Jazz Articles
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Gregg Belisle-Chi: Slow Crawl: Performing the Music of Tim Berne
by Mark Corroto
Guitarist Gregg Belisle-Chi's story mirrors that of saxophonist Tim Berne, which makes Slow Crawl all the more compelling. Berne's own musical journey began when he was so moved by Julius Hemphill's Dogon A.D. (Mbari, 1972) that he relocated to New York to study directly with the master. Decades later, Belisle-Chi had a similar experience in Seattle when he first encountered Berne's Science Friction (Screwgun, 2002). The album altered his musical trajectory, prompting him to move to New York to study ...
Continue ReadingSylvie Courvoisier: Angel Falls
by Mike Jurkovic
The history of humankind resounds with the sound of piano/trumpet duets. But not like this one. Not like Angel Falls. Because the true beauty of Angel Falls is that grandmaster Wadada Leo Smith, aided and abetted by the fervent curiosity of Brooklyn- based/Switzerland native pianist Sylvie Courvoisier, enlists the listener as an active creator in truly beatific, beautiful music. That is a magic thing that does not happen often. All too often, the audience is reduced to listening ...
Continue ReadingSylvie Courvoisier and Wadada Leo Smith: Angel Falls
by Jack Kenny
Wadada Leo Smith describes his music not as “jazz" but as “creative music." He rejects the term “improvisation" in favor of “creation." These specific word choices reflect his unique approach, which is deeply rooted in his early experiences with blues and R&B. Smith uses the full range of his instrument and plays at his own pace, with a profound understanding of the power of silence and space. For him, space is as important as the notes themselves, allowing ...
Continue ReadingSilke Eberhard Trio: Being-A-Ning
by John Sharpe
Adventurous German saxophonist Silke Eberhard has long favored the trio format as a proving ground, even as she splits her time with her larger Potsa Lotsa ensemble, and other projects. With bassist Jan Roder and drummer Kay Lübke, she has cultivated a rapport that feels both intuitive and restless. Being-A-Ning, the group's fifth release--each one bearing the word “being" in its title--reaffirms that bond while pushing it forward. Although all three principals are well-versed in convention, rather than confining their ...
Continue ReadingAruán Ortiz: Créole Renaissance
by Jack Kenny
Cuban Cubism is central to Aruán Ortiz's musical identity--but in this album, his vision extends far beyond. While the 1930s Negritude movement was a literary endeavor, Ortiz seeks to embody that movement not through words but through music. His compositions channel their spirit with abstraction, tension, and a deep sense of diasporic reflection. Ortiz, born in Santiago de Cuba--the island's second-largest city--is shaped by its distinctive sonic culture. His influences stretch widely, encompassing American and European 20th-century composers ...
Continue ReadingIrene Schweizer - Rudiger Carl - Johnny Dyani - Han Bennink: Irène's Hot Four
by Glenn Astarita
Irène's Hot Four represents a significant posthumous release from the legendary Swiss jazz pianist Irène Schweizer, who passed away in 2024. This release captures a rare 1981 concert in Zurich featuring Schweizer alongside her companions Rüdiger Carl, Johnny Dyani, and Han Bennink. It is a quartet that existed for only around a year and a half, playing just a handful of performances. The album fills an important gap in Schweizer's discography, documenting this ephemeral but vital collaboration between four master ...
Continue ReadingJames Brandon Lewis Quartet with Aruán Ortiz, Brad Jones and Chad Taylor: Abstraction Is Deliverance
by Mark Corroto
John Coltrane, Sonny Rollins and David S. Ware cast long shadows over Abstraction Is Deliverance, the fifth release from the James Brandon Lewis Quartet. These tenor saxophone titans have influenced Lewis since his breakout major-label debut Divine Travels (Okeh, 2014). Yet while their legacy is acknowledged, it never overshadows the bold, present-tense expression of Lewis's own voice. He does not merely walk in their footsteps--he charts new terrain using the foundation they helped lay. Lewis is a rare ...
Continue ReadingSilke Eberhard Trio with Jan Roder and Kay Lübke: Being-A-Ning
by Mark Corroto
It is rare to describe an audio recording as brave, but that is precisely what the latest release by the Silke Eberhard Trio is--bold, fearless, and unflinchingly original. Being-A-Ning, the group's fifth album, borrows its title from Thelonious Monk's “Rhythm-A-Ning," nodding to the jazz giant while continuing the trio's thematic naming convention. Previous albums--Being (2008) and What A Beauty Being (2011) on Jazzwerkstatt, followed by The Being Inn (2017) and Being The Up And Down (2021) on Intakt--have all explored ...
Continue ReadingChristoph Irniger's Pilgrim: Human Intelligence (live)
by Mark Corroto
"The one thing I concluded was not to try and reproduce a live event--I thought, live goals are different. There might be more improvisation, more risk," Christoph Irniger reflects in the liner notes to Pilgrim's 2023 studio album Ghost Cat (Intakt). The saxophonist and composer reinforces the idea with this electrifying live recording, captured at Red Horn District in Bad Meinberg, Germany, in November 2023. For 14 years, Irniger's quintet--pianist Stefan Aeby, guitarist Dave Gisler, bassist Raffaele Bossard ...
Continue ReadingStemeseder Lillinger + Craig Taborn: Umbra III
by Mark Corroto
Sometimes, the subversion of established paradigms unfolds through incremental variations and subtle shifts in the status quo--so gradual they can be almost imperceptible. Other times, transformation arrives in the form of unexpected revolutions, seismic and undeniable. Somewhere between these two extremes lie the musical experiments of Elias Stemeseder and Christian Lillinger. The Austrian-German duo--pianist, composer, and electronic musician Elias Stemeseder and drummer, composer, and producer Christian Lillinger--conceived Umbra, a modular ensemble framework that interweaves musical notation with fluid ...
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