An avid audiophile and music collector, Hovan is a Cleveland-based writer/photographer.
A native of Cleveland, Ohio, I have been active in the field of jazz since my days at the
Berklee College of Music in the mid-'80s. I have been lucky enough to be involved in several
arenas, including working as a dee-jay and in concert production, but my fondest memories
have been meeting some of the legendary masters of jazz and digging through crates to find
those sought-after LPs.
A freelance drummer in my spare time, I play drum set and specialize in Afro-Cuban and
Brazilian hand percussion. As a record collector, my prized possessions are a Rega turntable
modified with a Graham tonearm and my VPI record cleaning machine. I have been a
contributor to the MusicHound album reference guides for jazz and swing and a
regular contributor to All About Jazz, The Jazz Review, Down Beat,
The Jazz and Blues Report, and Cleveland Scene. I also regularly pen liner
notes and have done so for a variety of labels including Criss Cross Jazz, Water Music, Sharp
Nine, and Mighty Quinn.
I have been documenting the jazz scene in Cleveland and abroad with my camera for
many years now and my reviews and photos are regularly featured at AAJ. In addition, I have
traveled to Columbus, Cincinnati, Dayton, Ann Arbor, Boston, Toronto, Detroit, New York
City, etc. to cover jazz festivals and performances. My photos have appeared in Down
Beat, The New York Times and in the textbook Jazz Styles by Mark
Gridley.
So what is my small contribution to keeping the jazz legacy alive? Sharing the music
with my fourth grade students whenever I can squeeze it into a lesson.
C. Andrew Hovan uses Nikon digital cameras exclusively.
