STORIE VERE

The Martin Salemi trio offers us a trip through the history of jazz. His first album “Short Stories” is a collection of stylish compositions that alternate between ballads, swing, asymmetrical grooves and rolling rhythms. A few references can be heard from the first measures of Confidence: pianist Nathalie Loriers and above all Enrico Pieranunzi, due to the light touch and his precious way of combining jazz and classical music into something as light and velvety as a summer breeze. But then, right in the middle of the tune, the pianist suddenly heads in another direction, picking up the tempo and welcoming in the fun of swing, running off long suites of improvised notes with the ease of a Keith Jarrett before finally coming, like magic, back to the nonchalance of the opening theme. The rest of the repertoire proves one thing- Martin Salemi is not a man of one style. From Lenni Tristano, whose singularity and exceptional agility are evoked on “Lennie’s Pennies” to the rolling rhythms of “Regina” whose percussive chord-based introduction could be a nod to the bluesy exoticism of the great Horace Silver, we travel easily through he history of jazz.

Entitled "Manifesto," the new album of the Luxembourg-based contemporary jazz trio around the drummer Jeff Herr consists of seven original songs and a surprising cover of Randy Newman's "Same girl." It ensures the continuity of the previous album, "Layer Cake," of the oscillation between structured compositions and free improvisations, as well as of the contrast between the acoustic sound and contemporary interpretation. This time, however, the trio has been joined on several songs by the American guitarist Adam Rogers, known for his work in the modern jazz idiom and his numerous collaborations with musicians such as Norah Jones, Ravi Coltrane, and Marcus Miller. His guitar playing, rooted in the acoustic jazz tradition and influenced by Pat Martino, George Benson, and Wes Montgomery, provides the Jeff Herr Corporation with a unique aspect and a new, intriguing sound.

This new release is a musical journey of two jazz musicians through the land of melody, harmony, rhythm and the fully acoustic sound of instruments. These pieces offer up a clash of classical instrumental texture with the freedom of jazz improvisation. All of the music heard here was written especially for this duo, who extend what is between the notes, filling the space with dialogue and creation of new sounds, textures, and colors. Preludes - by definition - are short instrumental pieces, often of an improvised character, which are an introduction to a larger musical work. And here the author of the album, Marcin Wadolowski, has invited one of the best bassists, Piotr Lemanczyk, to explore these short pieces with him. The result is an exciting sound journey.

This new exciting new release features jazz music by Mexican composer Cris Lobo and Haiku. Crist�bal L�pez, more commonly known as Cris Lobo, began studying guitar at age 6. He is self-taught. In addition to his work as a performing guitarist, he also is an accomplished composer and arranger. His career covers nearly all musical genres. He has played with numerous musicians all over the world, including Ramon Flowers, Clare Fisher, Juan Carlos Laguna, and others. He has made hundreds of recordings as a studio musician, and his research of music has led him to study the trumpet a well as traditional Japanese music.

Once the West and Japan were not familiar with one another. But today, in the 21st century, the two worlds which are so very different can come a little closer to each other. We learn, wonder, and discover different cultures, lifestyles, nature, architecture, images and sounds. Fumio Yasuda’s music comes from modern Japan, which already opened up to the West in the 18th century. Yasuda studied classical music with a preference for Karl Amadeus Hartmann. From childhood he grew up with Western pop and jazz music, yet was still deeply rooted in the Japanese tradition. Time, space, and infinity play an important role in his music. In his scores there are no pause signs like in Western music, but signs of silence between lyrical, deeply poetic tones and chords that tell stories about Japanese landscapes, rain, forests, fog, longings and eternity. Yasuda works in a deep musical understanding with Joachim Badenhorst, Nobuyoshi Ino and Akimuse. His gentle piano sounds unite with the sounds of the clarinet, the plucked bass strings, and the tender voice of Akimuse.

For the first time on audio and video recording, “the fastest-fingered fiddler in the world” Roby Lakatos is joined by “speed demon” guitar hero Biréli Lagrène for a unique tribute to Stephane Grappelli and Django Reinhardt. Both musicians performed in their youth with Stephane Grappelli. For this album they surrounded themselves with the superlative big band of the Modern Art Orchestra and by two first rate Jazzmen of the younger generation: thrilling drummer Niek de Bruijn and guitar sensation Andreas Varady. This is an explosive tribute to Manouche Jazz with standards such as “Djangology,” “Nuages,” “Stella by Starlight” and “Nuits de Saint-Germain-Des-Pres.”

