Happy birthday, Archie Shepp! From WGBH, hear Shepp paint a vivid picture of what it was like to make music in the avant-garde/free-jazz era of the 1960s, and give insight into teaching jazz on the college level.

Woody Herman was a soulful reedman, an amazing talent scout for decades and a bandleader of one of the country’s most popular acts. Born in 1913, Herman led “Thundering Herds” that were both big draws and well-respected by the likes of Igor Stravinsky. For his 100th birthday, here are five recordings which still sound fresh today.

Photo: William Gottlieb/Library of Congress

New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg has issued a proclamation declaring Friday “Women in Jazz Day” — an attempt at cultural reform that’s bound to enjoy the same resounding success as banning oversized sodas. Which is to say: Nice try, Mr. Mayor.

But women in jazz certainly deserve to be celebrated. We asked Lara Pellegrinelli for a DIY guide to women in jazz — on film, print and wax.

Photo: Carol Comer & Diane Gregg

From 1948 until 1966, the Palladium Ballroom, at the corner of 53rd and Broadway, was the city’s Mecca for Afro-Caribbean dance music. And for a lot of that time, Tito Puente was one of the main attractions. A new box set compiles the Latin music legend’s RCA recordings of this crucial period.

Photo: Tito Puente on vibraphone at the Palladium.

In today’s strained environment for arts support, the funding wonderland of Norway can incite jealousy. Yes, Norway is an oil-rich country; it also allots a respectable percentage of its oil wealth to pioneering art, making it a model for exactly what well-spent money for the arts can engender.

Especially in jazz. Public support has helped the country’s improvised-music scene expand from a handful of artists in the late ’60s to a thriving network of recording, performing and educational opportunities today. It’s not perfect, of course; I’ll address some chinks in Norway’s funding armor. But the country’s improvised music flourishes largely on public support.

— Michelle Mercer via How Norway Funds A Thriving Jazz Scene 

Since the Harlem Renaissance, African-American musicians have portrayed black history as extended musical works. Jazz is full of such long-form compositions. Hear five examples from composers such as Oliver Nelson, Wynton Marsalis and Duke Ellington.

Photo: Victor Drees//Evening Standard/Getty Images

The legacy of the late hip-hop producer J Dilla extended far beyond the beats he painstakingly created. Since his death, it’s also found artistic kinship in a generation of young jazz artists looking to square their instrumental training with their love of all modern music.

Photo: Roger Erickson

We asked you to rank your favorite lyrical songs in the jazz canon. Hear the 50 Great Jazz Vocals. 

Photo: Hulton Archive/Getty Images

It’s kind of a no-no in the clarinet world, in the legit way of playing. But, you know, when you play jazz, I think, that the search for expression — that’s what it’s about. And if I want to say something and whisper it … the air has an effect. It’s like you’re talking to someone, and you speak with more air in your voice. It gives a certain feeling. So it’s just another vocabulary of sounds.

— Anat Cohen on playing with breath in her sound

This music, it’s dealing with the unexpected. No one really knows how to deal with the unexpected. How do you rehearse the unknown?

— Wayne Shorter on jazz, Miles Davis and the unknown