Jazz Articles about Jean-Michel Pilc

About Jean-Michel Pilc

Album Review

Jacques Kuba Séguin: La Trilogie des Odeurs

Read "La Trilogie des Odeurs" reviewed by Dan McClenaghan

by Dan McClenaghan
June 2, 2026

Are perfumes composed? Do they evolve? Polish-Canadian trumpeter and composer Jacques Kuba Séguin says they do, emphatically, with his La Trilogie des Odeurs: Three Works, Three Universes, One Story. In presenting an olfactory world via an auditory work of art, there is a sense that Séguin is taking things well beyond just perfume to an entire world of odors. It also suggests an entanglement of the senses, and Séguin pushes this suggestion to the max with this trilogy ...

Album Review

Dave Mossing: Homesteaders

Read "Homesteaders" reviewed by Jack Bowers

by Jack Bowers
January 28, 2026

On his debut album, Homesteaders, Montreal-based trumpeter Dave Mossing pays homage to the intrepid immigrants (including some of his forebears) who trekked westward in the early 1900s to help develop the area around his birthplace in Regina, Saskatchewan. He and his quartet do so in the form of a largely unhurried eight-movement Homesteader Suite (plus three brief “interludes") that seeks to depict in musical terms the highs and lows, the ups and downs, the ins and outs, the joys, the ...

Album Review

Stephane Wrembel: Triptych, featuring Jean-Michel Pilc

Read "Triptych, featuring Jean-Michel Pilc" reviewed by Scott Gudell

by Scott Gudell
December 4, 2024

If Stephane Wrembel's early influences partially evolved from guitarists in classic rock bands such as Pink Floyd and Led Zeppelin, it was not long before the French-born guitarist was drawn forever to the creative and romantic sounds of gypsy jazz master guitarist Django Reinhardt. Elements of Reinhardt's often brisk style would drift in and out of many of Wrembel's releases. Dreamers of Dreams, his 2014 release (Water Is Life Records, the artist's label), featured not only stand out cuts such ...

Album Review

Sam Newsome, Jean-Michel Pilc: Cosmic Unconsciousness Unplugged

Read "Cosmic Unconsciousness Unplugged" reviewed by Neri Pollastri

by Neri Pollastri
November 27, 2023

Talentuosissimi strumentisti ed eccellenti improvvisatori, Sam Newsome e Jean-Michel Pil tornano a registrare assieme a sei anni di distanza dal loro Magic Circle. E lo fanno con lo stesso spirito, cioè andando in studio senza scalette o programmi predefiniti, fidandosi dell'intesa consolidata e delle comuni preferenze, per snocciolare una serie di improvvisazioni alternate a storici standard, il tutto interpretato in modo estremamente personale anche grazie all'uso di “preparazioni" sui rispettivi strumenti. Quest'ultimo aspetto del lavoro viene valorizzato fin ...

Album Review

JD Walter: What the World Needs Now

Read "What the World Needs Now" reviewed by Pierre Giroux

by Pierre Giroux
August 15, 2023

JD Walter beckons listeners into a soulful and captivating journey through modern jazz interpretations of non-jazz material. With his unique vocal stylings and innovative arrangements, he brings a fresh perspective to familiar popular tunes, and several jazz standards, while delivering thought-provoking original compositions. From the very first track--Stevie Wonder's “Golden Lady"--it is evident that Walter's vocal prowess is a force to be reckoned with. He dashes along in full flight and then effortlessly shifts into intricate ...

Album Review

Jean-Michel Pilc: Symphony

Read "Symphony" reviewed by Dan Bilawsky

by Dan Bilawsky
March 20, 2023

On November 28, 2021, at the completion of a two-day recording session for Galician saxophonist Xose Miguélez's Contradictio (Origin, 2022) at CARA-OJM Studios in Matosinhos, Portugal, pianist Jean-Michel Pilc had a little time on his hands. And with a gorgeous Steinway right in front of him, beautiful acoustics in the room and engineer José Trincado at the ready to record, it proved to be the perfect opportunity to explore the moment. The result, a stunning statement on subliminal complexities and ...

Album Review

Xose Miguélez: Contradictio

Read "Contradictio" reviewed by Jane Kozhevnikova

by Jane Kozhevnikova
July 1, 2022

After an album of Spanish-flavored original tunes, Ontology (Origin Records, 2019), Galicia-based saxophone Xose Miguélez releases Contradictio. Alongside Miguélez, the album features Jean-Michel Pilc on piano, Carlos Barretto on bass and Marcos Cavaleiro on drums. Both Miguélez and Pilc are listed as the album producers. The forceful energy of this great French pianist comes out in every tune. Unlike Ontology, Contradictio includes several jazz standards. “You and the Night and the Music," written by Arthur Schwartz, starts ...