September 6, 2025
Our Take: Jazz and the NFL
The ’25 – ’26 NFL season is kicking off (literally) this weekend. Already off to a memorable start with Jerry Jones joining the Bill Belichick “What Was I Thinking?” club…
August 30, 2025
Our Take: Labor Day Weekend
If you are looking for a great jazz experience this Labor Day Weekend, the search is an easy one. In alphabetical order, Aspen, Chicago, Dallas, Detroit, District of Columbia and…
August 23, 2025
Our Take: Lineups for the Future are Reminders of the Past
Historically, August is the month that we try to finalize our lineups for next round of cruise programs. No, not the ’26 Cruises, those have been set for months and…
August 16, 2025
Our Take: Four Weeks Until Journey of Jazz ’25 Sails
Journey of Jazz ’25, Signature Cruise Experiences first Fall sailing in nearly two decades, sails in four weeks. For those with great memories, The Jazz Cruise began as a Fall…
August 9, 2025
Our Take: Producing Music – Then and Now
Using technology in the production of music is hardly new. Much of it enhances the music, reduces the cost and improves the quality of the product. Much of it, however,…
August 2, 2025
Our Take: How Do You Get To Birdland?
Most of you know the iconic, and likely apocryphal, story of the tourist walking down Broadway seeking directions to a famous destination. The tourist bumps into someone that we used…
July 26, 2025
Our Take: 48 Days Before Journey of Jazz ’25
Years ago, we produced a jazz tour of New York. It was a glorious few days. We visited the Apollo Theater, Birdland, Blue Note, Dizzy’s Club and more. Marcus Miller…
July 19, 2025
Our Take: Polls
In this week’s edition of Jazz Notes, our jazz guru, Lee Mergner, analyzed the recent DownBeat Critics’ Poll which ranked jazz musicians, vocalists, bands, festivals and more. Highly subjective and…
July 12, 2025
Our Take: The Jazz Vocalist
While each of us can name our favorite jazz vocalists, and there would be significant agreement on many of them, I doubt that we could articulate, and certainly not agree…
June 28, 2025
Our Take: Is it a June Swoon or Just a Nice Break?
The end of June is upon us, which means that 2025 is half over or time to begin preparing for its second half. Which description you choose will go far…