Welcome to Boston Jazz Scene

Welcome to the Boston Jazz Scene web site--the place to find out what happened, what is happening, and what is coming in jazz and other improvised music in Boston and surrounding communities. The most recent post is listed below this information. Words listed below the Topics heading to the right refer to information you can find here about jazz and other improvised music, the arts in general, food, and travel in and near Boston.

If you click on the Scheduled Jazz Highlights topic, you will see a selection of upcoming jazz gigs that we think are particularly noteworthy.

If you click on one of the History - Jazz Journal topics, you will see a selection of journal entries covering performances and relevant events that have taken place in Boston since the 1970s.

If you click on the History - Major Contributors topic, you will see a list of Bostonian musicians who have made significant contributions to the development and evolution of jazz in Boston and elsewhere.

If you click on the Images - Musicians topic, you will see a selection of photos of current and former Boston area jazz musicians and significant visiting jazz musicians. If photos of musicians are displayed on this page and you click on Older Posts at the bottom of this page, you will see earlier image pages eventually going back to page 1.

If you click on the Images - Venues topic, you will see a selection of photos of current and former Boston area jazz venue locations.

If you click on the History - Jazz Timeline topic, you will see a brief list of significant events in the development and evolution of jazz in Boston beginning with the first groundwork in colonial America.

If you click on the Essays on Music topic, you will see essays about the development of jazz and other music since the late nineteenth century and particularly the evolving context in which the music has been and continues to be created.

If you click on one of the Travel options, you will see a variety of information that may be of interest to people visiting Boston (or even some people who live here).

Saturday, September 12, 2026

Upcoming performance highlights

Among the more attractive performances scheduled in the near future in the Boston area are the ones listed below.  With the exception of some gigs that feature Magazine Cover (MC) groups (which can range in quality from very good to terrible), the gigs listed below are ones that I wish I could attend.  And—if time and circumstances permit—I will be there.  
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For now some locations indoors are open for music performances.  Distancing and mask restrictions apply.  If people exhibit safe behaviors, such gigs may not be shut down.  Let's hope things improve soon.  
 

I received word from Jacob William that Laurence Cook passed away on 9/1.  Laurence was one of the true giants as a person and as an improvising musician.  No one matched him and no one will surpass him.  We are all blessed to have known him.  Jacob is kind enough to pass along to us information about memorial services and other plans as that information is made available.  Details about those activities which will take place primarily on 9/9 and 9/10 in Westwood are displayed immediately below the following upcoming scheduled music highlights.    He was born on June 8, 1939.

 

9/10-12 - Arturo Sandoval and friends at 7:30 and 10 p.m. (MP) – No word yet about who will be on the stage with him, but he’s so popular that he’d draw a crowd all by himself.  It happens at Scullers (617-562-4111) ($59.75-$198.63)…
 
 

No matter what your interest in music is or whether you are a musician or fan, somewhere in your heart there is a curiosity about where all these sounds and sonic celebrations come from.  Well, the September/October 2026 issue of Archaeology (archaeology.com) is available at some book stores and public libraries and it may be just what you are looking for.  Perhaps you are a trombone player who enjoys grabbing your conch shell from your bag of tricks to the delight of your fans.  On page 26 there is a photo of a conch-shell trumpet that was used more than a thousand years ago by Native Americans in northern Arizona.  Not surprisingly, there are two examples of copper-alloy cymbals found in Dahwa, Oman that were used before 2000 B.C.  All in all, there are eight pages of text and photos celebrating the sounds of the ancient world.  Enjoy.

 

9/12 – The Makanda Project at 7:30 and 10 p.m. (MP/PA) – This is the third and final 2026 concert on the lawn of First Church.  MassArt’s sparc! the ArtMobile will be there with the live painting.  We’ll be joined by cellists from City Strings United.  The ensemble will perform at First Church in Roxbury, 10 Putnam Street.  Free admission…

 

 

9/13 - Greg Loughman Trio featuring Kenny Werner & Mark Walker at 4 p.m. (MP) – These three veterans are not likely to disappoint.  They really connect taking on the traditional piano-bass-drums lineup.  It takes place at QArts Gallery, 229 Hancock St, Quincy, MA.  For ore information, call 617) 302-3969 ($20/$10 students) ...

 

9/18-19 – The George Coleman Quintet at 7 p.m. both nights and at 9:30 on Saturday (MP) – The saxophonist turned 91 years old last March 8th, and he’s been busy doing gigs and is working on four recording projects.  It’s the kind of information that causes the head to snap.  He was the in-demand tenor and alto player during the 1950s and for subsequent decades with Max Roach, Slide Hampton, Miles Davis, and on and on.  The first thought that comes to mind is whether one can expect someone of that age to have the mental facility to improvise effectively and the wind to play impressive solos.  But, wait.  There are a couple brass and woodwind musicians with strong Boston links who offer positive examples.  Both Doc Cheatham and Benny Waters had powerful lungs and amazing creativity we’ll after age 85.  Cheatham was active in the Boston area for years, at one point holding down a gig with Vic Dickcnson at Storyville during 1953-54.  Waters studied at NEC and became a popular teacher in the area (students included Harry Carney).  From 1926 through 1931 he performed with and wrote arrangements for Charlie Johnson.  For several years Coleman’s regular ensemble has included his talented son, George Jr., at the drum kit.  The rest of quintet incudes pianist Steve Myerson, Leo Larrett (guitar), and John Webber (bass).  he evening’s music takes place at the Regattabar in Cambridge.  Information is available at regattabarjazz.com or by phone at 617-661-5099 (tickets are $41.79 and $53.43)…

