Jazz-funk pioneer Roy Ayers died earlier this week after a long illness. He was 84 years old. NPR's Isabella Gomez Sarmiento has the story. ISABELLA GOMEZ SARMIENTO, BYLINE: Roy Ayers started vibing ...

Louis Armstrong? Or Parliament-Funkadelic, Earth, Wind & Fire, and proto-rap group The Last Poets? It is perfectly logical to assume New Orleans-bred trumpeter and Pulitzer Prize-winning jazz composer ...

Roy Ayers, the jazz vibraphonist whose smooth fusion planted the seeds of acid jazz and neo soul, died Wednesday at the age of 84. Ayers’ family confirmed his death on the musician’s Facebook page: ...

“It’s gonna be unapologetic funk. And it’s gonna be energetic. And it’s gonna be a wild ride, lots of high-energy solos and cool ensemble work.” That’s how percussionist Nate Worth describes funk-jazz ...

Funk vocalist Dawn Silva’s moniker as the “Funk Queen” didn’t come out of nowhere — her legendary stints with Sly & the Family Stone, Parliament/Funkadelic, the Gap Band and as the frontwoman of The ...

Vibraphonist Roy Ayers, an influential band leader and pioneering composer and producer of jazz, funk, soul and R&B, has died. Ayers, who is known for the celebrated song “Everybody Loves the Sunshine ...

CLEVELAND, Ohio - The 45th Tri-C JazzFest got underway on Thursday night with a show by the acapella group Take 6, but Friday and Saturday is when Playhouse Square really comes alive with full ...

A two-day weekend music festival is returning to downtown Royal Oak next month for its second year. The Royal Oak Chamber of Commerce began the Royal Oak Live! event last year at the Centennial ...

This is FRESH AIR. In the 1970s, influential musicians such as Ornette Coleman began combining free jazz and electric funk. Three notable vets of free funk bands periodically team up to get ...

It’s a genre that combines soul, rhythm and blues and jazz to create its own, unique sound.

Syracuse’s biggest jazz party returns for its 39th edition this week. The 2025 Syracuse International Jazz Festival runs from June 25-29 with a lineup that includes New Orleans great Trombone Shorty, ...

The jazz ensemble program features two big bands and multiple small ensembles, each directed or coached by our jazz faculty. The ensembles cover a range of styles, including bebop, Latin-jazz, free ...