Goran Bregović (born March 22, 1950 in Sarajevo) is a Yugoslav musician, of Serbian and Croatian descent, and one of the most internationally known modern composers of the Balkans.
Bregović has composed for such varied artists as Iggy Pop and Cesaria Evora. He rose to fame playing guitar with his rock band Bijelo dugme, a group that set the groundwork for the Yugoslav rock scene. Among his better known scores are Emir Kusturica’s films (Time of the Gypsies, Arizona Dream, Underground). …More on Wikipedia.

Hüsnü Şenlendirici is a Turkish clarinettist, born 12 July 1976, in Bergama. Şenlendirici combines the melodies of his Anatolian heritage (particularly his Aegean homeland's musical traditions) with the jazz sensibilities of the west. He has worked with major stars internationally and domestically including Turkish stars Athena, Kibariye and Mercan Dede amongst others. Şenlendirici has his own band, Laço Tayfa, which collaborated with the famous American ensemble, Brooklyn Funk Essentials, to record the album, In the Buzzbag. Şenlendirici made two other albums with the band, Bergama Gaydasi and Hicaz Dolap, before releasing a solo album, The Joy of the Clarinet. …More on Wikipedia.

(via: Eric Alba)

Thelonious Sphere Monk (October 10, 1917-February 17, 1982) was an American jazz pianist and composer. Widely considered one of the most important musicians in jazz, Monk had a unique improvisational style and made numerous contributions to the standard jazz repertoire, including "Epistrophy", "'Round Midnight", "Blue Monk", "Straight No Chaser" and "Well, You Needn't". Often regarded as a founder of bebop, Monk's playing style later evolved away from that form. His compositions and improvisations are full of dissonant harmonies and angular melodic twists, and are impossible to separate from Monk's unorthodox approach to the piano, which combined a highly percussive attack with abrupt, dramatic use of silences and hesitations; a style nicknamed "Melodious Thunk" by his wife Nellie …More on Wikipedia.

Dinah Washington (August 29, 1924 – December 14, 1963) was a blues, R&B and jazz singer. Because of her strong voice and emotional singing, she is known as the "Queen of the Blues". Despite dying at the early age of 39, Washington became one of the most influential vocalists of the twentieth century, credited among others as a major influence on Aretha Franklin.[4][5] She is a 1986 inductee of the Alabama Jazz Hall of Fame. …More on Wikipedia.

Yestreday, we listned to Paul Desmond, and today we'll listen to a friend of him, a man that played a lot with him, for whom Desmond has composed the very famous "Take Five" ; the great Dave Brubeck!
David Warren Brubeck (born December 6, 1920 in Concord, California), better known as Dave Brubeck, is an American jazz pianist. Regarded as a jazz icon, he has written a number of jazz standards, including "In Your Own Sweet Way" and "The Duke". Brubeck's style ranges from refined to bombastic, reflecting his mother's attempts at classical training and his improvisational skills. His music is known for employing unusual time signatures, and superimposing contrasting rhythms, meters, and tonalities. His long-time musical partner, alto saxophonist Paul Desmond, wrote the Dave Brubeck Quartet's most famous piece, "Take Five", which is in 5/4 time and has endured as a jazz classic. Brubeck experimented with time signatures through much of his career, recording "Pick Up Sticks" in 6/4, "Unsquare Dance" in 7/4, and "Blue Rondo à la Turk" in 9/8. He is also a respected composer of orchestral and sacred music, and wrote soundtracks for television such as Mr. Broadway and the animated miniseries "This Is America, Charlie Brown"..…More on wikipedia.

Paul Desmond (November 25, 1924 - May 30, 1977), born Paul Emil Breitenfeld, was a jazz alto saxophonist and composer born in San Francisco, best known for the work he did in the Dave Brubeck Quartet and for penning that group's greatest hit, "Take Five". Known to have possessed an idiosyncratic wit, he was one of the most popular musicians to come out of the West Coast's "cool jazz" scene. He played a Selmer Super Balanced Action alto saxophone with an M. C. Gregory model 4A-18M mouthpiece — both circa 1951 — with Rico 3 ½ reeds. In addition to his work with Brubeck he led several of his own groups and did significant collaborations with artists such as Gerry Mulligan, Jim Hall and Chet Baker. After years of chain smoking and general poor health, Desmond succumbed to lung cancer in 1977 following one last tour with Brubeck.…More on wikipedia.

This is one of the best jazz videos on youtube! And I really think so. The great story of two guys, two great friends: Sonny Rollins and John Coltrane. Very impressive testimonials.

Ástor Pantaleón Piazzolla (March 11, 1921 – July 4, 1992) was an Argentine tango composer and bandoneón player. His oeuvre revolutionized the traditional tango into a new style termed nuevo tango, incorporating elements from jazz and classical music. An excellent bandoneonist, he regularly performed his own compositions with different ensembles. …More on wikipedia.

Billie Holiday (born Eleanora Fagan; April 7, 1915 – July 17, 1959) was an American jazz singer and songwriter.
Nicknamed Lady Day by her sometime collaborator Lester Young, Holiday was a seminal influence on jazz and pop singing. Her vocal style — strongly inspired by instrumentalists — pioneered a new way of manipulating wording and tempo, and also popularized a more personal and intimate approach to singing. Critic John Bush wrote that she "changed the art of American pop vocals forever." She co-wrote only a few songs, but several of them have become jazz standards, notably "God Bless the Child", "Don't Explain", and "Lady Sings the Blues". She also became famous for singing jazz standards written by others, including "Easy Living" and "Strange Fruit" …More on wikipedia