Mussorgsky's classic "Pictures at an Exhibition," here gets a new and electrifying presentation. This jazz project with a dash of rock energy and electronics showcases the perfect alchemy between these three experienced musicians. C�cile Broch� studied classical music, contemporary music, improvisation, and took jazz courses. As a violinist, C�cile Broch� has been involved in many different projects, including contemporary music ensembles, free music, working with dancers, with actors, with jazz musicians featuring strings and solo performances. Percussionist Antoine Cirri has been reinventing the jazz scene for twenty years. He studied classical percussion at the Academie de Chenee before joining the improvisation class at the Conservatoire de Liege. The rest, as they say, is history. Born in Liege, Jacques Pirotton began playing guitar at age 14. First interested with rock and blues, he discovered jazz in the seventies. He has been touring as a professional musician for more than thirty years.

The Hillock Songstress

Silbergrau

Vivaces

Classical Music

Guillaume Vierset combines the poetry of Philip Catherine, the soul of Grant Green, and the sharp edges of Kurt Rosenwinkel. His sparring partners, a dream team of upcoming Belgian talent, are given plenty of room to express themselves, but always at perfectly measured times. Vierset and his collective are ready to forge their own path!

CALL SHEETS, RIDERS & CHICKEN

The violin is not an instrument that one readily associates with jazz. And yet it has always been part of black American music. This 2-CD set covers the 1927-1944 period and presents the best violin players in the history of jazz. Features Stephane Grappelli, Joe Venuti, Stuff Smith, Svend Asmussen, Eddie South Michel Warlop and many others. Includes a 40 page booklet with both French and English notes.

(2-CD set) "He gathers us around a gypsy campfire and takes us away from our spiritual families (what I mean is from our daily routine)..." Jean Cocteau

Gebhard Ullmann celebrates twenty years of his band Basement Research with a striking new CD. Featuring the renowned multi-instrumentalist as well as trombonist Steve Swell, saxophonist Julian Arg�elles, bassist Pascal Niggenkemper, and drummer Gerald Cleaver, the band's seventh CD showcases improvisers at the top of their game, with Ullmann's rich, dynamic compositions.

Christy Doran's bands are called "New Bag," "Sound Fountain," or "Bunter Hund," and the same thing applies to all of them: nomen est omen. He chooses his co-musicians exclusively according to the pleasure principle, and does not know any prejudices not only in this respect, but has played with Fredy Studer, Urs Leimgruber, Carla Bley, Ray Anderson, Erika Stucky, and many more. He regularly jumps back and forth between Jimi Hendrix, Samuel Becket, and Chinese folk music in the search for inspiration and seems to expand his artistic portfolio every second. Christy Doran, for this release, got the idea to bundle 20 electric guitars, four electric basses and a drumset into an orchestra that has never before existed in this form. He calls it "144 Strings for a Broken Chord" in view of the tempestuous storm that it creates. One has to listen to this sometimes brutal elemental force, which can change into a soft hovering in a matter of seconds, a vacuum of reverberating sound fragments. And note: Each of the 20 guitarists and four bassists brings his own personal touch to the daring project, creating a special, original sound that resembles an artistic DNA with the help of smaller or larger instruments.

Click here to view the Vinyl version.

 

Susheela Raman's voice, whether solo or in unearthly harmonies, performs it's unique magic drawing the musical world together. With it's bold meddling with tune and tempo, this fresh set of songs threatens not to work but achieves a compelling integrity. Susheela Raman's Ghost Gamelan is a rich new landscape unlike any of her previous work and quite unlike anything else. Born in London to South Indian parents, singer Susheela Raman, alongside producer/guitarist Sam Mills, has released a chain of adventurous albums and is known as an intense, captivating live performer. Spirited encounters with musicians from a wide range of backgrounds has been a hallmark of her work. Now a new ambitious collaboration with Indonesian musicians is bearing fruit. Raman has delivered this extraordinary album, the body of which was recorded in Solo, Indonesia in 2016. The album is a collaboration with Javanese contemporary gamelan composer Gondrong Guanarto and his team of virtuoso gamelan players. Gamelan, for non-initiates, is the music of Bali and Java, played mostly on tuned gongs, which has long inspired smart western music makers from Debussy, Messaien, Philip Glass and Steve Reich to Sonic Youth. Traces of it's shimmering, loopy DNA are over everything from modal jazz to electronic dance music.

Jazz Cats 1

(2-CD set) “And then he came on, already smiling, ‘cause he was really nice. He had a big smile with beautiful white teeth and a beautiful black moustache and he smiled at the audience. He came to play a bit. And what he gave was real music.” Fud CANDRIX. Includes a 40 page booklet with both French and English notes.

(2-CD set) "His name may not loom large, but he has left his indelible mark on the century". Includes a 16 page booklet with both French and English notes.

Elder

2014 debut album from the German Jazz saxophonist and his quintet.

(2-CD set) "God is in the house tonight" Fats WALLER. Includes a 24 page booklet with both French and English notes.