Cuban pianist, composer, arranger, and bandleader Chucho Valdés is one of the most influential figures in modern Afro-Cuban jazz. He was named a 2025 National Endowment for the Arts Jazz Master – and the recognition crowns a 60-year career that includes seven Grammy Awards, six Latin Grammy Awards, a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Latin Academy of Recording Arts & Sciences, and being inducted into the Latin Songwriters Hall of Fame. His style is characterized by a virtuosic and highly entertaining piano technique, innovative compositions, and masterful arrangements. 

As part of the Peabody Award-winning documentary series “Jazz Profiles,” this edition about Chucho Valdés was produced in 1999 by Reese Erlich 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

Vocalist Carmen McRae was an expert on rhythm, deft phrasing and personal, bittersweet ballads. Her enigmatic, dark contralto voice helped place her among the pantheon of great female jazz singers. In a long and distinguished music career, she was also an excellent pianist, songwriter and storyteller. 

As part of the Peabody Award-winning documentary series “Jazz Profiles,” this edition about Carmen McRae was produced in 1996 by Joan Merrill 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

Celebrated for his technical virtuosity and swinging lyricism, jazz trumpeter Clark Terry was a mentor to Miles Davis and performed with Count Basie and Duke Ellington. A great innovator and educator, he’s also one of the most recorded musicians in the history of jazz – with more than 900 recordings – playing with such greats as Oscar Peterson, Dizzy Gillespie, Dinah Washington, Ben Webster, Aretha Franklin, Charlie Barnet, Doc Severinsen, Ray Charles, Billy Strayhorn, and Dexter Gordon. 

As part of the Peabody Award-winning documentary series “Jazz Profiles,” this edition about Clark Terry was produced in 2000 by David Tarnow 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

Keith Jarrett is one of the most celebrated pianists in jazz – a musician acclaimed for his emotionally intense and physically energetic performances. A prodigy who started playing piano at the age of 3, Keith built an uncanny talent for channeling genre-defying improvisations and lyrical sensitivity, bridging jazz, classical, and folk traditions. 

As part of the Peabody Award-winning documentary series “Jazz Profiles,” this episode about Keith Jarrett was produced in 2000 by John Dilberto 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

Singer Etta Jones was an understated, underrated American jazz artist best known for her soulful, blues-influenced style. Words and lyrics meant a great deal to her, and she brought a deeply felt gravitas to every song she performed, which made her shows and recordings all the more captivating. Whether it was a traditional 12-bar blues or a Broadway show tune, she sang with an unaffected sincerity that defied traditional notions of interpretation.  

As part of the Peabody Award-winning documentary series “Jazz Profiles,” this episode about Etta Jones was produced in 1997 by Joan Merrill 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

A giant by any standard and a powerful presence in jazz, Sonny Rollins is a master of improvisation in an art form that is drenched in spontaneity. Yet his roots are as deep as they are deeply American, and he both celebrates tradition and innovates whenever he plays his sax. He has shared the stage with such legends as Charlie Parker, Miles Davis, Thelonious Monk, Bud Powell, and Dizzy Gillespie – and he has re-shaped modern jazz many times over the course of a career lasting more than 60 years.
 
As part of the Peabody Award-winning documentary series “Jazz Profiles,” this episode about Sonny Rollins 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

Gene "Jug" Ammons was one of the tenor giants of his era. He had a big, deep tone that was perfect for everything from warm ballads to groove-intensive blues or sweet swing. He could blow with the best, too. Ammons' record label, Prestige, allowed him to record prolifically in the '50s and early '60s because he was so popular.

As part of the Peabody Award-winning documentary series “Jazz Profiles,” this episode about Gene Ammons was produced in 2000 by Greg Fitzgerald 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

More than any other musician, Herbie Mann was responsible for establishing the flute as an accepted jazz instrument. Prior to his arrival, the flute was a secondary instrument for saxophonists, but Mann found a unique voice for the flute, presenting it in different musical contexts, beginning with Afro-Cuban, and then continuing with music from Brazil, the Middle East, the Caribbean, Japan, and Eastern Europe.  

As part of the Peabody Award-winning documentary series “Jazz Profiles,” this episode about Herbie Mann was produced in 2000 by Cary Ginell 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

Once described as an “excitement merchant” for his soul-stirring sound, Jimmy Smith brought the Hammond B-3 organ to the forefront of the jazz community. The virtuosic keyboard man was the first to use the unwieldy instrument extensively in jazz, leading bassless trios, fronting powerful big bands and pioneering a path for every organist who followed.

As part of the Peabody Award-winning documentary series “Jazz Profiles,” this episode about Jimmy Smith was produced in 1998 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

Mose Allison is an American music icon – but his sound is hard to categorize. Cleverly blending boogie-woogie, bebop, blues and jazz piano, he created innovative and fresh songs shot with brilliant lyrics and his unique half-spoken, half-sung vocal style. His songs have been recorded by the Who (“Young Man Blues”), Leon Russell (“I’m Smashed”), and Bonnie Raitt (“Everybody’s Cryin’ Mercy”) – and other admirers include Tom Waits, John Mayall, the Rolling Stones, and Van Morrison. He’s one of the most original and provocative musicians in jazz.

As part of the Peabody Award-winning documentary series “Jazz Profiles,” this episode about Mose Allison was produced in 1997 by Ben Sidran 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