Brian Nova Musician - All About Jazz

Updated: April 28, 2023

Born: April 29, 1961

Vivify Music Recording Artist and Benedetto Guitar Artist, Brian Nova, is considered one of the top Jazz Guitarists/Vocalists in the nation, according to Jazz Improv Magazine. Joe Pass said of Nova: ‘I feel Brian is one of the finest Jazz Guitarists on the scene!’ He has the distinction of being the only guitarist who was mentored by, and toured with the two titans of Jazz guitar: Herb Ellis and Joe Pass. Rock Icon, Steve Miller, says: ‘I’ve met and known a lot of guitarists in my career, and ‘B’ is the best guitarist I’ve ever met.’ Nova performs, and records, as a solo artist with his Trio, Quartet, and his 18-piece Big Band. Brian is on Arturo Sandoval’s Grammy Award Winning CD, Dear Diz, which garnered a Grammy and 3 Latin Grammys in 2013 on Concord Records. Brian was also featured at the Iconic Apollo Theater in Harlem for Ella Fitzgerald’s 100th Birthday Celebration along with Liz Wright, Monica Mancini, Patti Austin, Andra Day, Cassandra Wilson, Ledisi and many others.

Nova performs throughout North America with extended bookings in major cities and as a Jazz Festival Artist. His annual European Tour includes engagements in Sicily, Sweden, Denmark, Germany, Switzerland, France, Spain, and Italy. His Pan-Pacific Tour includes China, Taiwan, and a sold out tour in Japan every December.

In addition to performing, Nova also encourages young Jazz musicians to further their own musical education and stage presence. From 1990 to 1996, he was the Director of Jazz and Guitar Studies for the Music Program at Seattle University. He continues to mentor the next generation of professional musicians through his master classes and clinics he conducts around the world.

Awards

Grammy® Award winner.

Gear

Benedetto Archtop Guitars, Acoustic Image, SeQuel Amps, Raezers Edge Speaker Cabinets, AAD Amps, Phil Jones Amps, Bose L1 Systems

Chris Walden: Missa Iubileum Aureum: Golden Jubilee Jazz Mass

Read "Missa Iubileum Aureum: Golden Jubilee Jazz Mass" reviewed by Jack Bowers

by Jack Bowers
August 30, 2022

First things first: there is no doubt that Chris Walden's reverential Missa Iubileum Aureum ("Golden Jubilee Jazz Mass") is beautifully written and wonderfully performed by the LMR Jazz Orchestra, St. Dominick's Schola Cantorum and cantors Kurt Elling and Tierney Sutton. Is it jazz? That is another question, one not so easily answered. While there are elements of jazz, they are incidental and generally overshadowed by the more doctrinal aspects of what is essentially an homage to devotion and piety. And ...

Album Review

Various Artists: Ella 100 Live at the Apollo

Read "Ella 100 Live at the Apollo" reviewed by Jim Worsley

by Jim Worsley
April 26, 2020

To be taken back in time within the scope of a period piece movie has long been a staple. Some journeys feel much more real than others, but the concept is commonplace. Venturing into the past with only the audio of a CD or record is, as they might have said back in 1934, “a whole different kettle of fish." A live audience first laid eyes and ears on this 100th birthday celebration honoring the sensational Ella Fitzgerald (born on ...

“ I feel Brian is one of the finest jazz guitarists on the scene!” - Joe Pass, 1994

“Brian is one of my favorite duet partners…..he goes for the groove.” - Red Mitchell, 1996

“He is a true pleasure to play with. He’s my Man!” - Herb Ellis, 2000

Jazz Improv Review of Shadow of Your Smile. “Nova has amazing technique, which is obvious from the double-time technical explosion he launches into the first chorus of his solo on this first track. … one of the aspects of a player’s musicianship that is exposed is the ability to play a melody. Nova demonstrates that mastery and sensitivity on such pieces as “Time After Time,” approached as a ballad, the medium groove “Honeysuckle Rose,” “The More I See You,” and the unaccompanied rendition of “Beautiful Love.”

… Brian Nova’s The Shadow Of Your Smile album provides the foundation for more than an hour of straight-ahead jazz, and highly enjoyable listening.” - Winthrop Bedford, Jazz Improv

Jazz Times Review of Blue & Bossa Nova. “This record really swings! The band behind the very competent Seattle- based guitarist Brian Nova is clearly capable of capturing a groove and sticking with it. Much of that is owed to the nimble rhythm section, but with a vet like Buddy Catlett on bass, how could you miss? Nova himself is an accomplished guitarist, on both electric and acoustic, where his fingers lightly dancing on the fretboard exploring Bossa grooves at breakneck tempos... Let's hear more...” - Mike Quinn, Jazz Times,

Jazz Steps Review of Blue & Bossa Nova. “Nova uncorks a series of tasty, understated workouts on a repertoire of jazz standards and Bossa Nova classics. The guitarists long, single note runs paint some well-drawn narratives... and the rhythm duo of Catlett and Williamson provide supple, swinging underpinnings. The leader's warm unadorned vocal readings add a nostalgia- induced romantic gloss to the proceedings, but it's Nova's string-bending and the collective swing that impresses me most... The members listen as well as they play, and they play really well.” - Joseph Blake, Jazz Steps

The Rocket Review of Live performances. “Like Herb Ellis, Wes Montgomery and Joe Pass before him, Nova is a smooth guitarist who tosses off fluid runs and melodic riffs like nobody's business... The band is swinging... The musicianship is hot and tasteful... Nova's got the goods...”

Earshot Jazz Magazine Review of Live performances. “Nova's command of Jazz guitar technique, combined with rock energy, his beautiful sound, his engaging stage presence, merge perfectly with the room creating a warm welcoming atmosphere. The rest is Jazz history!”

“Brian Nova is a musician’s musician. He can do anything, and he sings his socks off too! I‘m thrilled when I get the chance to work with him.” - Steve Tyrell (Grammy-award winning vocalist and producer)