Guitarist Stanley Jordan with Clifford Brown, Jr.

Pianist/Organist Robert Walter with Chris Cortez

Comedian/Actor/Radio Host Brian Copeland with Alisa Clancy

Pianist Eric Reed with Clifford Brown, Jr.

Songstress Nina Ferro – Live in Concert with The Jim Cullum Jazz Band
This soulful songstress has a quality of tone, honest emotion and technique that make her performances nothing short of inspirational. Her energetic style and musical grace ensure an entertaining and powerful evening of slick Jazz Standards and sultry ballads as she joins The Jim Cullum Jazz Band—LIVE in concert.

NYC All-Stars & A New Year’s Jam
Dipping into the archive to kick off the 20th Anniversary of Riverwalk Jazz, an all-star cast joins The Jim Cullum Jazz Band in a concert recorded live at Manhattan’s Red Blazer, Too jazz club in 1993. Trumpeter Doc Cheatham, vocalist Carol Woods, bassist Milt Hinton, guitarist Marty Grosz, and pianist Dick Hyman share the bill.

‘One Hit Wonders’ of the Golden Era
The Jim Cullum Jazz Band and guests in a concert of songs composed by ‘one hit wonders’ of the Golden Era—including songwriting musicians like trumpeter Charlie Shavers and San Francisco bandleader Art Hickman, who each composed a single huge hit song.

The World on Seven Strings: Jazz Guitar Master Bucky Pizzarelli
From his early days playing guitar in his parents’ grocery to touring with Stéphane Grappelli, special guest Bucky Pizzarelli shares stories of his musical life, and performs favorite tunes with The Jim Cullum Jazz Band.  His son John Pizzarelli, hailed as “today’s premier interpreter of the Great American Songbook,” joins the festivities.

John Ellis Double-Wide
John Ellis Double-Wide, recorded at Yoshi’s in Oakland on August 4, 1008. The saxophonist, who resides in New York, is joined by Will Blades on organ, Matt Perrine on sousaphone, and Jason Marsalis on drums.

The Bad Plus
The Bad Plus, recorded at Yoshi’s in Oakland on September 9, 2008. The collective, made up of bassist Reid Anderson, pianist Ethan Iverson, and drummer David King is making their second appearance on In The Moment.

Sammy Figueroa’s Latin Jazz Explosion
Sammy Figueroa’s Latin Jazz Explosion, recorded on September 14, 2008 as part of the 18th annual Jazz at Filoli series, produced by Paul Blystone. The two-time grammy nominated percussionist is joined by pianist Silvano Monasterios; Waldo Chavez, bass; Goertz Kujack, drums; Alex Norris, trumpet and Felipe Lamoglia, tenor sax.

The Dafnis Prieto Quartet
The Dafnis Prieto Quartet, recorded November 3, 2008 at Yoshi’s in Oakland. The drummer and composer was joined by Peter Apfelbaum, saxophone and melodica; Manuel Valera, piano and Armando Gola, bass.

Spike Hughes’ American Band
Miff Mole “Moanin’ Low”

Yank Lawson “Mostly Blues”
Louis Armstrong Plays New Hits of 1931

Coleman Hawkins All Star Octet
Oreste and His Queensland Orchestra

Egyptian Echoes and Turkish Delights of the Jazz Decades 1924 -1960

Pianist Oscar Peterson (1925-2007)
Trained in the classical tradition of Franz Liszt, but nurtured on Art Tatum and Nat "King" Cole, Oscar is the standard to which many pianists aspire. This show examines his career from his origins in tough neighborhoods of Montreal, to his work with Norman Granz's Jazz At The Philharmonic, to his influential trio with bassist Ray Brown and guitarist Herb Ellis, to becoming a solo artist. Peterson will celebrate his eightieth birthday on August fifteenth.

Pianist/Composer Dave Brubeck
Innovative pianist/composer David Brubeck has been a true jazz phenomenon -- he and his quartet were the first instrumental group to sell over a million records. This widely popular band had several top ten chart hits, sold out concerts everywhere, and landed Brubeck on the cover of Time magazine. We will explore the career of Dave Brubeck from his Quartet (which made the now legendary "Take Five" recording) through the present day, including his work in classical music.

Pianist Bud Powell
After being brutally beaten by police at age 21, Powell spent the rest of his short life fighting mental illness, until his death in 1966. His music revealed his constant state of struggle. Known to improvise like one possessed, Powell's right hand could race through the upper registers of the keyboard with astounding clarity while his left hand grounded the lines with irregularly spaced dissonant bass chords. Bud Powell created a ferocious body of music that shattered the limits of bebop and influenced all that followed him.

Pianist Willie “The Lion” Smith
A musician's musician whose original approach to the keyboard has made him the envy of virtually every pianist in jazz. He was part of the Harlem stride scene perfected by pianists James P. Johnson and Thomas Fats Waller. This show features rare tape of Smith talking and playing.

