Angela Davis

If I were asked to determine what Broadway show best represents my life, I would reply simply, Rent. Loosely adapted, my role would be to portray main character Roger Davis . I say this because Rodger and I are similar in the way that we both have a hard time coming up with new and original content. While Rogers issue revolves around his music, my issue is with essays. Ironically, we both know new material is necessary for our occupations, but due to certain circumstances we are both unable to…

Scott DeVeaux is a professor and an author who specialized in jazz and American music. He is currently teaching at the University of Virginia. His book The Birth of Bebop: A Social and Musical History that was published in 1997 had won the American Book Award, an ASCAP–Deems Taylor Award, the Otto Kinkeldey Award from the American Musicological Society, and the ARSC Award for Excellence in Historical Sound Research. His other published books and articles include Jazz, which was co-author with…

If you are a jazz guitar artist, or just enjoy jazz and play to some degree, you can create your own business teaching jazz guitar! There are many things you can do, from teaching guitar lessons to creating a guitar video, to writing jazz lyrics, to creating a book or CD or DVD teaching other people how to play jazz (or as some people refer to it, modern jazz). Let's say you already play or sing in a jazz guitar band or group of some kind. Start by handing out a few business cards at your…

Miles Dewey Davis III was born on May 26, 1926 in Alton Illinois. Miles Davis was the son of a music teacher and a dental surgeon. He grew up in a middle-class household. At the age of 13 his dad introduced the trumpet to him. Elwood Buchanan wanted to help develop Davis’s style, he was a friend of Davis’s father. Davis played professionally during high school. Dizzy Gillespie and Charles Parker liked Davis’s work and invited him onstage to perform when a band member was is and wasn’t able to…

Duke Ellington’s Past: Duke Ellington was born on April 29, 1899 into a middle-class family that lived in Washington D.C. Growing up Duke was a very talented boy. He began learning the piano at the age of 7 age and he was also interested in art. Because of his gentlemanly ways he was nicknamed “Duke”. When he was 15 he wrote his first composition which was called “Soda Fountain Rag”. At the age of 17 Duke was awarded an art scholarship to the Pratt Institute in Brooklyn in New York but he denied…

Jessika Grindstaff October 3, 2014 History of Jazz The Evolution of Free Jazz Free Jazz is a form of jazz that involves collective improvisation without a set chord or rhythm structure. This type of jazz was born during the social, political and civil movements’ era, the sixties. There are many reasons that free jazz was formed, the main one being the limitations in other forms such as bebop, big band and swing. Free jazz was influenced by the works of Cecil Taylor, Ornette Coleman and John…

trio Power Tools with bassist Melvin Gibbs and drummer Ronald Shannon Jackson. In 2001, Pete started a group called Children of Agharta to explore the electric Miles Davis repertoire (WHE, 2001). In 2007-08, Cosey contributed to the CD Miles from India, which celebrates the music of Miles Davis. As history shows, the music of Miles Davis was always part of Pete's life, evidenced in his recordings and professional career; he always went back to the interpretation and exploration of Miles's music.…

“Above all, I believe every child, no matter their ZIP code or their parents’ jobs, deserves access to a quality education.” -Betsy Devos. Waiting for Superman is a film directed by Davis Guggenhiem, and was released in 2010. Waiting for Superman is about the struggle of getting a quality education for children from low-income families. These children featured in the documentary have shown very enthusiastic attitudes towards school, but unfortunately are prevented from doing so because of where…

Canadian jazz quartet Peripheral Vision is known for breaking off into modern sound-shapes and bringing influences from a variety of genres, with predominance of jazz and rock. Co-led by guitarist Don Scott and bassist Michael Herring, who often have art, literature, and standup comedy inspiring their compositions, the band is rounded out with saxophonist Trevor Hogg and drummer Nick Fraser. Their fourth outing, More Songs About Error and Shame, comprises seven well-worked compositions (Herring…

Duke Ellington was born on April 25, 1899 in Washington, D.C. Dukes parents were James Ellington and Daisey Ellington. They were both pianists. Duke Ellington’s inspiration was probably his parents because he was playing piano as a child and focused more on music than his education. Since his parents played piano he was playing piano. What made him famous was that he was pretty much the first one to conduct and make a big-band jazz group. He also led his band for more than a century. Every in…