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Xhosa Cole: Ibeji
by Karl Ackermann
Few places on the global jazz scene are enjoying the enthusiastic resurgence of the genre more than the UK. Names that are becoming more familiar—Binker Golding, Nubya Garcia, Idris Rahman, Shabaka Hutchings and others—have triggered something of a youth movement. Emerging in that group is yet another top-notch saxophonist, Xhosa Cole. Cole's sophomore release, Ibeji is ...
Esbjorn Svensson: HOME.S.
by Karl Ackermann
In 2022, it has been more than a decade since the influential Swedish pianist/composer Esbjörn Svensson passed. The measure of his impact can be calculated in the ongoing comparisons of up-and-coming piano trios to his groundbreaking Esbjörn Svensson Trio Trio. Several weeks before Svensson's untimely death his wife Eva heard him recording solo piano pieces in ...
Jussi Reijonen: Three Seconds | Kolme Toista
by Karl Ackermann
East/West jazz fusion has a long presence on the U.S. jazz scene and that foothold has been growing in the 2000s. Composer/guitarist/oud player Jussi Reijonen is uniquely qualified to bridge musical cultures. Nordic by birth, he has lived in the Middle East, Africa, and the U.S., absorbing native music at each stop. Reijonen's solo debut, Un ...
Mark Lomax, II and Edwin Bayard - Ogún Meji Duo: Freedom Suite
by Karl Ackermann
More than half a century after Sonny Rollins' civil rights statement Freedom Suite (Riverside, 1958), we have not advanced enough as a species to lay such sentiments to rest. The Ogún Meji Duo—drummer Mark Lomax, II and saxophonist Edwin Bayard—honor Rollins and the suite, with a new and different interpretation of his seminal work. This is ...
Taeko Kunishima: Dictionary Land
by Karl Ackermann
Known for her lyrical piano style, Japanese musician and composer Taeko Kunishima has her roots in classical music. While studying at university, she heard Miles Davis on the radio and the impact was life-altering. Kunishima was not content with simply adapting to Western jazz; her interests are far broader and have led her to Dictionary Land. ...
Steve Lehman & Sélébéyone: Xaybu: The Unseen
by Karl Ackermann
Alto saxophonist Steve Lehman debuted his Sélébéyone project in 2016 with a self-titled release on the Pi Recordings label. It was nothing short of revolutionary; an amalgamation of jazz improvisation and globalized hip-hop, it was an intrepid declaration. Originally a septet, Sélébéyone returns as a quintet on Xaybu: The Unseen. The five current members are from ...
Keith Jarrett: Bordeaux Concert
by Karl Ackermann
Recorded at the Bordeaux National Opera House, in July 2016, Bordeaux Concert marks Keith Jarrett's final solo performance in France. The improvised suite came from a prolific European tour which has produced three ECM releases to date. There is little doubt that the label will continue to extract Jarrett's live performances in the post-2018 period, which ...
Matthew Shipp: A Dozen Essential Albums
by Karl Ackermann
While he was still in his fifties, some pundits were hailing Matthew Shipp as the “elder statesman" of avant-garde jazz piano. The sentiment, if not the Stonehenge-like title, was spot on. The Wilmington, Delaware native grew up in jazz, with trumpeter Clifford Brown being a family friend. Shipp began studying piano at age 6 and later ...
A Different Drummer, Pt. 8: Ustad Zakir Hussain Talks Tabla
by Karl Ackermann
Origins of the Tabla The twin hand drum was developed in its current form about 300 years ago on the Indian subcontinent but the roots of the tabla may date to pre-Muslim, Arabia. The name comes from “tabl," the Arabic word for drum, and temple carvings of tabla-like double-hand drums date to 500 BCE. Tabla is ...
Joel Futterman, William Parker, Chad Fowler, Steve Hirsh: The Deep
by Karl Ackermann
The Deep brings together the quartet of pianist Joel Futterman, bassist William Parker, saxophonist Chad Fowler, and drummer Steve Hirsh. Individually—and collectively—they have been the catalysts for many who wander to the farther bounds of jazz. This leaderless group has recorded in distinct member formations, with Futterman and Parker dating back to Authenticity (Kali Records, 1998). ...