Pianist Ahmad Jamal
A legend among masters, Ahmad Jamal’s career has spanned half a century. Miles Davis once asked his own pianist Wynton Kelly to “sound more like Ahmad Jamal.” Jamal brings his deft touch and perfect balance to the House of Swing to create space all his own. With his trio, Jamal leads his signature Poinciana, Jimmy Heath’s Mellow Drama and his new composition Papillon. And of course more! We are delighted to welcome him to our stage.

Kenny Barron Solo Redux
Pianist Kenny Barron, a behemoth of modern Jazz improvisation, built his legacy as a sideman with Yusef Lateef and Dizzy Gillespie, but playing solo is where he truly shines. At the Stanley Kaplan Penthouse, he sweeps through standards and originals, with a touch that is the envy of classical players. We’ll hear Well You Needn’t, Gone with the Wind and Song for Abdullah.

Celebration of the Jazz Guitar: Django Reinhardt and Charlie Christian
The wandering spirit of the gypsy meets the bluesy swing of Oklahoma City. Django Reinhardt and Charlie Christian brought the guitar out from the rhythm section and up to center stage. Guitarists Russell Malone, Bobby Broom and Frank Vignola, bassist Peter Washington and pianist Mulgrew Miller play the Jazz guitar revolution, with musical director and drummer Lewis Nash.

New Faces, New Strings: Lionel Loueke and Richard Bona
The sound of the kora, kalimba and balafon of the griot storytellers float  through the air as guitarists Lionel Loueke and bassist Richard Bona translate the sonorities of West Africa through strings, mouth-clicked percussion and improvised paper resonators. Individually, they have played with Herbie Hancock, Joni Mitchell, Salif Keita and Tito Puente; together they are helping to create a new language in Jazz.

Cornetist/Jazz Scholar Dick Sudhalter on Bix Beiderbecke
Cornetist and jazz scholar Dick Sudhalter is McPartland's guest for an examination of the important but often overlooked cornetist Bix Beiderbecke. Beiderbecke had a very short career in the '20s, but he influenced a wide spectrum of artists, from Hoagy Carmichael to Miles Davis. McPartland plays Beiderbecke's most famous piano composition "In A Mist," before getting together with Sudhalter on "Davenport Blues."

John Pizzarelli Trio
If classic jazz has a contemporary voice, it's that of guitarist, vocalist and bandleader John Pizzarelli. He's fashioned an ultra cool style that is both modern and thoroughly rooted in the jazz tradition. With his brother Martin on bass and Tony Tedesco on drums, The John Pizzarelli Trio swings on "Here Comes the Sun" before Pizzarelli and McPartland perform "In the Wee Small Hours of the Morning."

Vocalist Ed Reed
Singer Ed Reed is relatively new to the national jazz scene, but he's been singing for more than 50 years. After a life of addiction and incarceration, Reed has emerged triumphant, ready for his moment in the spotlight. With his accompanist Gary Fisher, Reed performs "Sleeping Bee" and "Ask Me Now" before he and McPartland get together on Ellington's "All Too Soon."

Pianist Hod O’Brien
Pianist Hod O'Brien is a stalwart be-bop acolyte. Since emerging on the scene in the late '50s playing with Oscar Pettiford and Stan Getz, O'Brien has garnered critical acclaim and accolades from his peers. He joins McPartland and performs an original tune written for the occasion, "Clarion for Marian," before paying tribute to his be-bop roots with Bud Powell's "Un Poco Loco."

Woody Shaw Legacy Band: Brass Knights at Jazz Standard
This program presents highlights from a celebration of the composer and trumpeter Woody Shaw (1944-1989). Sean Jones leads the brass, with Musical Director Victor Lewis on drums. Thanks to the 2008 Festival of New Trumpet Music.

Frank Wess Quintet at the Kennedy Center
Frank Wellington Wess was born January 4, 1922, in Kansas City and grew up in Washington, DC. In the '50s, he played saxophone and introduced the flute to the Count Basie Orchestra. We'll have highlights from a set by this NEA Jazz Master and Kennedy Center Living Jazz Legend at the KC Jazz Club.

Convergence at Dazzle Restaurant in Denver
Six Mile High City virtuosi feature their own writing in this joyful band. They are Greg Gisbert, John Gunther, Mark Patterson, Eric Gunnison, Mark Simon. Paul Romano's twelve-step show-stopper is for musicians who need to love themselves.

Cyrus Chestnut’s Spirituals to Swing at he Kennedy Center
Pianist Chestnut plays hymns, and vocalist Cynthia Scott joins his group to honor the holiday for Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

Brian Blade’s Fellowship Band at the Village Vanguard
With his intuition and textures, the Louisiana drummer transcends devices and reaches for your spirit. His six-piece group includes John Cowherd on piano and harmonium.