The Jazz Showcase The Jazz Showcase The Jazz Showcase is the oldest jazz club in Chicago, Illinois, founded in 1947 by NEA Jazz Master Joe Segal, who still owns and operates the venue. Thousands of people have had their first live jazz experience at one of Segal's showcases. They have served as a launch pad for individual careers, and have brought some of the biggest names in the music to Chicago. Trumpeter Dizzy Gillespie is said to have celebrated his birthday performing there for many years. Many famous musicians play at the Showcase, including: Eddie Harris (jazz saxophonist) Having changed location numerous times
Renato Sellani Renato Sellani Renato Sellani (8 January 1926 – 31 October 2014) was an Italian jazz pianist and composer. Born in Senigallia, Sellani started his professional career in 1954, when he entered the Basso-Valdambrini Quintet. In 1958 he started a long collaboration with his longtime friend Franco Cerri. He was part of the RAI National Symphony Orchestra directed by Gorni Kramer. As a pianist, he collaborated with Chet Baker, Billie Holiday, Dizzie Gillespie, Lee Konitz, Bill Coleman, Gerry Mulligan, Enrico Rava and Tony Scott, among others. Sellani was an incidental music composer for stage plays, and his works include several scores