Charlie Parker

The limited edition Jazz Bird ornaments are a miniature version of the dozen floating sculptures, made entirely from alto saxophones, featured in the Kansas City Airport. Sculptor Willie Cole says creating these minis took almost as long as the original.

A collection of rare recordings from jazz legend Charlie Parker are featured on the new album "Charlie Parker: Bird in Kansas City." The tracks were all recorded in Kansas City in the 1940s and 1950s.

After a former mayor spent $144,000 of public money on the synthetic saxophone, it became the centerpiece of a Kansas City institution. A reissued recording of the instrument, played by our greatest bebopper, was released last month.

How Charlie Parker's plastic saxophone ended up as the centerpiece of Kansas City's American Jazz Museum — and how it's being revived for a new album. Plus: Midwest climatologists and meteorologists face stress, burnout and even death threats when they talk about climate change.

Spotlight: Charlie Parker 2023 welcomes jazz fans from all over the world to celebrate the iconic saxophonist with a series of concerts, educational opportunities and jam sessions.

Cole’s installation — titled “Ornithology” after Charlie Parker’s 1946 tune — consists of 12 birds made entirely from alto saxophones which suspend from the ceiling of Concourse B inside the new KCI terminal. But Cole keeps returning to Kansas City to work on more saxophone sculptures.

Every year, the jazz community comes together to commemorate saxophonist Charlie Parker with a series of jam sessions, tributes, tours and lectures.

The plastic Grafton alto saxophone that Charlie Parker played during a 1953 performance has returned to its place in the American Jazz Museum.

From jazz to folk, Kansas City has a rich collection of music for this time of year. Music critic Bill Brownlee recommends adding these to your holiday playlist.

If you're looking for a soundtrack for the end of 2020, look no further than this playlist for the holiday season and the best new songs of the year by Kansas City artists.

A Kansas City nonprofit is a new source of capital for Black entrepreneurs, the jazz community is celebrating Kansas City's own jazz virtuoso, and a novel idea for assisting voters seeking to mail in their Missouri general election ballots.

A new jazz album is celebrating the 25th anniversary of the Lied Center of Kansas by honoring the Kansas Jayhawks.