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Dezron Douglas

Known for his musical versatility, bassist Dezron Douglas is one of the most in demand young bassists in jazz today. Composer, bandleader, sideman and educator, Dezron has established himself as a musician’s musician, respected not only for his talent but also for his dedication to the authenticity of the music.

Born and raised in Hartford, CT, Dezron grew up surrounded by music. His first musical influences weren’t actually jazz, even though he is the nephew of the legendary drummer and composer, Walter Bolden (Nancy Wilson). The sounds that filled his home were of Stevie Wonder, George Benson, Minnie Ripperton, Diana Ross, Gregory Isaacs, Peter Tosh, The Clark Sisters, Mahalia Jackson, Commissioned, and the list goes on. As he explains, “Jazz was always around, but not at my House”. He was influenced by the music, moved by the way sound expressed emotion. At the age of 12, he was determined to harness that ability.

With the encouragement of his mentor, the late saxophonist, composer, and educator Jackie Mclean, he enrolled in the Jackie McLean Institute of African American Music at the Hartt School of Music. Studying at Hartt offered him the opportunity to learn from and work with such notable jazz musicians such as Nat Reeves, Steve Davis, and of course Jackie McLean. Transcribing music into emotion was an effortless process for the young bassist. The years at Hartt helped Dezron to form his own technical approach to the bass, further developing his versatility. Natural talent combined with his ability to swing made Dezron one of the most sought after young bassists. While still in school he routinely performed with: Rene McLean, Steve Davis, Jimmy Greene, Alan Jay Palmer, Abraham Burton and Eric McPherson, Nita Zarif, and Montenia Shider.

While in college, he co-founded, The New Jazz Workshop of Hartford, a group of like-minded young musicians dedicated to preserving the heart of Jazz. The group offered him an opportunity to showcase his talents as a composer and bandleader. Still while in college, the group received The Evelyn Preston Grant and also had the privilege of opening for Slide Hampton. The group performed collectively across the Tri -State area and selectively with notable jazz musicians across the world. Their debut album “Underground” was released in July of 2012.

Dezron began recording in 2005, “Marsalis Music Honors Michael Carvin”, produced by Branford Marsalis, the CD featured Master drummer Michael Carvin. This experience opened up a flood gate of other opportunities. Over the years, he has continued to perform and record with Michael Carvin, Pharoah Sanders, Cyrus Chestnut, Louis Hayes, George Cables, Abraham Burton/Eric McPherson, Rene McLean, Al Foster, Ravi Coltrane, Billy Drummond, Steve Davis, Victor Lewis, Winard Harper, Mulgrew Miller, Lewis Nash, Kevin Mahogany, Carla Cook, Kenny Garrett, Steve Coleman, Willie Jones III, Duane Eubanks, Eric Reed, Tomasz Stanko, Vincent Herring, Papo Vazquez and The Marsalis Family.

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4
Live Review

The Dezron Douglas Quartet In A Holiday Mood At Miller Theater

Read "The Dezron Douglas Quartet In A Holiday Mood At Miller Theater" reviewed by Paul Reynolds


The Dezron Douglas Quartet Miller Theater, In a Holiday Mood New York, NYDecember 2, 2023 Holiday-season jazz concerts too often lean on the same old formula. Some swinging arrangements of hoary hymns, perhaps a dip into the Vince Guaraldi Trio Charlie Brown Christmas, and the near-inevitable inclusion of “The Christmas Song (Chestnuts Roasting)," virtually the only legit jazz standard in the traditional holiday songbook. Kudos, then, to the adventurous Miller Theater ...

4
Album Review

Johnathan Blake: Passage

Read "Passage" reviewed by Dave Linn


The drummer Johnathan Blake was born in Philadelphia in 1976. His father was the esteemed jazz violinist and educator John Blake Jr. who played in many diverse settings, (most notably Archie Shepp and McCoy Tyner), before releasing seven albums under his name. He died in 2014. Blake (the son) began studying music at a young age, later attending William Paterson University studying with Rufus Reid and Steve Wilson. He eventually received a master's in composition at Rutgers University where he ...

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Liner Notes

Steve Davis: Correlations

Read "Steve Davis: Correlations" reviewed by C. Andrew Hovan


Surely it must be considered a milestone to chalk up Correlations as Steve Davis' 20th session as a leader. Just contemplate how much the world has changed since the trombonist started turning heads as a member of Art Blakey's Jazz Messengers back at the start of the '90s. The record business in particular occupies a vastly different landscape than was once the norm, a fact that figures all the more prominently in the precarious nature of recorded jazz. As such, ...

