In his upcoming album, «Brightlight,» Cohen showcases his multifaceted talents alongside a stellar ensemble of musicians. Among these are some of the brightest young talents from the new jazz scene, including drummer Roni Kaspi, pianist Guy Moskovich, his working core trio as the centre on many of the titles and joined by saxophonist Yuval Drabkin and many others hand-picked talented artists. Roni Kaspi brings a youthful vigor to the album, infusing the music with a sense of spontaneity and drive. After more than 3 years of touring with Avishai Cohen, she's even got a dedicated title on this recording ("Roni's Swing"), wrote by Cohen as an homage to her dynamic and energetic drumming. Guy Moskovich, a pianist whose harmonic sensibilities and technical prowess have garnered him recognition as a rising star in jazz, provides the perfect complement to Cohen's bass lines. Yuval Drabkin, on saxophone, adds another layer of richness to the extensive ensemble. His emotive playing and nuanced interpretations bring a compelling voice to the project, enhancing the album's overall depth.
Last year, Tigran Hamasyan composed his greatest work, inspired by a traditional Armenian tale of the same name: The Bird of a Thousand Voices, is rediscovering this story in a transmedia project, consisting of an innovative livestaged play (world premiere at the Holland Festival on June 8, 2024), two ambitious cinematic fiction music videos, a documentary music video and an online game. The original story of the firebird has been orally transmitted over the centuries and cultures. The folk tale requires a multi-layered, transdisciplinary approach to provide an artistic context for this fascinating story. The mystical bird of a thousand voices is a beautiful metaphor of our times: a world in search of connection and harmony, faced with ecological, psychological and spiritual crises. Any form of recognition and new means of transmitting this beautiful music of the ancient traditions of the Caucasus is therefore important and sets the tone for world curiosity and diversity. "The Bird Of A Thousand Voices" is part of this context. Tigran is one of the most remarkable jazz pianists and composers of his generation. He combines improvisation with the rich traditional music of his native Armenia. Ten years ago, Tigran and award-winning filmmaker Ruben Van Leer met during a collaboration at the Cite de la Musique in Paris, creating "Shadow Theater", a visual musical experience (see ARTE broadcast). They went on to create several music videos together (see Cave of Rebirth & Fides Tua). Armenian culture, geopolitically situated between globalized powers such as Russia, Turkey and Azerbaijan, has been under pressure for centuries. Most recently, in September 2023, Azerbaijan took over Armenian territory. Right after, almost the entire population was expelled from the mountainous region of Nagorno-Karabakh as part of an "ethnic cleansing", in the words of the European Parliament. Azerbaijan is now expressly ordering the burning of ancient historical manuscripts in Armenian monasteries. Deluxe 2CD box set with 2 superb illustrated booklets (60 pages in total).
THE CELEBRATED PIANIST JACKY TERRASSON, HAILED BY THE NEW YORK TIMES AS "ONE OF THE THIRTY ARTISTS POISED TO SHAPE THE TRAJECTORY OF AMERICAN CULTURE," UNVEILS "MOVING ON". BACK IN FRANCE AFTER THREE DECADES IN NEW YORK, HE ORGANIZES A DOUBLE NATIONALITY TREASURE HUNT, MIXING CHOPIN AND JAZZ, WITH GUEST ARTISTS SUCH AS KAREEN GUIOCK-THURAM, CAMILLE BERTAULT AND GRÉGOIRE MARET. WITH A NEW-FOUND JOIE DE VIVRE, EACH PIECE TELLS AN ADVENTURE, A STORY, A DELICATE CELEBRATION OF HAPPINESS.
Introduced in The New York Times in 1994 as "one of the thirty artists poised to shape the trajectory of American culture in the following three decades," pianist Jacky Terrasson has lived up to this acclaim by becoming the most widely heard French jazz musician on digital platforms. Born in Berlin in 1965 to an American mother and a French father, he pursued studies in classical piano in France before enrolling at the Berklee College of Music. In 1993, he clinched the prestigious Thelonious Monk Institute of Jazz International Piano Competition.
He began his career alongside luminaries such as Betty Carter, Dee Dee Bridgewater, Cassandra Wilson, Charles Aznavour, Guy Lafitte, Barney Wilen, and Ray Brown. Terrasson made his mark. Signing with the legendary Blue Note label under the stewardship of its iconic president, Bruce Lundvall, he embarked on a remarkable 25-year journey of success. An indefatigable globetrotter, he graces the stages of the most illustrious jazz and piano festivals across Europe, the United States, South America, and Asia.
