Young Russian pianist Daniil Trifonov, winner of both the Tchaikovsky and Rubenstein competitions, joins the National Symphony Orchestra March 13-15, 2014 to perform Rachnaminoff's Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini.  Classical WETA's Deborah Lamberton speaks with Mr. Trifonov about the work, and about the new CD of his sold-out February 2013 Carnegie Hall recital, just released on Deutsche Grammophon. LISTEN TO THE ATTACHED INTERVIEW

Interview with WETA's Deb Lamberton

 

Soprano Saxophophonist Jane Ira Bloom is a finalist nominees for the 2014 JJA Jazz Awards.

Nominees in most categories were chosen by the votes of the Professional Journalist Members of the Jazz Journalists Association. Nominations were made on the basis of work done in calendar year 2013, with the exception of Lifetime Achievement Awards categories, in which nominations are for a lifetime body of work. Members and others were able to submit their own work for consideration in the Photo of the Year and Best Shortform Video of the Year categories; committees of JJA Members chose the nominees in those categories from among the submissions. NOMINEES FOR JAZZ MUSIC AWARDS 1) LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT IN JAZZ Muhal Richard Abrams Herbie Hancock Phil Woods Randy Weston    2) MUSICIAN OF THE YEAR Craig Taborn Dave Douglas Gregory Porter Matt Wilson Wadada Leo Smith Wayne Shorter
  3) UP AND COMING ARTIST OF THE YEAR Cecile McLorin Salvant Jonathan Finlayson Warren Wolf Matt Mitchell   4) COMPOSER OF THE YEAR Darcy James Argue Maria Schneider Wayne Shorter
  5) ARRANGER OF THE YEAR Darcy James Argue Gil Goldstein Maria Schneider   6) RECORD OF THE YEAR Without a Net (Blue Note) Wayne Shorter Quartet WomanChild (Mack Avenue) Cecile McLorin Salvant Chants (ECM) Craig Taborn Trio   7) HISTORICAL RECORD OF THE YEAR Jack DeJohnette Special Edition Boxed Set (ECM) Miles Live in Europe 1969 (Columbia Legacy) Clifford Jordan Complete Strata East Recordings (Mosaic)   8) RECORD LABEL/PLATFORM OF THE YEAR ECM Mack Avenue Motema Music Pi Recordings   9) LARGE ENSEMBLE OF THE YEAR  Darcy James Argue Secret Society Maria Schneider Orchestra Mingus Big Band   10) MIDSIZE ENSEMBLE  Jamie Baum Septet Steve Coleman & Five Elements Wayne Shorter Quartet   11) TRIO OR DUO Craig Taborn Trio Randy Weston-Billy Harper Vijay Iyer Trio   12) MALE VOCALIST OF THE YEAR Andy Bey Gregory Porter Kurt Elling   13) FEMALE VOCALIST OF THE YEAR Cecile McLorin Salvant  DeeDee Bridgewater Tierney Sutton   14) TRUMPETER OF THE YEAR  Dave Douglas Kirk Knuffke Terence Blanchard Wynton Marsalis   15) TROMBONIST OF THE YEAR  Roswell Rudd Steve Turre Wycliffe Gordon   16) MULTI-REEDS PLAYER OF THE YEAR Anthony Braxton James Carter Joe Lovano Scott Robinson    17) ALTO SAXOPHONIST OF THE YEAR Lee Konitz Miguel Zenon Rudresh Mahanthappa Tim Berne   18) TENOR SAXOPHONIST OF THE YEAR (Sonny Rollins named Emeritus, Beyond Voting in 2013) Chris Potter Joe Lovano Wayne Shorter   19) BARITONE SAXOPHONIST OF THE YEAR Gary Smulyan Mats Gustafsson  Ronnie Cuber
  20) SOPRANO SAXOPHONIST OF THE YEAR Dave Liebman Jane Ira Bloom Wayne Shorter   21) FLUTIST OF THE YEAR Charles Lloyd Jamie Baum Nicole Mitchell   22) CLARINETIST OF THE YEAR Anat Cohen Ben Goldberg Ken Peplowski   23) GUITARIST OF THE YEAR Bill Frisell Mary Halvorson Pat Metheny   24) PIANIST OF THE YEAR Craig Taborn Keith Jarrett Matthew Shipp   25) KEYBOARDS PLAYER OF THE YEAR Dr. Lonnie Smith Gary Versace Joey DeFrancesco    26) BASSIST OF THE YEAR Christian McBride Dave Holland William Parker   27) VIOLINIST/VIOLIST/CELLIST OF THE YEAR Eric Friedlander Jenny Scheinman Regina Carter   28) PERCUSSIONIST OF THE YEAR Adam Rudolph Dan Weiss Kahil El'Zabar Pedrito Martinez   29) MALLETS INSTRUMENTALIST OF THE YEAR Gary Burton Jason Adasiewicz Warren Wolf   30) TRAPS DRUMMER OF THE YEAR Eric Harland Jack DeJohnette Matt Wilson   31) PLAYER OF INSTRUMENTS RARE IN JAZZ Bela Fleck (banjo) Gary Versace (accordion) Gregoire Maret (harmonica) Scott Robinson (winds, reeds, Theremin)   32) ELECTRONICS PLAYER DJ Logic George E. Lewis Jason Lindner   Rob Mazurek

