Paul Desmond is widely recognized for his genius as a melodic improviser and as the benchmark of cool jazz saxophone players. His warm, elegant tone was one that he admittedly tried to make sound like a dry martini. Best known as a member of the Dave Brubeck Quartet, he composed the group’s biggest hit, “Take Five.” The song remains the best-selling jazz song of all time. 
 
 As part of the Peabody Award-winning documentary series “Jazz Profiles,” this episode about Paul Desmond was produced in 1999 by Paul Conley and narrated by the show host Nancy Wilson. 

The “Jazz Profiles” shows – nearly 200 of them – are part of the Tim Owens Jazz & Broadcast Collection at the University of North Texas Music Library. In a partnership with Tim and UNTML, we’ve picked a handful of noteworthy shows to share with you. You can find more “Jazz Profiles” shows at the UNT Music Library’s Jazz Syndicate (www.library.unt.edu/jazzsyndicate), and learn more about 32 Bar Blues' clothing collection and commitment to the arts at 32barblues.com

Erroll Garner was one of the most well-known and influential pianists in the world during his lifetime. Growing up in a musical family, he was by all accounts self-taught – playing at the age of three and performing professionally by the age of seven. Throughout his career, he developed a distinctive and original piano style often compared with Art Tatum, Fats Waller, as well as Claude Debussy.

As part of the Peabody Award-winning documentary series “Jazz Profiles,” this episode about Erroll Garner was produced in 1996 by Paul Conley and narrated by the show host Nancy Wilson. 

The “Jazz Profiles” shows – nearly 200 of them – are part of the Tim Owens Jazz & Broadcast Collection at the University of North Texas Music Library. In a partnership with Tim and UNTML, we’ve picked a handful of noteworthy shows to share with you. You can find more “Jazz Profiles” shows at the UNT Music Library’s Jazz Syndicate (www.library.unt.edu/jazzsyndicate), and learn more about 32 Bar Blues' clothing collection and commitment to the arts at 32barblues.com

Art Tatum was born in Toledo, Ohio, and despite being blind in one eye and only partially sighted in the other he became arguably the greatest jazz piano player who ever lived. In his improvisations, he was prone to spontaneously inserting entirely new chord progressions (sometimes with a new chord on each beat) into the small space of one or two measures. His reharmonization of pop tunes became a standard practice among modern jazz musicians, horn players as well as pianists. In rhythmically unpredictable spurts, he often generated lines with notes cascading across each other while weaving in and out of tempo. 
 
 As part of the Peabody Award-winning documentary series “Jazz Profiles,” this episode about Art Tatum was produced in 1999 by Molly Murphy and narrated by the show host Nancy Wilson. 

The “Jazz Profiles” shows – nearly 200 of them – are part of the Tim Owens Jazz & Broadcast Collection at the University of North Texas Music Library. In a partnership with Tim and UNTML, we’ve picked a handful of noteworthy shows to share with you. You can find more “Jazz Profiles” shows at the UNT Music Library’s Jazz Syndicate (www.library.unt.edu/jazzsyndicate), and learn more about 32 Bar Blues' clothing collection and commitment to the arts at 32barblues.com

Through nearly 70 years of music-making, Wayne Shorter gave his spirit, intelligence, and singular vision to the music called jazz. Always exploring and always pushing the boundaries, Wayne expanded and enriched the musical landscape – in his own band, and in some of the most important ensembles in jazz: Weather Report, The Miles Davis Quintet, and Art Blakey’s Jazz Messengers.

As part of the Peabody Award-winning documentary series “Jazz Profiles,” this episode about Wayne Shorter was produced in 1999 by Nick Lloyd and Adam Emmert – and narrated by the show host Nancy Wilson. 

The “Jazz Profiles” shows – nearly 200 of them – are part of the Tim Owens Jazz & Broadcast Collection at the University of North Texas Music Library. In a partnership with Tim and UNTML, we’ve picked a handful of noteworthy shows to share with you. You can find more “Jazz Profiles” shows at the UNT Music Library’s Jazz Syndicate (www.library.unt.edu/jazzsyndicate), and learn more about 32 Bar Blues' clothing collection and commitment to the arts at 32barblues.com

There aren’t many jazz listeners who haven’t heard the name “Marsalis.” Well, without this Marsalis, there wouldn’t be any others. Highly acclaimed jazz artist, renowned educator, and New Orleans’ beloved musical patriarch who founded the University of New Orleans jazz studies program, Ellis Marsalis was a wizard on piano, one of the most inventive and influential musicians in jazz.

As part of the Peabody Award-winning documentary series “Jazz Profiles,” this episode about Ellis Marsalis was produced in 2000 by Molly Murphy and narrated by the show host Nancy Wilson. 

