Jazz Articles about Tomasz Stańko

About Tomasz Stańko

Multiple Reviews

The Warm Glow of ECM Vinyl: Tomasz Stańko, Bill Connors, and Mick Goodrick

by C. Andrew Hovan
July 20, 2026

In an oft-quoted phrase from a 1971 magazine article, ECM founder and producer Manfred Eicher described the label's ethos as “the most beautiful sound next to silence." From the start, the label's eloquent sound--captured expertly by house engineers Martin Wieland and Jan Erik Kongshaug--transferred beautifully to vinyl, and original pressings remain highly prized among collectors. So it's little wonder that fans welcomed news of a vinyl reissue series, even if it arrived later than other labels' ventures into the vinyl ...

Album Review

Tomasz Stańko: Polish Radio Sessions 1970-91

Read "Polish Radio Sessions 1970-91" reviewed by Kevin Poindexter

by Kevin Poindexter
February 24, 2026

In post-World War II Poland, jazz served as an act of defiance against the state, a resistance to the cultural restraints imposed on society. With its improvised nature and swinging rhythms, it stood in direct opposition to the rigid structure of socialist society. Where jazz relies on individual improvisation as a form of expression, socialist society demanded the opposite from individuals; they were expected to be just another part of the machine. Universal conformity was the goal, and since jazz ...

Album Review

Scandinavian Art Ensemble with Tomasz Stańko: The Copenhagen Session Vol. 1

Read "The Copenhagen Session Vol. 1" reviewed by Angelo Leonardi

by Angelo Leonardi
July 14, 2025

Questo è il primo volume di una coppia di album che documentano la registrazione del febbraio 2016 dell'allora 74enne Tomasz Stańko con un ensemble di giovani strumentisti scandinavi e polacchi a Copenhagen. Il trombettista aveva condotto con loro un workshop l'anno prima a Vallekilde Højskole--sempre in Danimarca--organizzato dalla Danish Jazz Union “JazzDanmark." Vista la positiva esperienza avevano programmato un seguito. Dopo una prima esibizione all'Hotel Cecil di Copenhagen la session in questione si ebbe il 19 febbraio al ...

Album Review

Scandinavian Art Ensemble with Tomasz Stańko: The Copenhagen Session Vol. 1

Read "The Copenhagen Session Vol. 1" reviewed by Troy Dostert

by Troy Dostert
May 18, 2025

Although trumpet legend Tomasz Stańko sadly left us in 2018, there are fortunately plenty of signs that his recorded legacy is still unfolding. In 2024 his sparkling release, September Night (ECM), documenting a live engagement from 2004, reminded us of the distinctive emotional vibrancy of this most sensitive of modern trumpeters. And now we have the first of a planned two-volume release, courtesy of a 2015 residency Stańko spent in Denmark with the Scandinavian Art Ensemble. Not only does this ...

Album Review

Tomasz Stańko Quartet: September Night

Read "September Night" reviewed by Alberto Bazzurro

by Alberto Bazzurro
July 29, 2024

Una musica sospesa, carica di pathos, magari sempre un po' uguale a se stessa (all'interno di questo album, che viene da lontano, essendo stato inciso addirittura nel 2004, ma più in generale nell'ultima produzione di Tomasz Stanko), ma in possesso di un potere seduttivo immutato, e peraltro con periodiche impennate (per esempio in “Euforila," ma anche in “Elegant Piece," e sono questi i momenti in cui si avvertono le maggiori similitudini con Enrico Rava, in certe strappate repentine, certi squarci ...

Radio & Podcasts

Tomasz Stanko, Tomasz Dabrowski and Kalaparusha Maurice McIntyre

by Maurice Hogue
July 15, 2024

Two never-heard-before albums are featured in this edition of OMJ. The first is from a saxophonist many considered overlooked for the list of great saxophonists: Kalaparusha Maurice McIntyre whom Anthony Braxton considered the next great saxophonist after Coltrane. The album features Kalaparusha and quartet playing a set at Studio Rivbea in New York during the Loft Scene in July 1975. The second new recording happened 29 years later in Munich in 2004. The brilliant trumpet player and innovator, Tomasz Stanko, ...

Radio & Podcasts

Stańko, Waits, Rudolph, Sorey & More

by Bob Osborne
July 11, 2024

Previously unreleased live music from Tomasz Stańko kicks off a show comprised of all new releases. The expansive world of Nasheet Waits and the percussive adventures of Adam Rudolph & Tyshawn Sorey are also included. I'm also pleased to feature the first release from brand new label Park West Records and amongst other things a fascinating approach to the music of Thelonious Monk. Playlist Show Intro 00:00 Tomasz Stańko “Elegant Piece" from September Night (ECM) 00:28 Bruna Black ...