Video | Jazz on the Tube

A Bu

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Review:

This is the forty ninth in a series of special Jazz on the Tube reviews of live stream performances.

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Dai Liang aka A Bu is a 20-year pianist from China, possibly China’s first major jazz musician.

Born in Beijing, A Bu started studying classical piano when he was four, attended the Central Conservatory of Music when he was nine, became interested in jazz at when he was 15 and won an important jazz piano competition at Montreux.

Since then, A Bu has appeared at many concert venues and festivals; he has recorded three CDs as a leader and is currently attending Juilliard.

During his LiveStream of June 8, 2020, one can hear touches of McCoy Tyner, early Herbie Hancock and Oscar Peterson in A Bu’s playing (which is quite mature considering his age, varying tempos, moods, dynamics and sometimes embracing melodies) but is already on his way towards developing his own individual style in jazz’s modern mainstream.

A-Bu’s version of the swing standard “You Took Advantage Of Me” is a joyful surprise and he comes up with plenty of fresh ideas on “Someday My Prince Will Come” and “In A Sentimental Mood,” This performance is an excellent introduction to the young pianist’s talents.

– Scott Yanow

Archived streams

June 08, 2020

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Jonathan Scales

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Review:

This is the one hundred and sixty-second in a series of special Jazz on the Tube reviews of live stream performances.

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Jonathan Scales was originally a saxophonist, he took up the steel drums in 2002 when he was 18.

In a field pioneered by Andy Narell but filled by few others, Scales has quickly become one of the top steel drummers in jazz, leading the Jonathan Scales Fourchestra (which has recorded four albums) in addition to leading three other recordings of his own.

On his LiveStream of June 8, 2020, the music does not start until the seven-minute mark but it is worth the wait as Scales enters with a burst of creative energy, leading a trio with bass guitar and drums through a set of inventive and rhythmically exciting originals that really display his impressive virtuosity.

– Scott Yanow

Archived streams

June 08, 2020

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Mark Morganelli

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Review:

This is the forty third in a series of special Jazz on the Tube reviews of live stream performances.

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In addition to being an excellent bop-based trumpeter and flugelhornist, Mark Morganelli has organized many concerts through the years and performed with his groups (often known as the Jazz Forum All-Stars) for decades.

For this concert of straight ahead jazz, he leads a quartet that also includes guitarist Roni Ben-Hur, bassist Cameron Brown and drummer Tony Jefferson.

The straight-ahead music from June 6, 2020 includes swinging versions of “Speak Low,” “Desafinado,” “Covid Blues,” “Lover Man,” “So What,” “So Nice,” “All The Things You Are,” and “Minority.”

– Scott Yanow

Archived streams

June 06, 2020

December 23, 2020

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Jimmy Greene

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Review:

This is the eighty fifth in a series of special Jazz on the Tube reviews of live stream performances.

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Jimmy Greene has been an important tenor-saxophonist since at least 1996 when he was the first runner-up in the Thelonious Monk International Jazz Saxophone Competition.

Since that time, he has become an Associate Professor of Music and Co-Coordinator of Jazz Studies at Western State University, led eight albums of his own, and made an impact on the modern jazz scene.

Playing unaccompanied saxophone and keeping it interesting can be difficult, but if one has a very attractive tone, is expert at pacing and dynamics, and has the ability to caress melodies while stretching the music, then it can be successful.

On his June 13, 2020 LiveStream, Jimmy Greene plays an original as a solo piece on tenor, performs on soprano over prerecorded electronic tracks to create colorful music on the second number, uses a rhythmic riff as the basis for the next piece, and finally creates a beautiful saxophone quartet for the finale, “Lift Every Voice And Sing.”

– Scott Yanow