Hailey Niswanger of the Berklee Global Jazz Institute writes in from her international summer tour.
The HNQ has just landed in Kaua’i and we are so excited to be here. Friday night’s gig at Jimmy Mak’s was a huge success. The first set was completely full, with many familiar faces of friends and family. It is always a pleasure to play in my hometown of Portland, Oregon, the support from my friends, family and fans is incredible. I was so happy to see my best and closest friends there.
Greetings from New York City, where tonight a Berklee student ensemble, the Berklee Greg Osby Sextet, will be playing Dizzy’s Club Coca Cola. Part of the Jazz at Lincoln Center presenting organization, and located in the Time Warner Building in Columbus Circle, Dizzy’s hosts a Monday night series in which they present up-and-comers, and that’s called Upstarts!
Real Jazz Program Director Mark Ruffin gets to crux with Roy Guzman after the band’s broadcast recording at Sirius XM. Leo Brouwer, Wes Montgomery, Kurt Rosenwinkel, Scofield, Metheny, and the Berklee in Puerto Rico program; they all came up.
Leader Roy Guzman in Thursday morning's "sunrise" recording session in the Sirius XM Performance Theater studio in Washington.
I’m reminded of the line from Dylan’s “When I Paint My Masterpiece” — “on a plane ride so bumpy that I almost cried.” The air is choppy, the seat is flexing, and I’m thinking about how great the last 17 years at Berklee have been. And how much I don’t want them to end here, above the Maryland countryside, in an Airbus.
The Roy Guzman Quintet: Michael Sachs, Mark Whitfield Jr., Roy Guzman, Greg Chaplin, and Billy Buss.
Wow, wasn’t I just here? Yep, I was. Three weeks ago, we were in DC at the Kennedy Center with the esteemed Liz Longley, her achingly beautiful songs, and her achingly beautiful band. Now I’m back, with five jazz players, set to do a radio broadcast, and play four shows.
The Roy Guzman Quintet will be all over Washington and the airwaves the next few days, as part of the Duke Ellington Jazz Festival.
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