Biography: Valerie Capers, Volker Kriegel, Volly DeFaut, Von Freeman, Vyacheslav Ganelin, Valerie Wilmer, Valery Ponomarev, Van Alexander, Van Manakas, Vance Dixon,

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Valerie Capers Biography, Photos, Pictures

Although her 1995 Columbia recording Come on Home was released in a Legendary Pioneers of Jazz series, Valerie Capers is much too obscure and under-recorded to be a legend, and not old enough to be a pioneer

Volker Kriegel Biography, Photos, Pictures

Guitarist Volker Kriegel was widely considered the father of European jazz-rock thanks to his influential stint with the Dave Pike Set as well as a subsequent series of pioneering solo LPs for the MPS label

Volly DeFaut Biography, Photos, Pictures

Jazz fans might not expect one of the grand old men of the Chicago scene to have such a French-sounding name, associating that background with New Orleans The mention of the latter city is appropriate in the context of this multi-instrumentalist, who was already involved in syncopated music from the early ’20s and was steadfast in his commitment to traditional approaches throughout his long career

Not nearly so famous as his son Chico Freeman (also a tenor saxophonist), Von Freeman is nevertheless equally — if not more — accomplished as a jazz musician Von Freeman, while not per se a free jazz player, does exhibit traits commonly associated with the avant-garde: a roughly-hewn, vocalic tone; a flexible, somewhat imprecise approach to rhythm; and a fanciful harmonic concept

Vyacheslav Ganelin Biography, Photos, Pictures

Vyacheslav Ganelin is one of the founding fathers of Lithuanian jazz (which was then Soviet jazz) Born in Moscow in 1944, Ganelin’s parents moved to Lithuania in 1948 He studied piano and composition at the State Conservatory

Valerie Wilmer Biography, Photos, Pictures

A notable jazz photographer, Valerie Wilmer was one of the key jazz writers of the 1960s who embraced and wrote intelligently about avant-garde and free jazz She started as a jazz journalist around 1960 and has since written for such magazines as Melody Maker, Down Beat, Jazz Journal, Swing Journal and Jazz Forum, among many others

Valery Ponomarev Biography, Photos, Pictures

The first major Russian jazz musician to make an impression in the United States, Valery Ponomarev has always had an attractive tone, a swinging style, and a strong interest in keeping the hard bop legacy of Clifford Brown alive

Van Alexander Biography, Photos, Pictures

His father may have been a concert pianist, but the famous big band arranger and composer Van Alexander scored his biggest success with a much simpler influence, nursery rhymes

Van Manakas studied with Pat Metheny at the Berklee College of Music, earning his BA in composition He made his recording debut as a sideman with Jack Tottle on Backroad Mandolin

Any bandleader that names one combo after a common term for lunatics and another afer a writing implement is deserving of scrutiny Vance Dixon brought both Dixon’s Jazz Maniacs and Vance Dixon and His Pencils to the music scene of the ’30s, presumably creating divisions between fans that would be more comfortable in an insane asylum or an office supply store

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