Congratulations to all the winners of the 20th annual Jazz Journalists Association Jazz Awards listed below. Professional Journalist Members of the JJA made open nominations in a first selection round; those who received the most nominations advanced to the final ballot.
2016 Nominees in all categories
Awards shown in photo are for 2014.
2016 JJA Jazz Awards for Musical Achievement
Note: We ask that you DO NOT cut-and-paste or copy the winners list into your own blog or site, please link to this page instead. We, of course, welcome coverage and commentary on the list that includes some nominee names. If you blog about or report on the nominees we will be happy to link back to you; please send the URL of your blog post or report to admin@jazzjournalists.org
Henry Threadgill
Maria Schneider
Kamasi Washington
Composer of the Year:Maria Schneider
Arranger of the Year:
Maria Schneider
The Thompson Fields (ArtistShare)
Maria Schneider Orchestra
The Complete Concert By The Sea (Columbia/Legacy)
Erroll Garner
Motéma Music
Male Singer of the Year:Gregory Porter
Female Singer of the Year:
Cecile McLorin Salvant
Maria Schneider Orchestra
Myra Melford's Snowy Egret
Vijay Iyer Trio
Wadada Leo Smith
Wycliffe Gordon
Multi-reeds Player of the Year:Anat Cohen
Rudresh Mahanthappa
Charles Lloyd
Baritone Saxophonist of the Year:Gary Smulyan
Soprano Saxophonist of the Year:Jane Ira Bloom
Flutist of the Year:Nicole Mitchell
Clarinetist of the Year:Anat Cohen
Mary Halvorson
Fred Hersch
Craig Taborn
Bassist of the Year:Christian McBride
Violinist/Violist/Cellist of the Year: Regina Carter
Percussionist of the Year:Pedrito Martinez
Joe Locke
Jack DeJohnette
in Jazz of the Year:
Scott Robinson, various
Electronics Player of the Year:Jason Lindner
Each of these 2016 JJA Jazz Award winners will receive the Award at one of his or her upcoming performances.
2016 JJA Jazz Awards for Journalism and Media
Winners in the following categories were announced at the JJA Jazz Awards Party on June 15, 2016 at the Blue Note Jazz Club in New York City.Lifetime Achievement in Jazz Journalism
Ted Panken
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| Ted receives award from JJA President Howard Mandel at Jun 15 Awards party. Photo: Bonnie Johnson. |
Jazz Periodical of the Year
(new category this year; combines the previous Jazz Publication of the Year and Jazz Website of the year categories)
DownBeat
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| DownBeat Marketing Director Ritchie Deraney accepts the award. Photo: Bonnie Johnson |
Jazz Blog of the Year
Ethan Iverson: Do the Math
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| Ethan Iverson receives his award. Photo: Bonnie Johnson |
Jazz Book of the Year
Billie Holiday: The Musician and the Myth
(Viking/Penguin Publishing Company), by John Szwed
Robert Palmer-Helen Oakley Dance Award for Excellence in Writing in 2015
Nate Chinen
Willis Conover-Marian McPartland Award for Broadcasting in the Year 2015
Linda Yohn WEMU
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| Linda Yohn at Jun 15 Awards partyphoto: Bonnie Johnson. |
Lona Foote-Bob Parent Award for Photography in the Year 2015
Ken Franckling
Jazz Photo of the Year
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| Patrick Marek- Lucian Dubuis |
Jazz Album Art of the Year (new category this year)
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| Kamasi Washington - The Epic (Brainfeeder) Photo by Mike Park |
2016 Nominees in all categories
2016 JJA Jazz Heroes were also named in twenty-three locales around the U.S.
You can help the Jazz Journalists Association continue to get the word out about jazz through programs like the JJA Jazz Awards. Please make a donation. Contributions of any size, no matter how small, are gratefully accepted. Or become a JJA Member. Membership is open to jazz musicians, educators, presenters, promoters, publishers or anyone who wants to support our work as well as professional jazz journalists. For further information contact President@JazzJournalists.org Thanks.
