Jazz Articles
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Michael Sarian: Live at Cliff Bell's
by Dan Bilawsky
On March 30, 2023, Michael Sarian rolled into Detroit landmark Cliff Bell's with horn in hand. In the midst of a spring tour, that particular venue and evening provided an opportunity for the trumpeter and his bandmates--pianist Santiago Leibson, bassist Marty Kenney and drummer Nathan Ellman-Bell--to do what they do best. Working through new material and strong selections from previous studio albums, this outfit delivered the goods with coiled intensity, some sturm-und-drang sophistication, open ears, sensitivity and melodic mindset. And ...
Continue ReadingBria Skonberg: What It Means
by Jerome Wilson
On her first album in five years, trumpeter Bria Skonberg returns with a new sense of maturity and purpose in her music. She continues her usual style of mixing traditional jazz and soulful vocals with classic jazz and rock motifs, but this outing feels more confident than previous albums. Two changes in her life probably contributed to this. She moved to New Orleans, becoming part of that city's vast music scene, and she became a parent for the first time. ...
Continue ReadingKris Davis Trio, Propulsion and Porchbone
by Maurice Hogue
This week features the first trio recording by pianist Kris Davis in ten years--Run The Gauntlet. It's on her own label, Pyroclastic, and of course it's excellent. The potent avant-garde scene of Chicago emerges on Propulsion in the form of a new quartet led by saxophonist Dave Rempis, while the free jazz scene of NYC contributes another Live At Scholes Street Studio session, this time with saxophonist Stephen Gauci, drummer Kevin Shea and bassist Adam Lane. Another Adam--O'Farrill--shows why he's ...
Continue ReadingDavid Weiss Sextet: Auteur
by Edward Blanco
Trumpeter, composer and bandleader David Weiss delivers the fourth album from his exquisite sextet entitled Auteur, a French term originally used to define film directors as the “author' of the film and in musical respects here, to mean the director or “scene setters" of the music. A master of the bebop sound Weiss, as stated in the excellent liner notes from author Aidan Levy, “is dedicated to the proposition that there are still new stories to be told from within ...
Continue ReadingJenny Scheinman: Jazz, Americana, and Finding Inspiration on the Lost Coast
by Steven Roby
In this episode of Backstage Sonoma, host Steve Roby interviews acclaimed violinist and composer Jenny Scheinman. Jenny shares insights into her latest album, All Species Parade, which is deeply influenced by her return to the remote Lost Coast of Humboldt County. She reflects on how reconnecting with nature and rural life, especially during the pandemic, has reshaped her musical direction. The conversation also explores the challenges of balancing her artistic career with motherhood and how the isolation of 2020 led ...
Continue ReadingTony Haynes 1941 - 2024
by Chris May
It is with great sadness that All About Jazz reports the passing of Tony Haynes, the founder and for over 40 years the creative director of London's Grand Union Orchestra (GUO). Haynes left us on 17 September 2024. Under his visionary leadership, GUO did much to take forward the idea of jazz as a multi-cultural artform, and to celebrate the multi-cultural, multi-ethnic city that London is, representing Haynes' hopes for the world--hopes that he did not just sit back and ...
Continue ReadingJohn Coltrane And Johnny Hartman
by Ian Patterson
When little in the world seems to make much sense anymore, when all the noise, turmoil and strife is getting to be too much, there can be no better medicine than beautiful music to soothe the troubled mind. The pairing of tenor saxophonist John Coltrane and baritone singer Johnny Hartman might have seemed like a left-field choice in 1963 but Impulse! knew exactly what it was doing, The company smelled a hit, and so too in all probability did Coltrane. ...
Continue ReadingBryn Roberts: Aloft
by Dan McClenaghan
Pianist Bryn Ro has steeped himself in sideman roles and collaborations with singer-songwriters. He has released five albums as a leader in quintet, quartet and duo formats, but 2024 finds him offering up his debut as a leader of a piano trio in Aloft, where he works his trio dream team of bassist Matt Penman and drummer Quincy Davis. The history of the piano trio is a part of the challenge. Keith Jarrett, Bill Evans, Red Garland. Those ...
Continue ReadingFood For Thought
by John Eyles
Where is the boundary between composed and improvised music? How many renowned improvisers use tried and trusted phrases that they have turned to so often that they have become cliches? How many classically-trained players are able to freely improvise despite never having been taught to do so? These and other similar questions are sure to be thrown up by the two albums below; one includes an improvised track that fits in alongside composed pieces while the other features a renowned ...
Continue ReadingDominik Schürmann: Forever
by Richard J Salvucci
Dominik Schürmann is a Swiss double bassist from Basle. At this point in his career, in 2024, he must surely be regarded as one of the best jazz players in Europe, a cautious assessment. On this recording, he is joined by pianist Tilman Günther and drummer Samuel Dühsler and the effect, overall, is a bit magical. Schürmann began life as a pianist, later switching to bass. If a listener thinks there are very strong echoes here of Bill Evans and ...
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