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One of the returns from learning to play music comes when you have a chance to play, even informally, for people you have recently met. My wife Linda and I recently returned from a SeaDream cruise. SeaDream is a small cruise line, just two small ships, about 90 passengers per cruise; in fact, their slogan…

Johnny Catena, the much loved owner of Café 290, Atlanta’s premier music venue for more than 30 years, passed away on November 15, 2024. More than a club owner, Johnny was the quintessential bigger-than-life character, a lover of music and the musicians who play it. In our newly posted Episode 49 of Music Life and…

In my novel, The Musician, my protagonist, Tom Cliffe, argues with an old college buddy named Stecky that his life as a musician requires him to be more responsible than Stecky who took over his dad’s real estate business after college. Near the end of a drawn-out and alcohol-fueled argument, Tom leans into Stecky: “And…

On Friday, November 15, the Red Light Café hosted a packed house for Vinnie D’Agostino and friends, the saxophonist supported by Kevin Bales on piano, Terrell Montgomery on bass, and Dave Potter on drums, four masters of their instruments playing expertly, often furiously as they fulfilled the promise of the show’s title, “Feel the Burn.”…

It might be your last concern. All you did; all you accomplished; your successes more than your failures. When you are gone, who will remember what you have done? That is one more consideration, one more thing that drives those who play and perform music. We want to leave an impression, like a song or…

We know that music is an essential part of everyone’s life, listeners as well as players. And that playing music well is a joy, a feeling unlike any other. But there are many ways playing music as a career make for a great life. A few benefits I’ve enjoyed along the way: Mike Shaw

Sometimes we learn from lyrics. That’s why we love the songs from the American Songbook. Take “The Nearness of You”: “It’s not the pale moon that excites me, or dreams that ignite me; no, it’s just the nearness of you.” Who wouldn’t want to say that or sing that to the person you love. Then:…

One of the most endearing things about playing jazz, or trying to play jazz, is the community that you find yourself in. Jazz musicians embrace new players in various ways, through jam sessions, through educational programs, through regular events like summer jazz camps and other programs for aspiring players. With hardly any exception, jazz is…

Of all the many life lessons that learning to play music teaches, that is, how playing music improves your life, one of the most important is self-confidence. Athletes, successful business owners, doctors and lawyers—there’s no way they can be effective or accomplished without a great deal of confidence in themselves. The same is true for…

A tradition among jazz musicians is bringing along younger players, giving them a chance to mature and grow their skills as well as their love of playing. The tradition plays itself out in many ways, such as in jam sessions, university jazz programs, and private lessons. But it is also at the heart of groups…