"Moving On," the title of Jacky Terrasson’s new album perfectly sums up the new aspirations "of the most traveling of jazz pianists, a pianist of happiness" (Telerama). After being the muse of the majors (Blue Note & Universal), it is a new adventure as an artist producer and a new path that Jacky Terrasson decided to begin by creating his own label (Earth Sounds). It is also, after 30 years spent in New York, his choice to live again in France, the country where he grew up. But also continue to play regularly on the American continent, a subtle treasure hunt between leaving and returning to the two countries of his dual nationality. It also means offering two trio recording sessions (in France and New York) for the same record with numerous guests: the singers Kareen Guiock-Thuram and Camille Bertault, the harmonica player Grégoire Maret, and the drummers Billy Hart and Eric Harland. And finally, fully embrace his thirst to bring together a Chopin prelude with a jazz standard (Besame Mucho), to invite a bird recorded in Borneo which becomes a piece (Edit Piaf), to write and compose music for his friends (Are you following me, put into words by Camille Bertault), for his desires (Love Light), his travels (AF 006), and to be happy (Happy by Pharell Williams like a fireworks display almost bringing together all the musicians on the album). Behind each title hides an adventure, a story, depth, and the desire to always want to enjoy life with delicacy.
15 titles, including 8 exclusive to the CD edition.
Emerging from the Strasbourg scene and the Omezis collective, which includes about twenty artists, musicians, DJs, and videographers, Emile Londonien soaks up the English jazz scene of the last fifteen years and offers up a personal version. Trained at the Strasbourg Conservatory, the three musicians met during thematic evenings organized by the Omezis collective, co-founded by drummer Matthieu Drago. A studio session paying tribute to the English scene followed in 2020. The moniker Emile Londonien, a double nod to their UK influences and to a famous French saxophonist, sprang up spontaneously. The Covid-19 pandemic put the project on hold until their recordings fell into the hands of Dope Tone, the historical Strasbourg broken beat label, and then things started to accelerate. Influential DJs like Lefto immediately shared the tracks from this first session. Thus, emblematic of a generation that grew up in club culture, the band was launched, blending that very culture with the jazz trio tradition. Regularly playlisted on the BBC, their first productions found an enthusiastic echo, and the praise poured in, starting with that of the influential DJ and producer Gilles Peterson himself, who sees them as heirs: "I saw these guys recently live. They are a sort of celebration of the last 10-15 years of the UK jazz scene... It's a crossroads place." Unknown until a few months prior, the band played Sète's Worldwide Festival, the Montreux Jazz Festival in the summer of 2021, and Nancy Jazz Pulsations, confirming on stage all the good that was already clear from listening to their recordings. Influenced by Yussef Kamaal, The Comet Is Coming, Atjazz, SunRa, and also Ornette Coleman or Thelonious Monk and by the Broken Beat, Jazz, House, and Hip Hop scenes, Emile Londonien perfectly incarnates this "next gen" French jazz alongside Léon Phal, whose sound is close to theirs. Beyond labels, they mix tradition and contemporary music with ease, as measured on the dancefloor.
Emerging from the Strasbourg scene and the Omezis collective, which includes about twenty artists, musicians, DJs, and videographers, Emile Londonien soaks up the English jazz scene of the last fifteen years and offers up a personal version. Trained at the Strasbourg Conservatory, the three musicians met during thematic evenings organized by the Omezis collective, co-founded by drummer Matthieu Drago. A studio session paying tribute to the English scene followed in 2020. The moniker Emile Londonien, a double nod to their UK influences and to a famous French saxophonist, sprang up spontaneously. The Covid-19 pandemic put the project on hold until their recordings fell into the hands of Dope Tone, the historical Strasbourg broken beat label, and then things started to accelerate. Influential DJs like Lefto immediately shared the tracks from this first session. Thus, emblematic of a generation that grew up in club culture, the band was launched, blending that very culture with the jazz trio tradition.
Regularly playlisted on the BBC, their first productions found an enthusiastic echo, and the praise poured in, starting with that of the influential DJ and producer Gilles Peterson himself, who sees them as heirs: “I saw these guys recently live. They are a sort of celebration of the last 10-15 years of the UK jazz scene … It’s a crossroads place.” Unknown until a few months prior, the band played Sète's Worldwide Festival, the Montreux Jazz Festival in the summer of 2021, and Nancy Jazz Pulsations, confirming on stage all the good that was already clear from listening to their recordings. Influenced by Yussef Kamaal, The Comet Is Coming, Atjazz, SunRa, and also Ornette Coleman or Thelonious Monk and by the Broken Beat, Jazz, House, and Hip Hop scenes, Emile Londonien perfectly incarnates this “next gen” French jazz alongside Léon Phal, whose sound is close to theirs. Beyond labels, they mix tradition and contemporary music with ease, as measured on the dancefloor.
