In this Dec. 6, 2009, file photo President Barack Obama waves to Kennedy Center honorees, from left, Dave Brubeck, Grace Bumbry, Robert De Niro and Bruce Springsteen in the East Room of the White House in Washington (AP)

Diaa Bekheet | Washington, DC – The legendary American jazz pianist Dave Brubeck, one of the most exciting names in music, will celebrate his 92^nd birthday on December 6. Due to medical tests, Brubeck was unavailable for an interview with Jazz Beat, but Russell Gloyd, his producer, manager and conductor for the past 35 years said the iconic pianist is still committed to daily practice.

“He does practice almost every day,” confirmed Gloyd in an interview with VOA’s Jazz Beat (mp3 here). “And it’s amazing to hear him practice because I’m hearing tunes I’ve never heard in my life.”

[audio:http://www.voanews.com/MediaAssets2/english/2012_10/Brubeck_Show_Gloyd_JazzBeat.mp3]

According to Gloyd, the group just released a 19-CD box set which covers all of the studio recordings of the classic Brubeck Quartet. “And we are now starting to look at doing another box which will exceed 19 CDs – which would be featuring all live recordings,” he said.

Dave Brubeck’s Legacy CD

Columbia Records released a double album set on Dave Brubeck’s 90th birthday in 2010.  Legacy of a Legend features influential pieces in jazz history recorded between 1954 and 1970.  It includes vocal collaborations with jazz legends like Louis Armstrong, Jimmy Rushing and Carmen McRae.

The last time Brubeck talked with VOA was in 1990, backstage at the JVC Jazz Festival in Saratoga Springs, New York. In an interview with my colleague Doug Levine, the legendary pianist explained how jazz started as a cry for freedom.

I played Brubeck’s music frequently on Jazz Club USA, a music show I hosted for 10 years for enthusiasts in the Middle East. He is best known for the hit “Take Five,” from his top-selling album Time Out. The song was frequently requested by listeners in Morocco, Tunisia, Algeria, Libya, Egypt and Iraq for dedication to family and friends.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=faJE92phKzI

“Take Five” was first released in 1959 and became the best-selling jazz single of all time. It was written by Brubeck’s long-time music partner, alto saxophonist Paul Desmond. It has been included in a new two-disc collection of other familiar classics such as the “Blue Rondo a la Turk” — inspired during a Brubeck tour in Turkey in 1958 — and “Pick Up Sticks”. At the time, Brubeck was America’s jazz ambassador, named by the U.S. State Department. The legendary pianist and his Quartet have also toured the Middle East, Africa, Eastern Europe, and Asia.

Another hit song that contributed to Brubeck’s worldwide fame is “Unsquare Dance” from his album Time Further Out. “It was a huge hit in France,” noted Gloyd.

Brubeck, who was featured on the cover of TIME magazine  in 1954, has also composed orchestral and sacred music. In addition, Brubeck wrote soundtracks for television shows such as Mr. Broadway and the animated mini-series This Is America, Charlie Brown.

The soon-to-be 92 Dave Brubeck is still going strong!  He is often saluted by a standing ovation during his emotionally-charged performances.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EbUklDXdH2o

Jonathan Kreisberg (Photo by Jimmy Katz)

Diaa Bekheet | Washington, DC – Acclaimed American jazz guitarist Jonathan Kreisberg has just finished recording a new album titled One. It will be released in Europe next month, and in the United States in January 2013. One will also be released in German on vinyl on November 1.

I recently talked with him about his new album and career. You will be able to preview some of the songs exclusively on Jazz Beat:

Kreisberg performed last week with iconic pianist Lonnie Smith at the Kennedy Center in Washington D.C. He is part of Dr. Smith’s new album, The Healer, which is coming out soon. Kreisberg says he always wanted to record a solo album, but felt a bit intimidated.

“I’ve long loved and been intimidated by the idea, which is to put out an all solo guitar record comprised of only single performances. In other words, no tracks and no loop or anything – just solo guitar,” said Kreisberg during an interview with VOA’s Jazz Beat.

“I started basically recording myself whenever I got inspired by something this past summer. The first two results came out so good that I just said I’ve got to do this. This is the time to do it. So, I put together an entire record of solo guitar. Some different angle, some different guitars and it came out as what I’d like to think is a pretty exciting solo guitar records. It’s a lot of different kind of angles on the concept, and I decided to call it One.”

Jonathan Kreisberg was born in New York City and grew up listening to his parents’ wide-ranging record collection.

