Dawoud Kringle reviewing Cecil Taylor’s life and career On Thursday, April 5th, 2018, one of the most original and innovative pianists of our time, Cecil Taylor, died of natural causes at his home in Fort Greene, Brooklyn at the age of 89. Taylor was classically trained, and valued European music for what he called its qualities of “construction” — form, […]
Text by Dawoud Kringle and Photos by Sohrab Saadat Ladjevardi On Monday, November 20th MFM hosted an experimental gathering. MFM founder Sohrab Saadat Ladjevardi, and jazz legend Billy Harper organized a jazz musician meeting at Yeoryia Studios in Manhattan’s Upper West Side. Billy Harper was, of course, the keynote speaker. The meeting was not well attended. Many of the over two dozen […]
Text by Dawoud Kringle On Tuesday, June 27th, 2017, pianist, composer, and music educator Geri Allen died. The cause of death was reported to be cancer. She was 60 years old. Her work has earned her a reputation as one of the world’s finest jazz pianists. Geri Antoinette Allen was born on June 12, 1957 […]
Text by Dawoud Kringle The world of improvised music was shocked to learn of the passing of master guitarist Bern Nix. Born in 1950, Nix moved to New York City, and made a living for a while as a guitar teacher. He succeeded James Blood Ulmer in Ornette Coleman’s Prime Time band, and in 1985 […]
The Musicians (Continued) Text by Dawoud Kringle This continued series explores the relation between jazz and Islam. In this installment, I am continuing the presentation of the biographies of Muslim jazz artists.
