May 17, 2012
Daniela Schaechter 2006

Italian import Daniela Schaechter is a brilliant young pianist and singer taking the jazz scene by storm. But her resume disguises her youth, with a long list of awards and performances with jazz luminaries. One thing is for sure – she’ll be around for years to come. Schaechter performs her own tune, “Dark Blue,” and McPartland joins in for “It Could Happen to You.”

May 10, 2012
Christopher Ziemba, 2009

Pianist Christopher Ziemba is an amazing young pianist and composer currently enrolled in the post-graduate program in Jazz Studies at Julliard. He took the stage at age 7, playing with his hometown orchestra; last year, he won the 2011 Jacksonville Jazz Piano Competition. On his Piano Jazz debut from 2009, Ziemba performs "Dream Dancing" and "The Nearness of You."

May 03, 2012
Daryl Sherman, 2009

Piano Jazz welcomes pianist and singer Daryl Sherman. The ineffable performer has played most of New York's jazz spots, cabarets and supper clubs since arriving in the city in the mid 1970s.

April 26, 2012
Ellis Larkins, 1979

Pianist Ellis Larkins was best-known for his recorded work as accompanist to Ella Fitzgerald. He also worked with a list of other artists including Herb Jeffries, Anita Ellis and Mildred Bailey, and was a celebrated solo and trio performer on the New York Club scene. On this 1979 session, Larkins performs “Perfidia” and “Blues in the Night,” and duets with McPartland on “Don’t Get Around Much Anymore.”

April 19, 2012
Clare Fischer, 2001

Piano Jazz remembers composer, arranger and pianist Clare Fischer. In a career spanning more than 60 years, he worked as an arranger across genres, including the music of Dizzy Gillespie, Paul McCartney, Prince, and Celine Dionne, among many others. His tunes also entered the jazz repertoire. On this 2001 Piano Jazz, Fischer performes "Isfahan" and "Bloodcount," and McPartland performs his "Pensativa." Clare Fischer died in January 2012 at age 83.

April 12, 2012
Kate McGarry, 2009

Singer/songwriter Kate McGarry has travelled many musical paths, exploring everything from Celtic music to swing, and various genres in between. Her voice, always full of emotion, can be sweet, soulful or swinging, giving her the freedom to chart her own musical course. With pianist and accordion player Gary Versace, McGarry performs “Heather on the Hill,” and McPartland joins in on Cole Porter’s “I Love You.”

April 05, 2012
Bill Charlap and Renee Rosnes

March 29, 2012
John Pizzarelli

If classic jazz has a contemporary voice, it’s that of guitarist, vocalist and bandleader John Pizzarelli. He’s fashioned an ultra-cool style that is both modern and thoroughly rooted in the jazz tradition. With Martin Pizzarelli on bass and Tony Tedesco on drums, the John Pizzarelli Trio swings on “Here Comes the Sun” before Pizzarelli and McPartland perform “In the Wee Small Hours of the Morning.”

March 22, 2012
Beegie Adair

Pianist Beegie Adair is known for an impeccable sense of swing and her smooth but intricate playing. The Nashville resident has been an in-demand pianist for the town’s best country musicians, but her heart belongs to those classic tunes from the Great American Songbook. Adair performs a graceful version of "I Wished on the Moon" and teams up with McPartland for her signature closer, "We'll Be Together Again."

March 15, 2012
Robin Meloy Goldsby, 2006

Pianist Robin Meloy Goldsby has spent much of her musical life providing a pleasant soundtrack for hotel lobbies and cocktail bars. She’s written a book about her experiences, Piano Girl, Lessons in Life, Music, and the Perfect Blue Hawaiian. Goldsby joins McPartland to talk about her piano bar memoir and performs some original tunes, as well as that cocktail-crowd pleaser, “Night and Day.”  

March 08, 2012
Jimmy McPartland Centennial Tribute 2007 JVC Jazz Festival

Jimmy McPartland was one of the great cornet players from the early Jazz Era and is the late husband of Marian McPartland. Piano Jazz celebrates the jazz legend’s centennial with a special concert from the Danny Kaye Playhouse at the 2007 JVC Jazz Festival. Host McPartland gathered a group of Jimmy’s former band mates for an hour of traditional jazz music.