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Radio & Podcasts

Dezron Douglas, Nadje Noordhuis, Kirk Lightsey, Timothy Norton & More New Releases

Read "Dezron Douglas, Nadje Noordhuis, Kirk Lightsey, Timothy Norton & More New Releases" reviewed by Ludovico Granvassu


Plato, Mingus and Seinfeld: what could they possibly have in common? Not much—or a lot—depending on the plasticity of your mind. You'll get the answer if you listen to this edition of Mondo Jazz, digging forward, and back with a precious new compilation showcasing the Detroit Artists Workshop.Happy listening!Playlist Ben Allison “Mondo Jazz Theme (feat. Ted Nash & Pyeng Threadgill)" 0:00 Timothy Norton “Saba Saba Bachu Bachu" Visions of Phaedrus (Trrcollective) 0:16 Host talks 7:39 Dezron ...

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Album Review

Dezron Douglas: Atalaya

Read "Atalaya" reviewed by Chris May


Atalaya is Dezron Douglas' first full-length album leading a band in over four years. The bassist's recent sightings have whet the appetite rather than deliver the main course. Black Lion (Self Produced, 2018), made with a sextet, attracted good notices, but was an EP. His appearance on drummer Makaya McCraven's Universal Beings (International Anthem, 2018) was confined to one side of that double album. Force Majeure (International Anthem, 2020) was a collection of livestream duets made with his partner, harpist ...

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Album Review

Billy Drummond and Freedom of Ideas: Valse Sinistre

Read "Valse Sinistre" reviewed by Jack Bowers


As one of the world's foremost jazz drummers, Billy Drummond manages to keep busy--so much so that Valse Sinistre, recorded in November 2021, is his first album as leader in more than twenty-five years, following the critically acclaimed Dubai from 1996. This time around, Drummond is at the helm of his Freedom of Ideas quartet: Micah Thomas on piano; Dezron Douglas on bass; and Dayna Stephens on saxophones. Even though he is the nominal leader, Drummond doesn't ...

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Album Review

The Burton/McPherson Trio: The Summit Rock Session at Seneca Village

Read "The Summit Rock Session at Seneca Village" reviewed by Jack Bowers


The Burton/McPherson Trio consists of tenor saxophonist Abraham Burton, drummer Eric McPherson and bassist Dezron Douglas. Why it isn't called the Burton/McPherson/Douglas Trio is anyone's guess; the hope is that bassist Douglas' feelings weren't too badly hurt by the omission. He may have found solace in the outer jacket's addendum, “Featuring Dezron Douglas." In any case, this is the trio recorded live in June 2021 at Summit Rock in Seneca Village, an historic mostly African-American settlement in New York City's ...

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Event

Ottawa JazzWorks Launches “JazzWorks Presents” Concert Series With Performance By New York Bassist Dezron Douglas On October 5th At Festival Japan Restaurant

Ottawa JazzWorks Launches “JazzWorks Presents” Concert Series With Performance By New York Bassist Dezron Douglas On October 5th At Festival Japan Restaurant

Source: Judith Humenick

“A-List” Bassist Dezron Douglas, lauded by the New York Times for his “deep and soulful sound”, visits jny: Ottawa to play the first in a new series of jazz concert events, “JazzWorks Presents”, at Festival Japan Restaurant on Friday October 5th from 7:30 to 10:30 pm. Known for his musical versatility, Douglas, one of the most in-demand young bassists in jazz today, will be joined in a trio setting by Ottawa’s Steve Boudreau on piano and Petr Cancura on saxophones. ...

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Recording

New Release "Angels" by Andy Scott, Featuring Cyrus Chestnut, Dezron Douglas And Evan Sherman

New Release "Angels" by Andy Scott, Featuring Cyrus Chestnut, Dezron Douglas And Evan Sherman

Source: Frank Moten

Andy Scott is a jazz singer… but that’s like saying Al Pacino is an “actor” and Julia Childs a “cook.” Scott comes from the tradition of the classic ballad/American Songbook style but he’s not “retro”—like the best singers he melds the best of the past with the immediacy of the Eternal Now, with an eye on the horizon. Born 1957 in jny: Cleveland, Ohio to Terry and Al Rosen—the latter a slugger for the Cleveland Indians—Andy Scott grew up in ...

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Performance / Tour

Dezron Douglas Quintet at Firehouse 12 This Friday 3/28

Dezron Douglas Quintet at Firehouse 12 This Friday 3/28

Source: Improvised Communications

Firehouse 12's 2008 Spring Jazz Series continues on Friday, March 28th with a two-set performance by emerging bassist/composer, and Hartford native, Dezron Douglas and his quintet. The group is a subset of the Hartford-based collective, The New Jazz Workshop, and features longtime Douglas collaborators Josh Evans, Lummie Spann, David Bryant and Curtis Torian. This performance will feature original music from Douglas' forthcoming debut CD as a leader, which he will record with the band in New York this week.

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Recordings: As Leader | As Sideperson

Exactly Right

Savant Records
2023

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Passage

Blue Note Records
2023

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Honoring Pat Martino,...

HighNote Records
2022

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The Summit Rock...

Giant Step Arts
2022

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Valse Sinistre

Cellar Records
2022

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Atalaya

International Anthem Recording Company
2022

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Nita

From: Dezron Douglas: Live at Smalls
By Dezron Douglas

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