"Don't call it jazz! This is social music!" Miles Davis gave us that gem of a quote as he was admonishing a reporter for using "that dirty word, jazz" in an interview. What is a confusing remark at first becomes clear when you dive deeper into the mind of a professional musician. All great musicians are poly-genre, meaning they care less about the style of music than the quality of it, and its cultural resonance.
Host Jon Armstrong is a professional musician, and a professor of jazz music and recording technology at Idaho State University. Before moving to Idaho, Armstrong worked in Los Angeles for seven years as a player, composer, and educator. He's performed jazz, rock, funk, hip-hop, R&B, bluegrass, country, folk, reggae, and everything in between. He still gigs and writes a lot of music and is constantly checking out recordings from every corner of the creative music world.
Each show, Armstrong will play tunes that have caught his ear over the years, while telling fun stories and informative anecdotes from his unique perspective. On special occasions, he will also bring in a guest musician to do an in-studio live interview and performance!
Don't Call it Jazz. First and final Saturdays of every month at 7pm.
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Don't Call It Jazz welcomes back Kieth Kelley to take you on a deep dive into two great records: Alice Coltrane's Ptah the El Daoud and Qasim Naqvi's Two Centuries. Jon and Keith put together a playlist of tracks from each of the principal players on both of these legendary albums. -
Don’t Call it Jazz is thrilled to present, “From the Vault”, a new series of episodes where host Jon Armstrong plays music from his old CD and Vinyl collection. This physical media collection has been going strong for over 25 years, and it’s been a blast to rediscover these iconic albums.
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Don’t Call it Jazz is thrilled to present, “From the Vault”, a new series of episodes where host Jon Armstrong plays music from his old CD and Vinyl collection. This physical media collection has been going strong for over 25 years, and it’s been a blast to rediscover these iconic albums.
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It is the 10-year anniversary of my debut album, Farewell, which was released in 2014 on Orenda Records, a Los Angeles-based creative jazz label. The album consists of five tracks, original compositions, and arrangements for a 23-piece jazz orchestra of incredible LA-based jazz musicians.
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It is the 10-year anniversary of my debut album, Farewell, which was released in 2014 on Orenda Records, a Los Angeles-based creative jazz label. The album consists of five tracks, original compositions, and arrangements for a 23-piece jazz orchestra of incredible LA-based jazz musicians.
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Don’t Call It Jazz is thrilled to welcome Christopher Williams on the show to discuss and promote the 2024 Shady Grove Music Camp. -
Host Jon Armstrong celebrates the culmination of Pride month with the 4th annual Don’t Call it Jazz episode featuring a playlist of contemporary and historic LGBTQ jazz and creative musicians. The history of jazz has a complicated and toxic relationship with LGBTQ musicians, who have often been sidelined and ostracized, preventing many talented and visionary artists from flourishing and contributing to the art form.
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Host Jon Armstrong is thrilled to welcome Jaden Andrews to Don’t Call It Jazz to discuss his debut album, “Among the Stars” out on City Creek Records.
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Host Jonathan Armstrong is proud to host Lenet Neifert for a conversation about Juneteenth and to play a couple of tunes together for this episode of Don’t Call It Jazz. We discuss Lenet’s experience growing up as a Black Woman in Compton, CA, and how she came to live and perform in Pocatello.
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Don’t Call it Jazz is proud to welcome Dan Simms to discuss the Meadowlark Music Fest, happening in Old Town Pocatello June 5-8. In this episode of DCiJ we preview festival artists and provide a discount code for those planning to attend!
