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WICN Contributing Writer Doug Hall has a new podcast series through a partner community channel. Tune into the series below. In this first episode, Doug speaks with jazz pianist, composer, and Berklee Professor Laszlo Gardony about his life, career, and work. WICN Contributing Writer Doug Hall spoke with Phil Haynes recently for […]
Mark Lynch the host of WICN’s Inquiry had the opportunity to sit down and speak with several hosts and other members of WICN. If you missed hearing these interviews you can check them out below. We talk with WICN’S former General Manager of WICN: BRIAN BARLOW about his long and important history with the […]
Join us on Friday, May 3rd! Doors open at 6:30 pm Performance 7:30 to 9 pm. **Cash bar (wine, beer, hard seltzer) available. The Robert R. Jay Performing Arts Center – Founders Hall Saint John’s High School 378 Main Street, Shrewsbury, MA 01545 VIP Seating available – First 6 Center Rows The virtuosic […]
by Doug Hall, Contributing Writer During the height of the Civil Rights Movement in the late ‘50s and ‘60s, many Black musicians participated in the marches, demonstrations, and political activities of the times, lending their voices and stature to this seminal era in America. In particular, Black female vocalists Billie Holiday and Nina Simone were […]
By Doug Hall Often in jazz, when identifying the soaring range or virtuosity or power of a vocalist, these gifts are accepted as a skill set that is necessary to impart the depth and complication of song material. Through 1930s to her death in 1959, Billie Holiday, singing within a vocal range of barely […]
“Swing” in jazz, for the audience on a dance floor, is often described as an emotional response, with foot-tapping, dancing to a rhythm and a propulsive “feel” to the beat. There is no greater contributor or bandleader for this big-band sound than the legendary Count Basie – jazz pianist, arranger and major influencer of this […]
The evolution of spiritual jazz began with elements of free jazz, avant-garde jazz, and modal jazz, cited by jazz critics to have been heavily influenced by John Coltrane’s A Love Supreme (1965). The range of musicians reimagining their interpretations of jazz music following this seminal release stretches across generations of players. There are a number […]
By Doug Hall, WICN Contributing Writer Julian Lage – Love Hurts (Official Video) – YouTube When a younger, established guitar phenomenon has a wide band of inclusion with other varied guitarists, including Jim Hall, Nels Cline, and Leo Kottke, it is a recognition that their ear has an expansive and deep […]
There are many Black female jazz vocalists held in special regard for their commitment to civil rights and activism, including the support expressed through their songs and lyrics that directly address racism. Billie Holiday’s Strange Fruit, Lena Horne’s Stormy Weather, and numerous songs by Nina Simone, most notably Mississippi Goddam, Backlash Blues, Four Women and […]
In the 1960s, the word “songsmith” was a definition often given to folk music artists such as Bob Dylan, Joni Mitchell, or Neil Young, tied with their overt political and social critiques. Burt Bacharach would easily capture that title in the era of pop songs made famous for their beautiful melodies and romantic lyrics; songs […]