Jazz Profiles

KPBX Thursdays 11-12 p.m.

Jazz Profiles is no longer producing new episodes, but because it was such a wonderful show, we're re-airing it from the beginning.

Singer Nancy Wilson hosts this Gold Medal award-winning, documentary series chronicling the people, places and events in jazz.

By combining archival recordings, interviews and narration, each program in the series tells an informative and engaging story that celebrates the music and those who make it. The series has covered significant anniversaries of the dearly departed, the instruments of jazz, jazz cities, jazz families and more.

Program Listings

July 29, 2010
Art Tatum
One of the greatest improvisers in jazz history, Art Tatum also set the standard for technical dexterity with his classic 1933 recording of "Tea for Two." Nearly blind, Tatum had artistic vision and ability that made him an icon of jazz piano, a musician whose impact will be felt for generations to come.

August 5, 2010
Miles - Kind of Blue
Kind of Blue brought together seven now-legendary musicians in the prime of their careers: tenor saxophonist John Coltrane, alto saxophonist Julian "Cannonball" Adderley, pianists Bill Evans and Wynton Kelly, bassist Paul Chambers, drummer Jimmy Cobb and, of course, trumpeter Miles Davis. It is the best-selling jazz record of all time.

August 12, 2010
Miles - Miles Styles
Miles Davis was the personification of restless spirit, always pushing himself and his music into uncharted territory. He was an innovative lightning rod for musicians from all genres — particularly the brightest young players. Davis created some of the 20th century's most challenging and influential music.

August 19, 2010
Johnny Hartman
Johnny Hartman was the quintessential romantic balladeer. The only singer to record with John Coltrane — on the iconic album John Coltrane & Johnny Hartman — his fame was limited mainly to true jazz lovers during his lifetime.

August 26, 2010
Sidney Bechet
Sidney Bechet was the undisputed king of the soprano saxophone and also one of the most innovative and original clarinetists in jazz. He brought an unequaled energy, clarity and verve to his chosen instruments, along with his trademark heavy vibrato.

September 2, 2010
Mary Lou Williams
Composer, arranger and pianist Mary Lou Williams achieved and maintained a status that many women in jazz found elusive: unwavering respect from male colleagues who regarded her as a musical equal.

September 9, 2010
Armstrong-Man and Music Part 1
t is hard to overstate the incredible reach of Louis Armstrong. The music he made touched everyone who heard it, and revolutionized American entertainment in ways we can still hear today. He did it with the force of his talent: as a singer, trumpeter, composer, author, actor and bandleader.

September 16, 2010
Armstrong-Man and Music Part 2
By his early thirties, Louis Armstrong had already revolutionized jazz forever. Working with his mentor "King" Oliver in Chicago, Armstrong explored and expanded the sounds of his native New Orleans. He developed his improvisational genius with Fletcher Henderson's orchestra in New York, then returned to Chicago already billed as "The World's Greatest Trumpet Player," and recorded the legendary Hot Fives sessions. By the early 1930s, Armstrong had displayed unprecedented virtuosity, sculpting the jazz solo into a unique art form and invigorating the jazz world with a new rhythmic vision of swing.

September 23, 2010
Armstrong-Trumpeter
Before Louis Armstrong ever sang a duet with Ella Fitzgerald or Bing Crosby, before "Hello Dolly" or "It's A Wonderful World," there was just a lanky young man with a bright, beautiful horn. That young man transformed the trumpet into a solo instrument capable of astonishing range and lyrical beauty.

September 30, 2010
Max Roach
Drummer Max Roach died on August 16, 2007 in New York after a long illness. He was 83. A primary architect of the bebop revolution, Roach was one of the most innovative and influential musicians in jazz. He was also a composer, a bandleader, an activist and a teacher. His transcendent musical contributions also ranged from collaborative works for theater and dance, to his groundbreaking percussion-only ensemble, M'Boom.