February 29, 2012
Sherrie Maricle

Sherrie Maricle is a musician of many talents--she’s a drummer, an educator, a writer and a band leader. She’s also the beating heart of the all-female big band, the Diva Jazz Orchestra. Maricle brings along a few women from her group--pianist Tomoko Ohno and bassist Noriko Ueda--to perform “Groove Merchant” and Ellington’s “Squeeze Me.”

February 23, 2012
Larry Willis

Larry Willis is a swinging pianist, an artful composer and arranger, and the music director and producer for the boutique label, Mapleshade Records. He’s a master of a wide range of styles and has played or recorded with almost every great jazz musician of the modern era, including Dizzy Gillespie, Stan Getz, and Shirley Horn.  No stranger to piano duets, Willis joins McPartland for “I Should Care” and “Alone Together.”

February 16, 2012
Bobby Broom, 2008

At age 16, guitarist Bobby Broom was recruited by Sonny Rollins, and he’s been dazzling listeners and fellow musicians ever since with his well-honed technique and innovative style. His love of jazz flows through his fingers and resonates on his six strings, as he solos on his own tune, “Coming Home,” before joining bassist Gary Mazzaroppi and McPartland for “Can’t Buy Me Love” and “Donna Lee.”

February 09, 2012
Ed Reed

Singer Ed Reed is relatively new to the national jazz scene, but he’s been singing for more than 50 years. After a life of addiction and incarceration, Reed has emerged triumphant, ready for his moment in the spotlight. With his accompanist Gary Fisher, Reed performs “Sleeping Bee” and “Ask Me Now” before he and McPartland get together on Ellington’s “All Too Soon.” 

February 02, 2012
Piano Jazz at Tanglewood, 2008

For the 7^th annual Piano Jazz show at the Tanglewood Jazz Festival, McPartland hosts three amazing guests. Pianists Mulgrew Miller, singer Nnenna Freelon and rising star, singer/pianist Spencer Day, each take their turn on stage with McPartland. The result is an eclectic and energetic hour of world-class jazz. 

January 26, 2012
Clark Terry, 1994

Legendary trumpeter and educator Clark Terry got his jazz education playing with the Basie Band and Duke Ellington’s orchestra. Commanding a wide range of styles and a dazzling technique, Terry went on to become one of the most influential jazz horn players of his generation. On this 1994 session, he joins Marian McPartland for Ellington’s “Come Sunday” and Terry’s most famous tune, “Mumbles.”

January 19, 2012
Michel Camilo

Dominican jazz sensation Michel Camilo is one of the most creative and technically gifted players on the scene today. Although equally skilled as a classical player, his true calling is jazz, with significant Latin influences. Camilo and McPartland get together for a stellar hour of classic jazz standards including “Willow Weep for Me” and Chick Corea’s “Windows.”

January 12, 2012
Randy Weston

Composer and pianist Randy Weston began his career gigging with Eddie “Cleanhead” Vinson and Kenny Dorham, and was voted New Star Pianist in a 1955 Downbeat poll. He spent several years in Morocco, and incorporated African musical forms and musicians into his recorded work. On this Piano Jazz, Weston returns to the program with host McPartland to perform “A Ballad for T.,” “Little Niles,” and “African Lady.”

January 05, 2012
Stephen Sondheim

Stephen Sondheim is undeniably the best known living composer and lyricist working in the American theatre; he has earned multiple Tony and Grammy Awards, an Academy Award, and the Pulitzer Prize. He was mentored by playwright Oscar Hammerstein II and studied theory with composer Milton Babbitt. This episode showcases a selection of tunes penned by Sondheim, including “Send In The Clowns,” “Old Friends,” and “I Wish I Could Forget,” on which he sings and plays piano. This program origianlly aired in 1994.

December 29, 2011
Matthew Shipp

Pianist/composer Matthew Shipp has an intricate and heady approach to his music, with avant-garde impulses that have led him to experiment with free jazz styles, tape loops and even turntable artists. On this Piano Jazz Shipp settles into one of his favorite environs, the duo format, as he and McPartland explore the outer reaches on "Naima" and Shipp's own "Gamma Ray.

