This One's For You

A Preview of Miami Burgeoning Jazz Scene.

Live Jazz Clubs

• Le Chat Noir: Downtown Miami, Near the Olympia Theater

• The Globe: Coral Gables, FL

• The Corner: Downtown Miami

• Ball & Chain: Little Havana

• Lagniappe: Wynwood

Welcome to “This One’s For You,” my blog detailing the vibrant Modern Jazz scene in Miami. The question people ask me the most is “Where can I hear Jazz?” or “I’m interested in Jazz but I don’t know where to look?” well look no further! This site will be a tool for Jazz novices who want to explore the Miami Jazz scene and for serious (and devoted) Jazz fans.

Featuring interviews with leading Jazz Artist and performances near off into the future, There are plenty of places to hear live Jazz in Miami (but a dearth of actual Jazz Clubs). Jazz artist in Miami often have to compete with Rock, Hip-Hop or (my least favorite) R&B masquerading as Jazz, there is a list above of some clubs where you can hear live Jazz with few gimmicks (See list above)

You get an up close (especially at Ball & Chain and The Corner) view of the leading Jazz Artist in Miami, the artist covered here (and what can be heard) can be either straight forward or pretty eclectic as the genre of contemporary Jazz. You can see bands perform a cover of the historic “Bird and Strings,” (complete with a full orchestra) in the straight ahead (Jazz standard position) or see a performance of Avant-garde music in the form of Albert Ayler or Dewey Redman. If you have a strong ear for Jazz there are a lot of Free Jazz performances throughout the city due to the proximity of the University of Miami’s School of Jazz program. A lot of musicians here play to the gig so you can hear someone sound like Charlie Parker one night and the next they sound like Ornette Coleman, different venues typically hire only allow certain types of music (safe Jazz vs. Adventurous or Free Jazz). Also, all the websites listed post gigs well in advance so you can see who the artist is and what they will likely play and you can be as adventurous as you want. Since this blog is a forum I will (painfully) complete the subjective exercise of ranking my top ten (or 15) Jazz artist and songs. An example would be the “Top 10 Trumpet Players,” finding out who the best Jazz artist is or the best jazz music for that matter is entirely subjective (people like different things) but people can find common ground and get exposed to new artist (so I will persevere).

I’ve been listening and studying Jazz and Blues for over a decade and have been doing radio devoted to the two genres for about four and a half years. I will mention the Blues from time to time but this site will be mainly dedicated to Jazz because it’s the genre people inquire about the most. Later on, in the year, I will write a post about where people can listen to live Blues and tips for building (or expanding) your Jazz collection. Be sure to head over to the forum page to comment on the post and drop the names of your favorite artist (Modern Jazz Artist or Historical), I’m sure it will be a lively discussion! Later on, I will devote a post on where people can stream live Jazz events in Miami and share the links to some Jazz Stations in Miami. I look forward to sharing my thoughts on this great American art form. By discussing Jazz artist or music in general and sharing albums and musical performances (recorded by me or shared from youtube), I look forward to hearing your thoughts and opinions.

#Jazz #LiveJazz #JazzArtist #ContemporaryJazz #BestConcertVenues