. Jennifer Miceli; and University Director of Arts Advancement Brian Hoeflschweiger for inviting me.

Coming up: more jazz history lectures on the Queen Mary 2 and at L.I. libraries

QM2 voyage to Norway - Flaam

I’m excited to announce that I’ll be presenting about jazz history aboard Cunard’s Queen Mary 2 again this summer and fall. First up will be a voyage from Southampton, England to the fjords of Norway, July 13-21, including the tiny village of Flaam, pictured above. Please consider joining me if you can! The beautiful Queen Mary 2 is one of the greatest cruising experiences in the world. For more information on this trip, visit Cunard’s website. (Feel free to email me if you have questions.) And on November 5-12, I’ll be a guest speaker on a transatlantic crossing, Southampton-New York.

Much closer to home, I’ll be speaking at the Freeport Memorial Library (on Merrick Road in Freeport) again on Sunday, May 21 at 2:30 p.m. My subject will be “A Brief History of Modern Jazz Piano: From Bud Powell to Herbie Hancock and Beyond,” complete with rare film clips and audio. Admission is free. I’ll announce the event on Facebook soon.