December 15, 2011
Gary Burton

Vibraphonist Gary Burton started out gigging with Chet Atkins, George Shearing, and Stan Getz. Along with his own groups, he has turned out notable projects with Chick Corea, Pat Metheney, and recently, Julian Lage. He also has been an influential professor at the Berklee College of Music. On this Piano Jazz, which originally aired in 2005, Burton solos on Jobim’s “O Grande Amor” and joins McPartland for “Sophisticated Lady.”

December 08, 2011
Holiday Memories with Michael Feinstein

Michael Feinstein is a tireless champion and conservator of American Popular Song. And no yuletide trip to Manhattan is complete without a visit to his holiday show at Feinstein’s at Loews Regency. On this special program, he shares some of his favorite tunes and memories of the season.

December 01, 2011
Marian McPartland Compositions

The Compositions of Marian McPartland: Of all of Marian’s attributes, possibly the most underrated is her ability as a composer.  Some of her piano pieces have entered the jazz repertory, and some of her songs—with lyrics by such stars as Johnny Mercer, Sammy Cahn, and Peggy Lee—are part of the Great American Songbook. Host Murray Horwitz leads this exposition of some of Marian’s most beautiful works, with performances by Sarah Vaughan, Karrin Allyson, the Thad Jones-Mel Lewis Orchestra—and, of course, Marian herself.

November 17, 2011
Herbie Hancock

Pianist Herbie Hancock is an innovator whose ideas continue to push boundaries and transcend musical genres. His work has earned him 14 Grammy Awards, including Best Pop Vocal Collaboration for the 2011 album, Imagine. Hancock solos on his own tune, Dolphin Dance, and joins McPartland for a duet take on That Old Black Magic.

November 10, 2011
Albert Dailey

In his short life, Albert Dailey was an underrated yet hotly sought after pianist. His career included work with Woody Herman, Dexter Gordon, Stan Getz, Art Blakey, Sarah Vaughan, Charles Mingus, Archie Shepp, and Freddie Hubbard. On this 1983 program, he performs his "Dailey Double" and duets with McPartland on "Just One of Those Things."

November 03, 2011
John Lewis

Pianist John Lewis was the musical director behind the highly original Modern Jazz Quartet, with Milt Jackson, Percy Heath, and Kenny Clarke. On this 1989 appearance, Lewis demonstrates his unmistakably light touch on his tunes “Django” and “Afternoon in Paris,” and joins McPartland for a duet of “Delauney’s Dilemma.”

October 25, 2011
Joanne Brackeen

Virtuoso pianist and master composer, Joanne Brackeen, has been called “the Picasso of jazz piano.” In her hands, the history of jazz is created and recreated, as she floats seamlessly between traditional and free styles. Like McPartland, Brackeen has been a trailblazer for women in jazz. On this 2006 episode, the two friends get together on McPartland’s “Ambiance” and Coltrane’s “Giant Steps.”

October 18, 2011
Julian Lage

Guitarist Julian Lage is a true jazz prodigy. Discovered by Gary Burton when he was just 12 years old, Lage has since played with Herbie Hancock, Joe Lovano and Carlos Santana.

October 11, 2011
Chuck Leavell

Pianist Chuck Leavell has played with the shining stars of rock, country, jazz and pop, including Chuck Berry, Eric Clapton, The Allman Brothers Band, and Charles Mingus. Since 1982, he has been keyboardist and general music coordinator for the Rolling Stones. Leavell is also a dedicated environmentalist who maintains a tree farm outside of Macon, GA.

October 04, 2011
Randy Brecker

Trumpeter Randy Brecker has been a tireless explorer of all kinds of musical genres—from funk to Brazilian to mainstream jazz.

September 27, 2011
Sheila Jordan

Sheila Jordan's singing style lights up Piano Jazz with guest host, Jon Weber.

September 20, 2011
Toots Thielemans

Toots Thielemans is the unrivaled master of the jazz harmonica. He penned the standard “Bluesette,” and his recording credits include television and film scores (that’s him on the Sesame Street theme), commercials, and working with greats from Ella Fitzgerald to Quincy Jones. Thielemans duets with McPartland on “Georgia” and “Lullaby of Birdland.”