The “Jazz Profiles” shows – nearly 200 of them – are part of the Tim Owens Jazz & Broadcast Collection at the University of North Texas Music Library. In a partnership with Tim and UNTML, we’ve picked a handful of noteworthy shows to share with you. You can find more “Jazz Profiles” shows at the UNT Music Library’s Jazz Syndicate (www.library.unt.edu/jazzsyndicate), and learn more about 32 Bar Blues' clothing collection and commitment to the arts at 32barblues.com

He is known for his spontaneity, wit, incomparable style, and commanding presence. He doesn’t tip-toe around rhythms and he doesn’t waste beats. “I like to get a musical sound out of the drums,” he once said, “I want to make them sing.” Given the nickname “Snap Crackle” for his distinctive style and musical vocabulary, Roy Haynes’ career spanned eight decades; he was a pioneer of jazz drumming and one the most recorded musicians in jazz.

As part of the Peabody Award-winning documentary series “Jazz Profiles,” this episode about Roy Haynes was produced in 1997 by Njemile C. Jones and narrated by the show host Nancy Wilson. 

The “Jazz Profiles” shows – nearly 200 of them – are part of the Tim Owens Jazz & Broadcast Collection at the University of North Texas Music Library. In a partnership with Tim and UNTML, we’ve picked a handful of noteworthy shows to share with you. You can find more “Jazz Profiles” shows at the UNT Music Library’s Jazz Syndicate (www.library.unt.edu/jazzsyndicate), and learn more about 32 Bar Blues' clothing collection and commitment to the arts at 32barblues.com

There are few artists in the music industry who have had more influence on acoustic and electronic jazz and R&B than Herbie Hancock. With an illustrious career spanning six decades and 14 Grammy Awards, he continues to amaze audiences across the globe. As the immortal Miles Davis said in his autobiography, “Herbie was the step after Bud Powell and Thelonious Monk, and I haven’t heard anybody yet who has come after him.”

As part of the Peabody Award-winning documentary series “Jazz Profiles,” this episode about Herbie Hancock was produced in 2000 by John Diliberto and narrated by the show host Nancy Wilson. 

The “Jazz Profiles” shows – nearly 200 of them – are part of the Tim Owens Jazz & Broadcast Collection at the University of North Texas Music Library. In a partnership with Tim and UNTML, we’ve picked a handful of noteworthy shows to share with you. You can find more “Jazz Profiles” shows at the UNT Music Library’s Jazz Syndicate (www.library.unt.edu/jazzsyndicate), and learn more about 32 Bar Blues' clothing collection and commitment to the arts at 32barblues.com

Bessie Smith (ca. 1895–1937) was a blues and jazz singer from the Harlem Renaissance who is remembered as the “Empress of the Blues.” Famous for the majesty and power with which she belted out tunes, Bessie had an unforgettable voice and stage presence – and she captivated black and white audiences alike. 

As part of the Peabody Award-winning documentary series “Jazz Profiles,” this episode about Bessie Smith was produced in 1996 by Rolando Arrieta and narrated by the show host Nancy Wilson. 

The “Jazz Profiles” shows – nearly 200 of them – are part of the Tim Owens Jazz & Broadcast Collection at the University of North Texas Music Library. In a partnership with Tim and UNTML, we’ve picked a handful of noteworthy shows to share with you. You can find more “Jazz Profiles” shows at the UNT Music Library’s Jazz Syndicate (www.library.unt.edu/jazzsyndicate), and learn more about 32 Bar Blues' clothing collection and commitment to the arts at 32barblues.com

For much of his career, Mel Tormé performed at the peak of his profession, a jazz singer without peer who was revered by music lovers around the world. But Mel Tormé was so much more than just a great singer. He was a true Renaissance man, a talented musician and celebrated composer who became a fine arranger and orchestrator. He wrote books, acted in movies, hosted his own television shows. And to it all, Mel brought both a child-like zeal and a mature sense of completeness.

As part of the Peabody Award-winning documentary series “Jazz Profiles,” this episode about Mel Tormé was produced in 2000 by Paul Conley and narrated by the show host Nancy Wilson. 

The “Jazz Profiles” shows – nearly 200 of them – are part of the Tim Owens Jazz & Broadcast Collection at the University of North Texas Music Library. In a partnership with Tim and UNTML, we’ve picked a handful of noteworthy shows to share with you. You can find more “Jazz Profiles” shows at the UNT Music Library’s Jazz Syndicate (www.library.unt.edu/jazzsyndicate), and learn more about 32 Bar Blues' clothing collection and commitment to the arts at 32barblues.com

You recognize her instantly. And it isn’t just her remarkable voice. You recognize her character, the youthfulness, the exuberance, the freedom, the joy. More than anybody else’s, her sound is the sound of America. We’re talking about Ella Fitzgerald. Audiences, musicians and critics have honored her as the greatest singer of the 20th Century.

As part of the Peabody Award-winning documentary series “Jazz Profiles,” this episode about Ella Fitzgerald was produced in 1996 by Rolando Arrieta and narrated by the show host Nancy Wilson. 

The “Jazz Profiles” shows – nearly 200 of them – are part of the Tim Owens Jazz & Broadcast Collection at the University of North Texas Music Library. In a partnership with Tim and UNTML, we’ve picked a handful of noteworthy shows to share with you. You can find more “Jazz Profiles” shows at the UNT Music Library’s Jazz Syndicate (www.library.unt.edu/jazzsyndicate), and learn more about 32 Bar Blues' clothing collection and commitment to the arts at 32barblues.com