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Features

March 3

Modern Women Vocalists: Grazyna Auguscik

Chicago-based singer, arranger, and composer Grazyna Auguscik has been on the cutting edge of modern jazz since she began her career in Poland. Elements of contemporary jazz, world, Latin music, electronica, and a strong strain of traditional music from her home combine to form a unique and personal style of “Euro-jazz.” After Auguscik moved to Chicago in 1994, she formed a strong presence on the local jazz scene while gaining international recognition with regular tours abroad. She is also a composer and producer with her own independent label, GMA Records, and has nearly a dozen CDs to her credit since the early 1990s, including her most progressive effort yet, The Light, released in 2005.

March 10

Modern Women Vocalists: Patricia Barber

Hip intellectual lyricism married to uncommon musical arrangements describe the distinctive sound of Chicago’s Patricia Barber. While lauded for her own post-modern jazz compositions, Barber is equally acclaimed for her scorching reinventions of pop songs like Paul Anka’s “She’s a Lady,” The Doors’ “Light My Fire,” and Smokey Robinson’s “My Girl.” After working for many years in Chicago jazz circles, Barber reached international heights following the 1994 release of Café Blue. The 2004 disc, Live: A Fortnight in France, included “White World,” a preview of her upcoming song cycle based on Ovid’s Metamorphoses—a project set in motion by the Guggenheim Fellowship for music composition awarded to Barber in 2003.

March 17

Modern Women Vocalists: Cassandra Wilson

Though now in her third decade as a performer, singer, songwriter, and producer, Cassandra Wilson is still indisputably one of the leading “new generation” jazz artists on the scene today. Her music is an eclectic blend of contemporary genres, yet rooted in solid jazz fundamentals and the blues of the Mississippi Delta. Her trademark covers span a wide range of material from the folk-soul of Van Morrison and roots rock of Neil Young, to country blues of Robert Johnson and the jazz adventures of Miles Davis.

March 24

Double Bill—Modern Women Vocalists: The Pioneers and Drummer Paul Motian's Birthday

This week we wrap up our Modern Women Vocalists feature with a look back at some of the pioneers from the 1960s and 70s who opened doors for today’s modern women vocalists. A number of singers broke through traditional boundaries, blurring the lines between jazz, blues, folk, R&B, avant-garde, and other forms of music. We feature some of the key figures in this show, including Betty Carter, Nina Simone, Joni Mitchell, Esther Phillips, and Chicago-born jazz diva Abbey Lincoln. Also, we celebrate the 75th birthday of progressive drummer Paul Motian with a retrospective of his career, from key past recordings as a leader and with a variety of other performers to his newest CD, Garden of Eden.

March 31

Jazz Remixed Dance Party

In recent years, major labels have invited some of today’s top mixers and DJs to reinterpret a variety of jazz classics. We explore these recent turntable adventures as well as some newer jazz recordings that employ samples, scratches, and loops, techniques more often associated with hip-hop and electronica than jazz, until now.

March

Broadcast Schedule

March 3
Modern Women Vocalists: Grazyna Auguscik

March 10
Modern Women Vocalists: Patricia Barber

March 17
Modern Women Vocalists: Cassandra Wilson

March 24
Double Bill—Modern Women Vocalists: The Pioneers and Drummer Paul Motian's Birthday

March 31
Jazz Remixed Dance Party

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