On Four Freedoms, trumpeter and composer Dave Douglas convenes a remarkable new quartet including the brilliantly inventive pianist Marta Warelis, propulsive bassist Nick Dunston, and the wildly swinging Joey Baron on drums. Douglas channels President Franklin D. Roosevelt's 1941 "Four Freedoms" speech - freedom of speech, freedom of worship, freedom from want, and freedom from fear - into a compelling new musical project. The ensemble serves as an analogy for a functioning society: four distinct voices coexisting, conversing, and creating through improvisation. Balancing urgency with playfulness and joy, Four Freedoms is a celebration of freedom and collaborative spirit. Four Freedoms was recorded during the Getxo Festival in the Basque Country of Spain, in July 2025. The group recorded a live concert, then reconvened the next day on the same stage to capture focused, intimate versions of the music without an audience. "I wanted to capture both the excitement of a live performance and the focus and intensity of a studio session. Four Freedoms: Roosevelt's words feel more relevant than ever - humanities will be essential as we face the challenge of cohabiting on this singularly gorgeous planet." - Dave Douglas
New York-based jazz vocalist and composer Aubrey Johnson presents her second studio album, her first on Dave Douglas' Greenleaf Music record label, featuring her intricate and vibrant original music and arrangements. As on her first release, Unraveled, she's teamed up with multi Grammy Award-winning producer/editor Steve Rodby (Pat Metheny Group) and engineer Rich Breen (Herbie Hancock, Diane Reeves, The Yellow Jackets). The album's title is drawn from the lyrics of "The Waking", a Theodore Roethke poem later set to music by Kurt Elling, and embodies the spirit of the music-buoyant, hopeful, and exuberant. In addition to her original compositions, the program also features two compositions by Johnson's uncle (the late, great keyboardist and composer Lyle Mays), Joni Mitchell's "Help Me", and a piece by violinist Tomoko Omura (who also plays on the album.) The Lively Air is an exciting and worthwhile sophomore effort by an artist who has truly come into her own.
Prolific trumpeter and composer Dave Douglas announces the release of Transcend, featuring his all-star GIFTS Quintet. Blending electronics, lyricism, and high-energy interplay, the ensemble operates at full force, driven by a clear spiritual vision. Following his 2024 release GIFTS - honoring Billy Strayhorn - Transcend continues Douglas' exploration of legacy, spirituality, and ensemble innovation. Transcend features the same core group as GIFTS, including DownBeat Artist of the Year tenor saxophonist James Brandon Lewis and two members of the Oscar-nominated post-rock trio Son Lux: guitarist Rafiq Bhatia and drummer Ian Chang. Expanded with the addition of cellist and MacArthur Genius Awardee Tomeka Reid, the quintet employs a radical new instrumentation. Douglas' new offering Transcend is created in observance of Duke Ellington's Sacred Concerts, landmark works performed between 1965-1973, and widely regarded as the spiritual culmination of Ellington's career. Douglas draws inspiration from this ethos, by engaging with the spirit of openness, reverence, and humanity.
