By Don Heckman Oct. 1 – 4. (Thurs. – Sun.) IMMORTAL BEETHOVEN. Gustavo Dudamel conducts the Los Angeles Philharmonic in a remarkable, four night tour de force program devoted to all nine of the Beethoven symphonies: #1 and #2 on Thursday; #3 and #4 on Friday; #5, #6, #7 and #8 on Saturday; and a… Read More Highlights of a Long Weekend: Oct. 1 – 4 in Los Angeles
By Don Heckman Los Angeles – Oct. 16 – 18. (Thurs. – Sat.) Dee Dee Bridgewater. She’s a Grammy and Tony award winner, an actress, a radio star and a U.N. Ambassador. As if all that wasn’t enough, she’s also a dynamic jazz artist, a singer with a unique style and a creative imagination. She… Read More Picks of the Week: October 15 – 19 in Los Angeles, New York City and London
By Don Heckman Los Angeles, 6/3/12. Chris Botti made his annual appearance at the Greek Theatre last night. And it began in appropriately lyrical fashion, with a nearly full moon beaming through a misty sky. For the past few years, Botti performances have included rich assemblages of talented artists, playing music reaching across a wide… Read More Live Jazz: Chris Botti at the Greek Theatre
By Don Heckman Trumpeter Chris Botti has moved, over the past decade, from visibility in the smooth jazz genre – an identity that never really seemed quite right for him – to international prominence as a versatile jazz artist with a unique style of his own. Described by his record company, no doubt accurately, as… Read More Q & A: Chris Botti
By Norton Wright On Gotham’s frigid December 31, a sold-out house of 250 or more at the Blue Note in Greenwich Village (131 West Third Street) was treated to a dazzling performance by Grammy Award winning jazz trumpeter Chris Botti and his band. It was an hour and a half of sonorous beauty, a vivid… Read More Live Jazz: Chris Botti on New Year’s Eve at NYC’s Blue Note
By Don Heckman Los Angeles – Dec. 27 – Jan 1. (Tues. through Sunday) Jane Monheit. The beautiful Monheit gets an early start, ramping up all week to the big Saturday night New Year’s celebration. And what better way to bring in 2012 than by hearing her velvet voice and gentle swing delivering “Auld Lang… Read More Picks of the Week: Dec. 27 – Jan. 1
By Don Heckman Chris Botti made his third consecutive L.A. appearance in July Wednesday night. This time, he was at the Hollywood Bowl, following July concerts in 2009 and 2010, almost to the day, at the Greek Theatre. And this performance, like the earlier ones, defined why Botti has become the music world’s best selling… Read More Live Jazz: Chris Botti, Bobby McFerrin and the Yellowjackets at the Hollywood Bowl
By Don Heckman Chris Botti’s traveling road show made its annual appearance at the Greek Theatre Saturday night. And the enthusiastic, near capacity crowd loved every minute of the two hour performance. And why shouldn’t they. Botti’s warm and engaging trumpet sound is one of the most appealing timbres on the contemporary jazz scene. He… Read More Live Jazz: Chris Botti at the Greek Theatre
The International Review of Music 