The Hot Box

A nudge from a listener in Scotland prompts Donald Helme to put right an omission: marking the centenary of the great Oscar Peterson. This episode opens with Norman Granz introducing the Oscar Peterson Trio at Zurich’s Kongresshaus on 8 April 1960. Sharing the bill that evening were the Stan Getz Quartet and the Miles Davis Quintet—an extraordinary gathering of jazz talent. From the swinging “Jordu” and “Cubano Chant” to solo interpretations of “Someone to Watch Over Me” and “Bye Bye Blackbird

It’s something of a home game on this edition of The Hot Box, with Donald Helme spending most of the hour in the company of Irish musicians, drawing on recordings both new and from the archives. Among the newer music is Stella Bass with her latest single Time to Fly, while a look back into Irish jazz history brings us John Wadham’s Drums and Friends, recently remastered and reissued by Livia Records, from which we hear Wayne Shorter’s Footprints. There’s also music from Linley Hamilton, Don Bak

As the new movie Everybody Digs Bill Evans launches in cinemas around Ireland, The Hot Box grabs the opportunity to immerse you in Evans’ music. Whilst an hour can only provide a snapshot of the considerable output from one of jazz’s truly great innovators, it enables us to evaluate his contribution to jazz during his too-short life. Track list for The Hot Box #156 – Everybody Digs Bill Evans Walk with Debbie Someday My Prince Will Come When I Fall in Love Blue in Green (Miles Davis Quintet

Join Donald Helme on this edition of The Hot Box as he celebrates the life and music of one of jazz’s most influential figures, Miles Davis, marking what would have been the legendary trumpeter’s 100th birthday. From his groundbreaking innovations in bebop, cool jazz, modal jazz and jazz fusion, Miles Davis reshaped the course of modern music and continues to inspire generations of musicians and listeners alike. Donald reflects on the enduring legacy of Davis and introduces a carefully curated

Whilst enjoying the multitude of styles that compose the repertoire of jazz today, many fans have long decried the disappearance of Bebop in favour of crossover music and other listener-to-listener styles. There is some evidence though that things may be changing, and one piece of that evidence is the emergence of some bands playing music closer to bop or hard bop style. One such is the British quintet Five Way Split, and Hot Box 152 samples tracks from their new album, Modus Operandi, alongsid

The upcoming visit of Wynton Marsalis and the Lincoln Center Jazz Orchestra to these shores prompts an hour of listening to their diverse music in the Hot Box. Founded in 1988 and under Marsalis’ direction since 1991, it has become an important icon for quality and stability in the world of jazz music. It has played in Ireland before, but since Marsalis announced his upcoming retirement, their concerts in Ireland develop even more significance. Enjoy an hour taken from their huge catalogue of