Bret Saunders

Freelance writer

Bret Saunders

Bret Saunders (bretsaunders@kbco.com) can be heard from 6 to 11 a.m. weekday mornings at KBCO 97.3 FM. Follow him on Twitter: @Bretontheradio.

Miles Davis in concert on June 1, 1987, in the old Roman Amphitheater in Caesarea, north of Tel Aviv. (AP file)

Rediscovering Miles Davis, plus more Denver area jazz shows coming up

September 7, 2022 at 6:00 a.m.

What do you think of in 2022 when you see the name Miles Davis? The innovator? The iconoclast? The accomplished trumpeter?

Jazz concerts in Colorado this month: Joel Ross, Shamie Royston, City Park, Telluride and more

August 2, 2022 at 6:00 a.m.

Want to listen to some live jazz music in Denver this month? Here's a look at when and where Colorado's best jazz is happening.

Colin Stranahan, a percussionist who impressed numerous Coloradoans as a teenager, before going on to win the prestigious Thelonious Monk Drum Competition in 2012. (Provided by Fully Altered Media)

Colin Stranahan comes home to play a jazz quartet at Denver’s Dazzle

June 7, 2022 at 6:00 a.m.

There鈥檚 a forward-thinking quartet scheduled to play Denver鈥檚 Dazzle on June 9, and its performances will mark something of a homecoming for the band鈥檚 drummer.

Jazz festivals abound in Denver and the mountains this summer

May 5, 2022 at 12:09 p.m.

Colorado mountain jazz festivals are making a comeback in the summer of 2022, and live creativity (with a beat) at altitude kicks off this month and runs through Labor Day...

Denver jazz legend Ron Miles performs on the trumpet for 9th-grade students at Thornton High School, Feb. 15, 2002. Miles and other local musicians played and talked about the history of jazz as part of the school脮s Black History Month celebration. (Photo by Craig F. Walker/The Denver Post)

A tribute to Ron Miles, Record Store Day and more in Denver’s jazz

April 6, 2022 at 6:00 a.m.

It抖阴ap difficult to express the depth of loss to our community that comes with Ron Miles鈥� death in March.

Catch Al Di Meola in Colorado this month. (Samuel Kubanu, AFP/Getty Images)

Jazz guitarists David Torn and Al Di Meloa coming to Denver, Boulder this month

March 8, 2022 at 2:21 p.m.

Those seeking mind-expanding sounds will find much to immerse themselves in, live and on record, in March.

Poet Nikki Giovanni with and Javon Jackson during a recording session at Final Track Studios in Roanoke, Va., on Sept. 23, 2021. (Provided by Shaban R. Athuman)

Denver native and sax innovator Javon Jackson bringing “The Gospel” back home

February 9, 2022 at 6:00 a.m.

Tenor saxophonist and educator Javon Jackson, who grew up in Denver, currently chairs the Hartt School鈥檚 Jackie McLean Institute of Jazz Studies at the University of Hartford in Connecticut. That...

Jason Moran and The Bandwagon appear in Denver in January. (Provided by jasonmoran.com)

Wolfgang Muthspiel, Brian Charette and more Denver jazz in January

January 3, 2022 at 6:00 a.m.

Things are relatively quiet on the live jazz front as we enter 2022. But there are some attention-worthy acts playing at Denver鈥檚 beloved clubs in late January.

Artifacts: Tomeka Reid, Nicole Mitchell, Mike Reed's "鈥nd then there鈥檚 this," a 2021 jazz album released by Astral Spirits and featuring the artwork of Arthur Wright. (Provided by Astral Spirits)

The 10 best jazz albums of 2021

December 6, 2021 at 11:39 a.m.

December means 鈥渂est of鈥� list time. And here鈥檚 the list I think about putting together all year long.

David Liebman, left, and Keith Oxman, standing, play at Dazzle Jazz in Novmeber 2017. (Provided by Dazzle Jazz)

New jazz releases from Colorado-based trumpeters and more

November 9, 2021 at 6:00 a.m.

A pair of new releases featuring Colorado-based trumpeters once again show the prominence and ingenuity of creative artists from our state.

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