 

Anne Akiko Meyers releases her fourth recording on the eOne label, The Four Seasons: The Vivaldi Album. Performing with the English Chamber Orchestra under the direction of David Lockington, Ms. Meyers presents two Italian legends with Antonio Vivaldi and Guarneri del Gesù. This new recording of Vivaldi's Four Seasons – as well as the Vivaldi Triple Concerto on which Meyers plays all three parts – marks the recording debut of the 1741 ‘Vieuxtemps' Guarneri del Gesù violin, considered one of the finest sounding violins in existence. AAM speaks with WRCJ's Chris Felcyn TODAY!!@ 3P ET on 'The Well Tempered Wireless.'

Interview with WRCJ's Chris Felcyn

 

"I had to try it, and instantly fell in love," Meyers says. "It was an incredible chemistry that occurred." - Anne Akiko Meyers

The Vieuxtemps Guarneri is a violin that is older than the United States of America - 273 years old, to be exact. It recently became the most expensive violin in the world, selling for an estimated $16 million. Its new owner anonymously donated the historic instrument to violinist Anne Akiko Meyers, on loan for the rest of her life. Meyers joined Morning Edition guest host Linda Wertheimer in NPR's studios to demonstrate the historic instrument. SEE THE NPR-MorningEdition PAGE.

Anne Akiko Meyers discusses the history of 'Vieuxtemps' Guarneri Del Gesu-1741

 

Seattle-based guitarist Bill Frisell was among the headliners announced Wednesday by the Bellevue Jazz Festival, which takes place May 28-June 1. Others artists featured in the four-day bash include Poncho Sanchez; the East-West Trumpet Summit, with Ray Vega, Thomas Marriott and pianist George Colligan; and salsa specialistas Carlos Cascante Y Su Tumbao. Complete festival information and ticket prices for all 40 performances will be announced in May.  SEE THE Seattle Times - Paul de Barros POST.

 

The Vancouver Symphony Orchestra's just-announced their 2014–15 season and featuring 3 great Crossover Media artists - Cello great Yo-Yo Ma & the celebrated pianist Lang Lang and Violinist extraordinaire Ray Chen. Mr. Ma will perform Anton Dvorák's Cello Concerto in B Minor on May 1, 2015, at the Orpheum, and Lang Lang will be taking on Mozart's Piano Concerto No. 17 in G Major on March 18, 2015. The two are joined on the seasonal roster by violinists Ray Chen, Ryu Goto, and Karen Gomyo and pianists Yevgeny Sudbin, Inon Barnatan, and Janina Fialkowska. Special concerts include a Beatles tribute act, called Classical Mystery Tour, appearing with the VSO on October 8, and Cirque Musica, a blend of circus acrobatics and orchestral music on October 11. The second annual Pacific Rim Celebration will take place on February 28th and March 1st, 2015, with a focus on Japan.  The New Music Festival will be performed in January of 2015. READ THE FULL straight.com ARTICLE

 

Master violinist Joshua Bell may best be known for his solo arrangement in the film 'The Red Violin' or his Wash DC subway experiment a few years ago. Mr. Bell who has his own Red Violin, a 300-year-old $4 million Stradivarius, may be tired of these references, but in the age of Lorde and 2 Chainz, it's quite a feat to command any widespread attention in popular culture as a touring classical musician. The Pitch sat down with him at a recent Kansas City / Kauffman Center date with Michael Stern leading the Symphony in Lalo's Symphonie Espagnole and Bartók's Concerto for Orchestra. READ The Pitch INTERVIEW