Year: 2020

Joseph Paice August 14, 2020

Czech multi-instrumentalist Karel Velebný (1931-1989) was a tremendously influential figure on the jazz scene in Czechoslovakia, who died just a...

Joseph Paice August 13, 2020

As musical director of Machito and the Afro-Cubans, Mario Bauzá (1911-1993) was instrumental in founding Afro-Cuban jazz. He was born...

Joseph Paice August 12, 2020

Pianist Irène Schweizer (born 1941) has been at the forefront of European free jazz since the 1960s. She was initially...

Joseph Paice August 11, 2020

I knew in starting this website that I would come across countries where it is hard to say much about...

Joseph Paice August 10, 2020

Saxophonist and flautist Sadao Watanabe (1933) has been a figurehead for Japanese jazz for around seven decades. He was born...

Joseph Paice August 7, 2020

In 1995 saxophonist/clarinettist Tony Coe (born 1934) became the first non-American musician to be awarded the prestigious Jazzpar prize. He...

Joseph Paice August 6, 2020

Trombonist and bandleader Frank Coughlan (1904-1979) has been called the 'father of Australian jazz'. He was born in the small...

Joseph Paice August 5, 2020

Leandro 'Gato' Barbieri (1932-2016) was born in Rosario, Argentina, into a musical family. His uncle was a saxophonist, his brother...

Joseph Paice August 4, 2020

Jazz reached Romania after the first world war. Dance bands would often work with popular singers like Cristian Vasile, Maria...

Joseph Paice August 3, 2020

Swedish jazz singer Monica Zetterlund (1937-2005) was born in the small town of Hagfors. Her father led a local band...