Jazz Articles

Our daily articles are carefully curated by the All About Jazz staff. You can find more articles by searching our website, see what's trending on our popular articles page or read articles ahead of their published dates on our Coming Soon page. Read our daily album reviews.

144

Album Review

Francois Carrier: Entrance 3

Read "Entrance 3" reviewed by Mark Corroto

by Mark Corroto
March 16, 2011

Some artists have a way of synthesizing various modes and trends in their craft, so that their art comes off as all-inclusive and incredibly original. Canadian saxophonist François Carrier is one such artist. On Entrance 3, he bridges modern free jazz and mid-1960s post-bop, with guest pianist Bobo Stenson and his working trio of bassist Pierre Côté and drummer Michel Lambert. Recorded in 2002 at the Vancouver Jazz Festival, this disc presents Carrier and company in their best ...

116

Album Review

Ultralyd: Inertiadrome

Read "Inertiadrome" reviewed by John Kelman

by John Kelman
March 16, 2011

It's been nearly four years since Ultralyd released its 2007 Rune Grammofon debut, Conditions for a Piece of Music, and a lot's happened since that time. The members of this electrified quartet continue to weave their way through the fabric of the cutting-edge Norwegian improvising scene, ranging from the Coltrane-inspired, early Garbarek-tinged modal freedom of The Core's Office Essentials (Jazzland, 2008), which featured Ultralyd saxophonist Kjetil T. Møster, to the more structured attack of MoHa!'s One-Way Ticket to Candyland (Rune ...

490

Interview

Matt Haimovitz: Rare Birds

by Ian Patterson
March 16, 2011

It's a fairly audacious idea for a cello octet to interpret the music of jazz icons such as bassist Charles Mingus, trumpeter Miles Davis and saxophonist Ornette Coleman, never mind the Mahavishnu Orchestra, but clearly, as seen on the compelling Meeting of the Spirits, cellist Matt Haimovitz loves a challenge. Challenge is something he's used to, since debuting at the age of 13 as soloist with the Israeli Philharmonic conducted by Zubin Mehta. For Haimovitz, one of the biggest challenges ...

346

Album Review

Honey Ear Trio: Steampunk Serenade

Read "Steampunk Serenade" reviewed by Troy Collins

by Troy Collins
March 15, 2011

Building on an established legacy, Honey Ear Trio updates the time honored acoustic instrumentation of the classic saxophone trio with a subtle use of electronics on their debut Steampunk Serenade. Saxophonist Erik Lawrence, bassist Rene Hart and drummer Allison Miller draw upon their diverse experiences in an array of popular music forms (rock, soul, folk) to inform an accessible yet adventurous series of modern jazz variations. Challenging the conventions of structure and form, they treat time signatures, tempos ...

316

Album Review

Anthony Braxton: Trio & Quintet (Town Hall) 1972

Read "Trio & Quintet (Town Hall) 1972" reviewed by Mark Corroto

by Mark Corroto
March 15, 2011

Maybe the world wasn't ready for the music of Anthony Braxton back in 1972, when this concert was recorded, and maybe it wasn't ready for him, when it was released twenty years later in 1992. Then again, is it really ready for him today? Certainly, and this music is very accessible. This beautifully remastered edition of New York's Town Hall concert is another clue into the puzzle of Braxton's musical genius. Braxton circa 1972 was a 27-year old ...

271

Album Review

Scorch Trio: Melaza

by John Kelman
March 15, 2011

Human nature may tend towards resisting change, but shaking up a group--even one with a longstanding and successful lineup--can sometimes drive the music in subtly different directions. Losing Norwegian drummer Paal Nilssen-Love may have seemed like a blow change for Scorch Trio, but recruiting Frank Rosaly--who moves around in the same circles as Nilssen-Love, playing with fellow Chicagoan modernists like saxophonist Dave Rempis and cellist Fred Lonberg-Holm--turns out to be the perfect move for this decade-old improvising power trio. Melaza ...

326

Bailey's Bundles

Dan Wilensky: To Whom Much is Given...

by C. Michael Bailey
March 15, 2011

Tenor saxophonist Dan Wilensky is a Renaissance Man and an educator, both facets of his character evidenced in his musicians' guide, Musician!, and the album If You Only Knew. What Wilensky provides over these two offerings is a masterclass in tasteful and well-behaved musicianship in the real world. No booze- swilling or reefer madness here, only straight professionalism. Music and music making are no joke to Wilensky, but that doesn't mean he lacks a sense of humor. ...

380

Album Review

Anthony Branker & Ascent: Dance Music

Read "Dance Music" reviewed by Karl Ackermann

by Karl Ackermann
March 15, 2011

Anthony Branker continues to experiment with the standards of large group musical tradition on Dance Music. Leading a revised version of his Ascent ensemble, the composer/musical director takes a different approach than the Latin influences on Blessings (Origin Records, 2009). Only on the last of ten tracks, “Depende," is there a composition in that vein, but that's all for the good, as Branker keeps searching for new ways to articulate a distinctive personal sound. Dance Music opens with ...

266

In the Artist's Own Words

Wayne Wallace: The Thrill of the Grammys

by Wayne Wallace
March 15, 2011

I have had the honor of performing on four Grammy-nominated recordings. Mister E, by Pete Escovedo, S.F. Bay, by the Machete Ensemble, Then Some, by Steve Berrios, and Far East Suite, by Anthony Brown and the Asian American Orchestra. This was my second time being a part of a Grammy presentation, but my first as the leader of a nominated project, let alone as a presenter for the Pre-Telecast Awards ceremony. I arrived at LAX on Saturday ...

499

Interview

Matt Jorgensen: Painting With Sound

by Joshua Weiner
March 15, 2011

Matt Jorgensen is a very busy man. A drummer and composer, he plays and records with a wide variety of musicians, including his own long-running quartet 451 and popular trumpeter and label-mate Thomas Marriott. Jorgensen also co-manages the Origin Records label, a thriving concern that has released over 300 discs since 1997, and that now encompasses two associated labels, OA2 and Origin Classical.He is also a family man, and it's a family connection that provided the spark for ...