Neon Jazz Interviews

Welcome to a new edition of the Neon Jazz interview series with Australia-born, New York-based pianist and singer-songwriter Tracey Yarad. We catch up with Tracey to explore her remarkable musical journey and her award-winning project, All These Pretty Things — a one-woman musical memoir that blends original songs, storytelling, and live piano into an unforgettable theatrical experience.
For the past four years, Tracey has been touring and developing this deeply personal music show, inviting audiences into a journey through love, loss, resilience, and reinvention. Drawing on true events and delivered with a distinctive jazz sensibility and fearless storytelling, it's a project that brings the personal and musical together in powerful ways.
Tracey's career has taken her across continents and through several fascinating chapters. From touring Australia with her original music and landing a Top 40 single in the 1990s, to a seven-year residency in five-star hotels across Japan, she has continually reinvented her life in music. She also founded and ran a music school in the Blue Mountains for 18 years before ultimately relocating to New York City.
We cover the whole story — the music, the adventures, the challenges, the creative evolution, and the experiences behind All These Pretty Things.
Get All These Pretty Things:
https://traceyyarad.com/all-these-pretty-things
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Welcome to a new edition of the Neon Jazz interview series with Juno Award-winning jazz pianist and composer Florian Hoefner, celebrating his ambitious 2026 album, Into the Aquasphere.
This remarkable project brings together a jazz quartet and a 22-piece chamber orchestra as one integrated musical ensemble. Recorded in Montréal under conductor JC Sanford, the album features John Hébert on bass, Eric McPherson on drums, and concertmaster Nathalie Bonin.
The three original compositions explore the power, beauty, and fragility of water and our changing climate. "Aerial Rivers" draws inspiration from the atmospheric currents that sustain the Amazon. "AMOC" explores the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation and the threat it faces from climate change. "Force of Nature" captures the elemental power of water and its remarkable ability to both destroy and soothe.
We get into the creative vision behind this extraordinary recording, the challenge of bringing jazz and chamber orchestral music together, and the environmental themes that run through the project.
These ideas are deeply personal for Florian, shaped by years spent among the mountains and waters of his native Germany and his adopted home of Canada.
It's always great to have Florian on the show. Join us for a conversation about music, nature, collaboration, and one of his most ambitious artistic statements yet.
Get the album – Into the Aquasphere:
https://mvdshop.com/products/florian-hoefner-into-the-aquasphere-cd?srsltid=AU7gw4XdHF-Qzsm9y-
For More Neon Jazz: Shows via MixCloud: https://www.mixcloud.com/neonjazzkc/
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Welcome to a new edition of the Neon Jazz interview series with Montreal-born, Orlando-based Saxophonist, Composer & Electronic Wind Instrument (EWI) Performer Alain Bradette. We catch up with Alain to explore his new 2026 album To My Loved Ones and the fascinating musical journey behind it. His work centers on melodic writing, improvisation, and contemporary jazz language, reflecting a deep commitment to musical expression, collaboration, and compositional identity.
Over the course of his career, Alain has performed and collaborated with acclaimed musicians including John Patitucci, Greg Osby, and Dick Oatts. Those experiences have helped shape his approach to ensemble interaction, improvisational flexibility, and developing his own distinctive musical voice.
His new album features eight compositions, each with its own personal and musical origins. Beyond his work as an independent jazz recording artist, Alain is also a touring musician and a full-time woodwind performer with Cirque du Soleil.
We get into the new music, his influences, career experiences, creative evolution, and the many chapters of a life devoted to music.
GET THE ALBUM & MORE:
https://alainbradettemusic.com/
For More Neon Jazz: Shows via MixCloud: https://www.mixcloud.com/neonjazzkc/
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Welcome to a new edition of the Neon Jazz interview series with Singer & Songwriter John Korbel on his new 2026 album Johnny Still Got Game. This new album is more than a playful declaration. It's a testament to a lifelong commitment to songwriting, reinvention, and creative growth. We catch up with John for his return to Neon Jazz to explore a remarkable musical journey that began in Philadelphia clubs, continued through touring bands and decades of life experience, and now finds him delivering his most ambitious and hands-on recording project to date.
Blending jazz-inflected sophistication, pop craftsmanship, funky grooves, and sharp storytelling, Johnny Still Got Game showcases John's ability to transform personal experiences and vivid imagination into songs that connect with listeners.
We get into the new album, his evolution as an artist, the stories behind the music, creative independence, and the passion that keeps him moving forward.
It's great to have John back on the program. We're all in!
Enjoy this look inside and much more. Dig the jazz, my friends!
ALL THINGS JOHN KORBEL:
Website: https://johnkorbel.com/music
For More Neon Jazz: Shows via MixCloud: https://www.mixcloud.com/neonjazzkc/
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Welcome to a new edition of the Neon Jazz interview series with Slovak guitarist and composer David Kollar. We caught up with David during a break in his studio to explore his new 2026 album, Music From the Bag, his work composing music for movie soundtracks, his remarkable musical journey, and much more.
For nearly a decade, David has collected riffs, grooves, musical sketches, and unfinished compositions that never quite found a home on his other records. With Music From the Bag, these ideas get a chance to come together, offering a glimpse into years of experimentation, creative discovery, and musical evolution.
David's career spans a fascinating range of musical worlds. He co-founded KOMARA with King Crimson drummer Pat Mastelotto and fellow King Crimson member Trey Gunn, and has collaborated with acclaimed musician and producer Steven Wilson. His work as a guitarist and composer moves across progressive music, improvisation, experimental sounds, and cinematic storytelling.
In this conversation, we dig into the inspiration behind Music From the Bag, the process of turning long-shelved musical ideas into a finished album, his experiences working on film soundtracks, and the stories and influences that have shaped his distinctive sound.
From the studio to the screen, David Kollar continues to explore the possibilities of sound, texture, rhythm, and composition.
All things David Kollar:
https://www.davidkollar.com/
https://davidkollar.bandcamp.com/
For More Neon Jazz: Shows via MixCloud: https://www.mixcloud.com/neonjazzkc/
Subscribe via Youtube - https://www.youtube.com/user/neonjazzkc
Subscribe via iTunes/Apple - https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/famous-interviews-joe-dimino/id546432639?mt=2
The Home of Neon Jazz: http://theneonjazz.blogspot.com/
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