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Soundcheck

Monday, October 11, 2004
  • Wynton Marsalis playing trumpet - photo by Keith Major
    Wynton Marsalis (Keith Major)

    Jazz Finds a New Home

    Jazz lovers take note! Today, host John Schaefer offers a sneak preview of the new home of Jazz at Lincoln Center. We get a behind-the-scenes tour of the sleek new $128 million Fredrick P. Rose concert hall, located in the Time Warner Center on Columbus Circle with the center’s president and CEO Walter Thinnes. We also hear from Wynton Marsalis, the Pulitzer Prize-winning composer and trumpeter, and artistic director for Jazz at Lincoln Center, which he co-founded in 1987. Always an outspoken figure in the jazz world, Marsalis discusses the development of the new hall, his programming vision for the center, and his upcoming performance with the Lincoln Center Jazz Orchestra.

    » View pictures of Soundcheck's walk-through of J@LC's New Home

Noteworthy New York

Soundcheck

We have invited musicians and artists to help us select their favorite cultural destination in the neighborhood where they live. From parks and coffee shops to bowling alleys and museums, the options are as diverse as our group of contributors.

The Journey of Quincy Jones

Soundcheck

During his 50-year career, Quincy Jones has worked with everyone from Frank Sinatra to Puff Daddy, founded Vibe magazine, collected countless awards, and earned a reputation as a jazz giant. (Somewhere in there, he found time to make possible an album called "Thriller.") Jones joins us on the occasion of his new book, "The Complete Quincy Jones: My Journey & Passions."

Soundcheck blog: John Schaefer on Quincy Jones, Henry Rollins and the term "Renaissance man"

Pop's Love Affair With Death

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Death may be an unpleasant topic for conversation, but it ranks up there with sex and love as a basic ingredient in song lyrics. Today, we look at how pop music copes (and even thrives) with death. We're joined by Graeme Thomson, author of the self-explanatory book, "I Shot a Man in Reno: A History of Death By Murder, Suicide, Fire, Flood, Drugs, Disease and General Misadventure, as Related in Popular Song."

Soundcheck blog: What's your favorite song about death?

Behind the public face of John Lennon

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Writing a book about the Beatles is to enter a crowded market. But Philip Norman’s new 851-page biography, “John Lennon: The Life” is getting much buzz this fall for the unprecedented access provided by Lennon’s friends and relatives, including Yoko Ono. We talk with Norman about why Lennon remains such a fascinating and troubled figure.

The Soul of British Soul

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British soul divas like Amy Winehouse and Duffy owe a big debt to a '60s icon with a breathy voice and a beehive wig. Today: the story of singer Dusty Springfield. Later: folk-rock artist Ani DiFranco performs songs from her new album "Red Letter Year" live in our studio.