The Memoir · Volume I
Jazzman
A Life Improvised
Volume I · From Forest Park to the Far East · by Greg Chako
A story of music, risk, reinvention and an improvised life, beginning in Cincinnati and moving through Massachusetts and New York before nearly two decades in Hong Kong, Singapore, Shanghai and Japan.
Available Now: Direct from the Author
Available exclusively from Greg through December 31, 2026.
- Shipping
- To be determined
- Publication date
- February 1, 2027
- Coming in January
- Pre-order option and IngramSpark purchasing links
Prefer to hear about signings first? Get book news →
Readings, book events & speaking
Invite Greg for a reading, discussion or presentation
For bookstores, libraries, clubs, organizations and other groups, with live music as an option.
Hospitality Articles
Hotel, Restaurant & Hospitality
Writing on hospitality, entertainment programming, guest experience and the role of live music in a venue.
A series in 6 parts · GregChako.com · Jul 3, 2026A Hospitality Partnership in Search of Its Next HomeAfter more than fifty years as a professional musician, I've reached an interesting point in my career. People sometimes ask me what I'm looking for next.- Part 1 The Beginning
- Part 2 Hong Kong - The First Hospitality Partnership
- Part 3 Opportunity Knocks
- Part 4 Raffles Hotel: More Than a Residency
- Part 5 A Different Hotel. The Same Lesson.
- Part 6 Does This Partnership Still Have a Home?
- Jazz Guitar Today · Jun 20, 2026Creating the Right Emotional Temperature for the RoomFor most of my life, I've been introduced as a jazz guitarist. While that's true, it's only part of the story.Read in Jazz Guitar Today →
- GregChako.com · Mar 10, 2026Why Restaurants Need a Different Kind of MusicianLive music has long been part of the restaurant experience. From piano lounges and jazz trios to solo guitarists and small ensembles, music has the ability to transform a dining room from simply a place to eat into a place people remember.Read on GregChako.com →
- GregChako.com · Feb 15, 2026Music for an Empty Building?Not too long ago, my bass-and-guitar duo was hired to play in a newly renovated building. Ten potential donors were touring the building as part of a nonprofit fundraising initiative.Read on GregChako.com →
- GregChako.com · Dec 25, 2025Providing the Perfect Ambience with Music - Why Thoughtful Live Jazz Still MattersLive music doesn’t fail because musicians aren’t good enough. More often, it fails because a venue’s identity, expectations, and responsibilities aren’t clearly aligned.Read on GregChako.com →
- GregChako.com · Dec 21, 2025Why Saturday Nights at Sorrento’s Have Become So Special, and What’s Coming NextAs the holiday season winds down, I find myself feeling especially grateful: grateful for community, for shared experiences, and for the simple joy of making music in a room full of people who genuinely care.Read on GregChako.com →
- GregChako.com · Mar 3, 2025The Perfect Local Gig!There are various elements to what constitutes the perfect gig in my opinion, and it's not only about the money one makes. It's also about WHO you're playing with, and WHO you're playing for . . .Read on GregChako.com →
- GregChako.com · Jul 14, 2024Marketer or Musician?These days where I live, most bars and (some) restaurants are interested only in hiring artists and bands that can draw a new crowd that their venues don't already have!Read on GregChako.com →
Columns for guitarists
Jazz Guitar Today
18 articles since 2022 on practice, improvisation, composing, and building a life in music, including 2 listed under Hotel, Restaurant & Hospitality (above).
- Mar 2026Playing Honest
- Feb 2025Improve Your Improv
- Jul 2024Promote or Demote Yourself!
- May 2024How To Network for Success
- Apr 2024Pursue Your Passion!
- Nov 2023How To Make Your Practicing More Musical
- Oct 2023How To Make Your Guitar Solos Sing!
- Sep 2023How “The Blues” Can Help You “Jazz Up” Your Solos
- Aug 2023Guitarist Greg Chako Discusses the Importance of Counting
- Apr 2023Grasping the Importance of Melody
- Mar 2023Important Tips for Composing and Arranging
- Feb 2023Are You Being the Best That You Can Be?
- Nov 2022Get Your Musical Mojo Back and Make Time Disappear…
- Nov 2022Book Learning vs. the Way the Jazz Masters Learned
- Oct 2022Why Do We Do It?
- Aug 2022Things They Typically Don’t Teach You in Music Schools
Research
Academic Papers
Research and writing from Greg’s graduate studies, including his doctoral work in Jazz and Contemporary Media at the Eastman School of Music.
Final paper · Jazz History (JCM 441)
Horace Silver: A New Definition of Greatness
Eastman School of Music · Professor Jeff Campbell · May 5, 2013
Inspecting Horace Silver more closely, this paper questions the validity of how greatness and legendary status is judged, proposing that a subtle shift in our focus is advised if we wish to give ample credit to those artists who are most deserving of it.
41 pages
Read the paper →Ethnographic field report · DMA independent study
A Study of Bhajan Ensembles at Spiritual Programs of Mata Amritanandamayi Devi
Eastman School of Music · with Dr. Beth Bullard · March 2014
An ethnographic field report based on observations and field notes from Amma’s three-day spiritual program in New York City, July 11–14, 2013, written for an Eastman DMA independent study research seminar.
77 pages
Read the paper →Seminar paper · Wagner’s Ring Cycle
Indian Influence in the Ring’s Happy Ending
Eastman School of Music · Dr. Beth Bullard’s advanced seminar · 2012
Indian religious philosophy and Schopenhauer’s writings helped Wagner evolve his world vision and his art in meaningful ways, certainly with regard to the Ring’s ending.
33 pages
Read the paper →Ethnography · Introduction to Ethnomusicology
The Role of Music as Ritual on the St. John Fisher Tennis Team
2012
An ethnography of how the St. John Fisher College tennis teams use music they choose for relaxation, focus and peak performance as a routine part of preparing for practice and matches.
9 pages
Read the paper →
From the bandstand
Blog
Stories, essays and reflections from the road, the studio and the classroom, 34 posts on GregChako.com.
Book news & signings
Signing events, the February 2027 publication, and new writing, sent through Greg’s mailing list.