Author Archives: The Independent Ear

FESMAN 2009: World Festival of Black Arts

Posted on January 27, 2009 by The Independent Ear

I had the pleasure of joining Randy Weston at the United States launch of The World Festival of Black Arts, FESMAN 2009, on January 14 at the United Nations in the Chamber of Economic and Social Council.  FESMAN 2009, which will take … Continue reading →

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2008: The Year in Recordings

Posted on December 11, 2008 by The Independent Ear

One afternoon hanging out with a good friend and fellow writer in the Crescent City during my November completion of the Randy Weston book manuscript for our publisher (Duke University Press) we started speculating on the various end-of-the-year lists we’d been … Continue reading →

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Ancient Future – the radio program

Posted on December 11, 2008 by The Independent Ear

WPFW 89.3 FM, Washington, DC – Pacifica Radio in the Nation’s Capital (www.wpfw.org)   One of the distinct pleasures of returning to the DC area has been WPFW, the area’s most creative radio station.  I spent 18 years hosting programs … Continue reading →

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THE Book for 2008

Posted on December 11, 2008 by The Independent Ear

Jazz… oops Creative Music Book-Of-The-Year:   A Power Stronger Than Itself   By George Lewis ( University of Chicago Press)     As trombonist-composer and now author George Lewis, Director of the Center for Jazz Studies at Columbia University, describes … Continue reading →

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The Adventures of Randy Weston pt. 2

Posted on November 26, 2008 by The Independent Ear

This is Part 2 in our ongoing series of anecdotes from the book African Rhythms: the autobiography of Randy Weston, Composed by Randy Weston, Arranged by Willard Jenkins, forthcoming, published by Duke University Press.   In one of the early chapters of … Continue reading →

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