 



 

Regarding memorial activities for Laurence Cook:

The images below do not fit nicely on the web site screen.   However, if you right-click on one of the images, you will see an option to select "Open image in new tab."  Select that option

The image below is from autobiographical information written by Laurence and published probably in the late 1970s.  Most of the information appears to be accurate except that the Upstream LP under the leadership of Michael Moss has a typo, “Michael Hoss.”  I had no idea that Laurence studied percussion with George Stone, the first professional drum teacher in Boston (prior to that in the 1920s musicians learned how to play instruments in student bands exclusively) and that he studied piano with Margaret Chaloff, mother of Serge and a legendary teacher of both classical and jazz pianists (yes, Laurence managed to add an “r” to the name).

 

The official obituary and relatively recent photo below include fine information about Laurence and his remarkable life as well as some information about events on 9/9 and 9/10. 

 

 

Laurence, Junko, and Charlie at the Outpost on 2-19-11 and Laurence setting up his drums on the same gig

 

 

Classic Laurence Cook adjusting cymbals pose at the Outpost on 4-8-11 and again on 5-14-11

 

 

Laurence enjoying sweets at his 73rd birthday party celebrated on 6-9-12 at the Outpost  

    

        

 

 

 


 


Every Monday – Monday night at the Lily Pad returns with Jerry Bergonzi, Phil Grenadier, guest bassist, and Luther Gray.  Then The Fringe Duo, John Lockwood and George continuing the fire no doubt inspired by the memory of Bob Gullotti.  It begins around 8:30 pm and continues forever ($15 per group; $10 students)…




Ongoing – Non-Event online Music – Performances at various times plus an archive of music (PA) – Non-Event is offering music via online audio files and video files plus real-time performances.  The emphasis is on new music, some of which is improvised music.  For example, Matt Samolis (who unfortunately for us moved from Boston to central Massachusetts) is presenting his bowed cymbal meditation recorded on May 1, 2020.  Keep in mind, money helps support these events.  The URL is: http://www.nonevent.org/
 


If you would like to read Science News’ fine coverage of the pandemic and its implications (including dozens of articles so far), go to the site’s page of coronavirus feature articles.  On that page also is information about how to receive that publication's coronavirus update newsletter twice each week.   Science News will try to answer your questions at feedback@sciencenews.org. …


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Key codes: The abbreviation in parentheses following the name of the event or band/musician performing indicates roughly the type of music that you can expect if you go to the gig.
MC= Magazine Covers.  These musicians/bands are popular with jazz fans and therefore often find their photos on the covers of jazz magazines.  This type of band may or may not be any good qualitatively.  However, many fans like to know “what’s hot.”
MP=Mainstream/Post-Bop.  This is the music that most people think of today when they think of jazz.  It runs the gamut from Parkeresque bebop and Websterish ballads to the post-bop work of people such as Bergonzi and Lovano.
PA=Post-Ayler.  This is Anthony Braxton’s term for all the adventure that came out of Ayler, Ornette, Cecil and others (including Mr. Braxton, of course).  In some ways it is the most diverse jazz and jazz-rooted music being performed today, including everything from near zero dB whispers (e.g., undr, John Tilbury) to eardrum demolishing walls of sound (Keith Rowe, a ton of stuff from Japan) to performances built on combinations of composed and improvised material (Liberation Orchestra, Charlie Kohlhase’s ensembles) to completely improvised offerings (Evan Parker, Laurence Cook).
S=Swing.  It don’t mean a thing…  Maybe “nothing” means “anything” if you are a fan of swing.  Sadly, fine swing music seems to be approaching extinction, at least in the Boston area clubs.  The reasons are obvious and elusive.  The great names of Swing (such as Lunceford and Barnet) have passed on and taken almost all of their band mates with them.  In addition, in spite of the fact that some of the finest music of the swing era was produced by the combos of Goodman and Basie (among others), people continue to think of swing in terms of large (and therefore economically untenable) ensembles.  You can find it happening in some dance halls, but mostly at weddings and Bar Mitzvahs.  For years such names as Whitney, Winniker, and Hershman have held the fort in the Boston area.  But you’ve got to keep your eyes peeled. 
T=Two-beat/Trad.  Some of the finest contemporary two-beat jazz anywhere has been nurtured and grown in Eastern Massachusetts since the 1970s.  Everyone knows about the New Black Eagles, and a host of other musicians are held in equally high esteem around here.  Some of the better-known are Jimmy Mazzy, Stan McDonald, Jeff Hughes, and Guy Van Duser.  Unfortunately for city dwellers, two-beat jazz (and, to a lesser extent, the blues) has moved to the suburbs.  But the best of it is worth the drive.  
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