NEA Jazz Masters

It is rare that a journalist or podcaster gets an opportunity to have an extended conversation with a legendary, iconic figure in the music business.

Recently for me, the stars were aligned when I was offered a chance to have an engaging conversation with the man called Maestro, NEA Jazz Master and Bass Virtuoso, Ron Carter.

As you know, Carter is one of the most original, prolific and influential bassists in jazz, who also has a prominent presence in other music genres as well.

Our discussion will give you a revealing insight into this artist, who is serious and passionate about his music and, as I discovered, has a serious sense of humor.

Blakey's contributions to music history... had a whole lot of accolades as well, both during his lifetime and also posthumously.

He was named an NEA Jazz Master back in 1988, which is the highest honor the United States bestows upon jazz musicians.

He won a Grammy Award in 1984 for Best Jazz Instrumental Performance for New York Scene.

He also received an honorary doctorate from the Berklee College of Music in 1987 and was inducted into the Downbeat Jazz Hall of Fame in 1981.

And so it just felt like, you know, somehow there was a calling.

And then when I met my husband, who is a music journalist and an NEA jazz master, I, you know, I just kind of fell into a pocket with someone else who had grown up Um, when, when we met, we compared our parents record collections and our dads had the same record collection, which was crazy.

And so, you know, it just felt like music was a calling and, um, I really did gravitate to it because it feels like such a natural thing for me.

But I also understood pretty early having watched my father as an engineer.