Jazz Articles about Art Hirahara

About Art Hirahara

Album Review

Altin Sencalar: Natural Rhythm

Read "Natural Rhythm" reviewed by Andrew Schinder

by Andrew Schinder
May 28, 2026

Rising trombonist Altin Sencalar has positioned himself at the top of a new generation of trombone virtuosos. The trombone may not have the widespread popularity of its brass brethren, but is nevertheless a deeply compelling and versatile instrument. Sencalar has, over the past decade, proven himself as one of the instrument's finest practitioners. Having studied with, and then worked for, trombone star Michael Dease, he combines deep respect for the instrument's legacy with a raw need to muscle it into a ...

Album Review

Josh Lawrence: Still We Dream

Read "Still We Dream" reviewed by David A. Orthmann

by David A. Orthmann
September 29, 2025

"Long As You're Living," the opening track of Still We Dream, trumpeter Josh Lawrence 's seventh release for Posi-Tone Records, is an ideal candidate for extensive airplay on jazz radio. Coming in at under four minutes, it is all substance, no fluff, no excess. A blues in 5/4 time, generating middling tempo swing courtesy of bassist Boris Kozlov and drummer Rudy Royston, this cover of Julian Priester 's and Tommy Turrentine's subtly funky line makes for an auspicious beginning. Still, ...

Album Review

Art Hirahara: Peace Unknown

Read "Peace Unknown" reviewed by Kyle Simpler

by Kyle Simpler
July 18, 2025

Art Hirahara is one of the most in-demand pianists in contemporary jazz, appearing on countless recordings while steadily building an impressive solo career. WithPeace Unknown, he continues his prolific partnership with Posi-Tone Records, with a deeply personal and expansive set that brings new life to earlier compositions while introducing bold new material. Framed within a robust four-horn ensemble, the album stands as both a reflection on the past and a forward-looking artistic statement, elegantly merging lyrical expressiveness with structural daring. ...

Liner Notes

Something Blue: In The Beginning

by Michael Ambrosino
July 11, 2025

Jazz is powered by many things. Perhaps most notably, the expansive variety of independent record labels representing some of the more inspiring aspirations of the idiom. Reflecting the grit, passion and often sheer audacity to exist within an industry that makes little room for jazz, independent labels have established an expanse of music that exemplifies the very essence of the art form. For the past 30 years, Posi-Tone Records has championed this independent spirit, shining a light on a rich ...

Album Review

Diego Rivera: West Circle

Read "West Circle" reviewed by David A. Orthmann

by David A. Orthmann
May 17, 2025

Let it not be said that Posi-Tone Records fails to put its weight and resources behind the artists it believes in. A case in point is the volume of releases that entail the combinations of tenor/soprano saxophonist Diego Rivera, pianist Art Hirahara, bassist Boris Kozlov, and drummer Rudy Royston. In the last five years, discs in which two or more of these artists participate have exceeded three dozen. A sample of the projects includes dates led by all of them ...

Album Review

Posi-Tone Swingtet: In Jazz We Trust

Read "In Jazz We Trust" reviewed by Joshua Weiner

by Joshua Weiner
March 14, 2025

The Posi-Tone Records label, founded and run by producer Marc Free and engineer Nick O'Toole, celebrates its 30th anniversary in 2025. Given the many upheavals in the music business since 1995--the rise of file sharing, the introduction of iTunes, iPod, and iPhone, the decline of the compact disc concomitant with the rise of streaming services, the shrinking influence of major labels with the rise of self-released music, and the recent rediscovery of vinyl--the label is justly proud not only to ...

Album Review

Posi-Tone Swingtet: In Jazz We Trust

Read "In Jazz We Trust" reviewed by Dan Bilawsky

by Dan Bilawsky
March 4, 2025

In the mid-'90s, when Posi-Tone released its first album, the recording industry landscape was completely different than it is today. Small independent labels were not the norm, every artist did not have their own imprint and Napster had yet to arrive to kick off the access revolution. It was, quite simply, a different world--one where label co-founder Marc Free was poised and able to transform a dream into reality by shining a light on established players deserving a closer look ...