Q&T with Michael Kocour (Part I) – São Paulo, Sapporo, Chicago

VJC Q&T podcast host Russell Schmidt (Director, Valley Jazz Cooperative) has known pianist/organist/composer Michael Kocour for more than a dozen years. A nationally-renown educator, Mike is the Director of Jazz Studies at Arizona State University. Additionally, he is a recording artist for Origin Records, releasing a solo piano album, East of the Sun, on that label’s OA2 imprint earlier this year.

In early summer, Mike sat down with Russ to record a Q&T podcast. Their far-ranging discussion was engaging and abundant, so much so that the conversation has been split into two separate podcasts, the second of which will be made available later. But in this, the first of two podcasts together, Mike and Russ addressed the potential dangers a sabbatical can bring, talked about an unlikely mentor for the study of Brazilian music, and even found a point at which Oscar Peterson and Johnny Costa intersect.

Learn more about Michael Kocour here:
http://www.michaelkocour.com/
https://herbergerinstitute.asu.edu/profile/michael-kocour

Listen to Michael Kocour (solo piano) perform his composition Winter’s Spell here:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z3ceKy9Y0aU

Listen to Michael Kocour (organ quartet) perform his composition Chunky here:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2SXXrTByxyI&list=OLAK5uy_nftb9Vv4HNX37Li27g2dv1_aiCC6ItNHw

Purchase Michael Kocour’s recordings for the Origin Records/OA2 label here:
http://originarts.com/oa2/artists/artist.php?Artist_ID=138

Learn more about some of the artists and/or concepts mentioned in the podcast here:
John Campbell – https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Campbell_(jazz_pianist)
Tony Caramia – https://www.esm.rochester.edu/faculty/caramia_tony/
Johnny Costa – https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Johnny_Costa
Joe Daley – https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joe_Daley_(musician)
Bill Evans – https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bill_Evans
Red Garland – https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Red_Garland
Don Grolnick – https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Don_Grolnick
Ian Hobson – https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ian_Hobson
Toninho Horta – https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toninho_Horta
Antonio Carlos Jôbim – https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ant%C3%B4nio_Carlos_Jobim
Wynton Kelly – https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wynton_Kelly
Jim McNeely – https://www.jim-mcneely.com/
Nicole Pesce – http://www.nicolepesce.com/
Oscar Peterson – https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oscar_Peterson
Bud Powell – https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bud_Powell
Marlene Rosenberg – https://www.marlenemusic.com/
Akio Sasajima – https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Akio_Sasajima
Wayne Shorter – https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wayne_Shorter
Art Tatum – https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Art_Tatum
McCoy Tyner – https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/McCoy_Tyner
Rayburn Wright – https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rayburn_Wright
Schillinger System (or Schillinger Method) – https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Schillinger_System

Learn more about the Valley Jazz Cooperative and VJC Q&T host Russell Schmidt here:
https://www.valleyjazz.org/
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCuao1b7Ztc7JNpUTzyorXDQ?

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Website:

Link - valleyjazz.org

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Facebook - @ValleyJazzCooperative

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Pianist/composer/educator Russell Schmidt has performed with such celebrated artists as Carl Allen, Michael Brecker, Eddie Daniels, Joe Lovano, Gerry Mulligan, Lucas Pino, Arturo Sandoval, and Clark Terry. He has also served as a keyboard soloist with more than 30 profess