Ep. 31 of Themes and Variation covers some hardcore guilty pleasures with Soundfly Mentor, composer, and educator, Lavender Looi.
Tag: jazz
What Songs Are Gateways Into Enjoying Jazz?
Ep. 30 of Themes and Variation features Peter Martin, jazz pianist and composer, educator, and founder of the e-learning site, Open Studio.
8 Musicians Redefining the Sound of Jazz in 2021
Here’s our rundown of eight of the most exciting new artistic voices in American jazz music in 2021. Enjoy!
The Birth of the Unjazz
Modern songwriters, producers and artists are reinventing the way jazz idioms and foundations are applied in modern pop. Let’s break it down!
7 Genre-Bending Artists Fusing Jazz With Electronic Music
With genres as diverse as jazz and electronic, there’s a ton of room for experimentation. Here are 7 artists defining a space for themselves in the middle.
Breaking Down Sonny Rollins’ Catchiest Tune
A personal OpEd on one of Sonny Rollins’ most classic melodies, and a reframed way to improvise within blues-infused modern jazz.
What Are Your Favorite “Mysterious” Songs, and Why?
On Episode 19 of our podcast, “Themes and Variation,” we chat with singer and trumpeter Rhys Tivey about songs with a veil of mystery…oooh!
Stravinsky & Jazz: Yes, Even Classical Music Is Influenced by Black American Forms
Stravinsky’s music and the music of Charlie Parker and John Coltrane have been compared to Cubism, is jazz the connector? We trace the influences.
How to Use a Jazz Turnaround in Your Pop or Folk Song
Borrowing a nifty couple of chord changes from the jazz world can really elevate your songwriting, no matter the genre or style.
Shoutin’ Out: A Crash Course on Blues Shouting
A closer look at the tradition of “blues shouting” in the early 1930s and ’40s, which helped inspire the creation of rock ‘n’ roll out of jazz and gospel.