He says some of his all-time favorites are John Williams’ “Concierto de Aranjuez,” John Coltrane’s “My Favorite Things“, and the British super group Cream‘s “Disraeli Gears.”

Kreisberg started playing guitar at the age of 10. He studied jazz and showed spectacular talent – according to his teachers — to the point that he was featured as a young promising guitarist in Guitar Player and DownBeat magazines. He later won a scholarship to the University of Miami, where he held the guitar chair in the acclaimed Concert Jazz Band. Kreisberg had the opportunity to tour Brazil and perform with Joe Henderson, Michael Brecker, and Red Rodney during his tenure.

Jonathan Kreisberg was born in New York City and grew up listening to his parents’ wide-ranging record collection.

He says some of his all-time favorites are John Williams’ “Concierto de Aranjuez,” John Coltrane’s “My Favorite Things“, and the British super group Cream‘s “Disraeli Gears.”

Ancient Egypt’s Eye of Horus (Shadowless album cover). Listen to the interview to learn why Kreisberg used it.

Kreisberg is now establishing himself as a major new voice on the international jazz scene. He recently returned from a one-month tour in South America. In 2008 his quintet played an electrifying set on the main stage at Jazz Baltica. He also completed successful tours of Spain, Portugal, Denmark, Finland, Italy, and Japan, where he featured talented Japanese trumpeter Tomanao Hara.

Kreisberg has his own recording label. He blames the music industry for trying to make money at the expense of quality music. “As music progresses, some things improve, but something is lost along the way,” said Kreisberg.  “For instance right now, in pop music – the music of our time culturally – is starting to get very melodically and harmonically boring, you know, and actually rhythmically too.”

Kreisberg has successfully released eight albums so far.

For more on jazz music, listen to VOA’s Jazz America

Ramsey Lewis Taking Another Look

Diaa Bekheet | Washington, DC – Three-time Grammy winner and jazz legend Ramsey Lewis is going to host a new television show about jazz music. Lewis told VOA’s Jazz Beat that he does not know when the show will air on the PBS network. “I’m in talks right now during this period of time to start another show on public television. And I’m looking forward to that,” said Lewis, who hosted the extremely popular radio and television show “Legends of Jazz”. The show aired in about a 100 American cities and on some of Europe’s top affiliates.

Lewis talked with Jazz Beat about his music and new projects, including his 80^th album titled Ramsey Lewis Taking Another Look (Download the show).

Lewis has been fascinating audiences with his performances since he was 15 years old when he began playing piano for the jazz band The Cleffs.

He first rose to prominence in 1965 when three of his compositions: “The In Crowd,” “Hang on Sloopy” and “Wade in the Water” were big hits on the song charts.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Slv0j5USBa4

“I have never had any feelings about any record being a big hit,” admitted Chicago native Ramsey, who now has 80 albums under his belt. “When I make a record or when I write music, in the back of my mind I have no false illusions about oh this could be a hit or this might be a hit, or hope the audience like it. Of course I do hope the audience likes everything I do, but I can’t depend on that being the criteria for my success in performing and recording.”

Here’s a profile of  Ramsey Lewis on VOA’s Jazz Club USA [Arabic Download)] broadcast in 1998 when he released his album Dance of the Soul.

Many musicians and artists have been influenced by Lewis. He is considered one of the top pianists worldwide. During an interview in Egypt, I once asked jazz legend Dizzy Gillespie to name three of his top jazz pianists. He put Lewis third after Duke Ellington and Art Tatum.

Tatum had a great influence on Lewis. “My dad brought Art Tatum home when I was 11 and scared me to death,” Lewis recalled, “because I thought there were two piano players: Mr. Art and Mr. Tatum.”

“I can’t say [Tatum] influenced me to the point where I could play like Art Tatum. I don’t think anybody can play like Art Tatum,” added Lewis, who said during his childhood years, he was highly influenced by classic masters like Wanda Landowska and Vladimir Horowitz.

Ramsey Lewis is now part of the Ravinia Outreach program which includes professional jazz musicians touring the United States to introduce children to the fundamentals, history, and tradition of jazz. The program’s motto is: “Reach, Teach, and Play”.

Lewis’ 80th collection and latest album, Taking Another Look, was released a year ago. It showcases 10 songs with his Electric Band  and re-works many of Lewis’ favorite tunes, including “Sun Goddess” and Stevie Wonder’s “Living for the City”.

For more on jazz music, listen to VOA’s Jazz America