PORTRAITS
A curated collection of images capturing the identity, personality and emotions of three generations Jazz musicians in New York and over the world.
NEA Jazz Master Dave Brubeck (1920-2012) at the Newport Jazz Festival, 2012. This image is a commissioned portrait celebrating his 91st birthday. He passed away five months later. ©2012
NEA Jazz Master Wayne Shorter (1933-2023) at the 40th Anniversary Newport Jazz Festival. ©2012
NEA Jazz Master Sonny Rollins (b. 1930) at the 40th Anniversary Umbria Jazz Festival, Perugia, Italy. This performance in 2012 marked his final live appearance at the festival before his retirement. ©2012
Captured in 2010 at Dizzy's Club Coca-Cola, Lincoln Center, NYC, this image features NEA Jazz Master Ron Carter during the year he received his prestigious NEA Jazz Master nomination. ©2010
At Dizzy's Club Coca-Cola, Lincoln Center, NYC, in 2010—the year of his prestigious NEA Jazz Master nomination—this photo captures NEA Jazz Master Ron Carter. The window offered a stunning view of the NYC landscape and cloud-filled sky, making the visual and musical experience profoundly unforgettable. ©2010
NEA Jazz Master Jimmy Heath (1926-2020) backstage at the Blue Note Jazz Club, NYC. This commissioned portrait was taken in 2015 for his 90th birthday.
NEA Jazz Master Frank Wess (1922-2013). A commissioned portrait taken in 2012 at Dizzy's Club Coca-Cola, Lincoln Center, NYC, for his 90th birthday celebration.
NEA Jazz Master Chick Corea (1941-2021) at the Umbria Jazz Festival, Perugia, Italy. This very special show at the Arena Santa Giuliana in 2012 featured an unforgettable duet with his lifelong friend, NEA Jazz Master Herbie Hancock, showcasing two impressive pianos. ©2012
NEA Jazz Master Chick Corea (1941-2021) and NEA Jazz Master Herbie Hancock backstage at the Umbria Jazz Festival, Perugia, Italy. This photo, taken in 2012, captures a moment after their unforgettable duet performance on two impressive pianos. ©2012
NEA Jazz Master Herbie Hancock's band performs at the Arena Santa Giuliana, Umbria Jazz Festival, Perugia, Italy. This 2012 performance was perhaps one of the most incredible live experiences I had with Herbie and his band. ©2012
NEA Jazz Master Randy Weston (1926-2018). A backstage portrait taken at the Detroit Jazz Festival in 2016 for his birthday celebration. ©2016
NEA Jazz Master Roy Haynes (1925-2024) at the Newport Jazz Festival, Rhode Island. ©2012
NEA Jazz Master Harold Mabern (1936-2019) at the Newport Jazz Festival, Rhode Island. In 2018, I met Mr. Mabern backstage, and he personally asked me to capture portraits of him listening to his band, which I was honored to do. He passed away just one year later. ©2018
NEA Jazz Master Lou Donaldson (1926-2024) at St. Peter's Church, James Moody Memorial (1925-2010 ) ©2010
NEA Jazz Master Wayne Shorter (1933-2023) at Teatro Morlacchi, Umbria Jazz Festival, Perugia, Italy. This 2013 performance was an incredibly intimate and distinct experience, amplified by the unique acoustics and atmosphere that only a 244-year-old theatre like this can produce. ©2013
Nea Jazz Master Cedar Walton (1934-2013) performing at the legendary Bohemian Caverns, Washington D.C., in 2011. This iconic jazz venue, originally a Prohibition-era speakeasy remodeled in the 1930s to resemble a cave, operated for 90 years before closing its doors at the end of March 2016, making moments like this even more poignant. ©2011
This photo, featuring Mulgrew Miller (1955-2013), was captured at Teatro Morlacchi during the 2012 Umbria Jazz Festival. Commissioned by Umbria Jazz, we flew from NYC, and the decision to take these images for his upcoming album was made during our flight to Perugia—a project sadly cut short when he passed away a year later. ©2012
Captured in 2014 during a recording session in NYC, this image features NEA Jazz Master Buster Williams (b. 1942). I was hired to document the session through both photo and video. ©2014
Roy Hargrove (1969-2018) during a private photo shoot for Hot House Magazine at Zinc Bar, NYC. This image, captured in 2014, is part of the work Roy and I created together from 2000 until his passing in 2018. ©2014
At the Charlie Parker Jazz Festival, Harlem Stage, Harlem, NYC, in 2014, Wallace Roney (1960-2020). This performance took place at a festival that has been a cherished New York City tradition for many years. ©2014
Wynton Marsalis, NYC. This portrait was captured during a private performance in New York City. ©2014
Jon Faddis captured backstage at The Allen Room, Lincoln Center, NYC, during NEA Jazz Master Jimmy Heath's (1926-2020) 90th Birthday Celebration in 2016. This was a truly historic gathering, with over 20 musicians present, including the Dizzy Gillespie All Star Big Band, legends like Sonny Rollins, Paquito d'Rivera, and Slide Hampton (1932-2021). Photographs from this day are an invaluable part of New York City's jazz history. ©2016
Lightning struck Manhattan that night at City Winery, as Esperanza Spalding, Paul Simon, and Bobby McFerrin—along with Prince’s sock—made the first-ever FTS benefit concert in New York. I was honored to be contacted to document this breathtaking musical event, organized by Esperanza Spalding to raise awareness and funds for Free the Slaves. ©2012
NEA Jazz Master Kenny Barron, photographed backstage at Tompkins Square's Charlie Parker Jazz Festival in 2014. This festival remains an all-time favorite for many New Yorkers. ©2014
Jon Batiste (b. 1986), photographed during a private shoot in New York. ©2010
Jon Batiste (b. 1986) backstage at the Blue Note Jazz Club, NYC. This photo was captured during a private video and photo shoot in 2010. ©2010
Jon Batiste (b. 1986) jamming with Roy Hargrove (1969-2018) at Smalls Jazz Club, Manhattan. This photo is from 2009-2010, when Batiste was the pianist for the Roy Hargrove Quintet.
A portrait of Carlos Henriquez (b. 1979), taken at the Umbria Jazz Festival's Arena Santa Giuliana, Perugia, Italy, in 2013 ©2013
Dezron Douglas, in a portrait from a 2015 recording session in Brooklyn, NY. ©2015
Eddie Henderson (b. 1940) with The Cookers at Teatro Morlacchi, Umbria Jazz Festival. Henderson was significantly influenced by jazz legend Miles Davis, a friend of his parents, whom he first met in 1957 at the age of seventeen. ©2013
Jeremy Pelt (b. 1976), captured at Dizzy's Club Coca-Cola, Manhattan, NYC. ©2014
