David Brent Johnson
David Brent Johnson is the host of Afterglow and Night Lights. An Indianapolis native and IU alumnus, David began his radio career at Bloomington community radio station WFHB, where he hosted the weekly jazz program All That Jazz. A writer who’s published frequently in Bloom Magazine, The Ryder, the Bloomington Independent, and Indianapolis Nuvo, he has won two Society of Professional Journalists awards for his arts writing.
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What was once called "the music of the devil" became, mere decades later, the setting to several liturgical or traditional ceremonies. With Christmas upon us, here are some prime examples. -
Though overshadowed during his own lifetime by his employer, Duke Ellington, the composer-arranger wrote more than 1,000 pieces. Here are takes on his most famous tunes. -
There are certain figures in jazz history whose iconic status can be telegraphed by a single name. The pianist and singer Nina Simone seems to be ascending to that place of pop-culture reverence. -
Around 1945, jazz's traditional funeral rites manifested in a more modern form of tribute. Now, some of the music's most powerful tunes are written in memory of late colleagues. Hear five examples. -
The songs were a byproduct of slavery in the U.S. But after being passed along by generations of African-American musicians, they were later embraced by a variety of improvisers, including Sister Rosetta Tharpe, Grant Green and John Coltrane. -
The great composer and bandleader was distraught over the 1967 death of Billy Strayhorn, his songwriting and arranging partner of 28 years. But Ellington took Strayhorn's passing as an impetus, born of necessity, to increase his own productivity. Here are five examples. -
Hear five pioneering examples of women who composed for and directed their own groups. -
Since the Harlem Renaissance, African-American musicians have portrayed black history as extended musical works. Jazz is full of such long-form compositions. Hear five examples from composers such as Oliver Nelson, Wynton Marsalis and Duke Ellington. -
From the mid-'50s to 1990, the drummer's band served as a finishing school for elite jazz musicians. Here are five of the distinguished alumni of Blakey's university of the streets, including Horace Silver, Terence Blanchard and Wayne Shorter. -
Indiana Avenue, the "main stem" of the city's black community, hosted master musicians nightly.