It's flawless... it's fearless... I don't know how it gets better than this. It might appear off-the-wall, but Taylor Swift's words to describe a first kiss are also a summation of the new album by Clara Haberkamp, the wonderful German jazz pianist... who just happens to have been born in the same month of the same year as Swift: December 1989. And maybe there is something more than just a simple coincidence of month of birth going on here. As Haberkamp says: "I have changed. My role models these days are women, in music and elsewhere, who combine strength and self-determination with compassion and receptiveness." These reflections don't just feed into her own continuing development and her rising profile on the European music scene, they are also a defining part of the way she plays and leads her trio. Downbeat critic Josef Woodard has called Haberkamp "a commanding presence" and anyone listening to this album, or watching the trio in action live or on video will instantly hear and see how all that works, why it functions so well, and in so many ways and stylistic directions. She chooses to work with strong, infinitely subtle, top-flight players from a slightly older generation: bassist Oliver Potratz is one of the most in-demand players of the instrument in Germany; Jarle Vespestad's vast experience includes several years with both Farmers Market and Tord Gustavsen's trio. Each of them has made the best part of 100 albums. And yet it is the phenomenally adept pianist who is clearly the one in charge, shaping the music in it's many forms, throwing out the rhythmic and harmonicchallenges to her skilful and wise colleagues. This music has everything from the knottiest of counterpoint ("Collage"), achingly intense lyricism ("Enfold me like a poem"), the quiet and reflective ("On a Park Bench"), idealised dreamscape ("Fantasmes") to moments when she brings the music back to simple, heartfelt forms of expression which cannot fail to reach every heart ("If you could read my mind"). And there can be very few singer/pianists since Shirley Horn who have reached the degree of interdependence of piano and voice that Haberkamp brings to her hauntingly reharmonized "Danny Boy", a welcome return to singing for just one track on the album. The album title "Plateaux" comes from a 1980 book whose authors found every way they could to observe and encourage the dismantling of traditional power structures and hierarchies: "Mille Plateaux" by philosopher Gilles Deleuze and psychoanalyst Felix Guattari, both of whom died in the 1990s. The world has moved on since those days, and to witness Haberkamp at the helm of her trio is to understand that there are many better ways to invent and to communicate. How natural, how totally at ease with herself at the piano and in her role as leader she is. It allows her to stand out in the crowded field of piano trios as very special, or "souveran" as the Germans say. The vast armies of Taylor Swift admirers bring sackfuls of glitter and hair accessories to her concerts. All that an admirer of Clara Haberkamp needs to bring is an open mind, ear, and heart. All three will be copiously rewarded by an artist who is increasingly, definably, defiantly, remarkably, herself.
Peter, Marc, Roland, and I came together for the first time in 2015 to start working on my ideas for this new quartet. Over the past ten years, we four became more and more familiar, both musically and personally. Even if something unexpected happens while playing, we usually find a good way to handle it. There is no fear-but trust. In my opinion, this is the most important foundation for developing musical expression and an individual band sound. Discovery of Lightness is our third album. But despite what you might associate with the album title, this seems to be the most challenging stuff we've worked on so far.
Polyphony, contrast, expression - these timeless Baroque qualities find new life in Klara Cloud's latest work with The Vultures. This album unfolds as a deeply human journey through emotion, memory, and rebirth - a musical tale spanning from the first spark of life to the quiet afterglow of death. Each track opens a new chapter of introspection and feeling, the serene melancholy of Peony blossoms beside the flowing energy of Waterfalls, Se Tu Me Dimentihi brings Pablo Neruda's poetry to life, while Funeral transforms loss into light - a meditation on the kind of silence that already knows the way forward, at it's heart shines Stephanie - a symbol of endurance and wonder - framed in a soundscape as vivid and intricate as a Baroque painting. With contributions from an ensemble of masterful musicians - Mateusz Smoczynski (violin), Mateusz Gaweda (piano), Adam Tadel (double bass), Piotr Budniak (drums), and guest violinist Bartosz Dworak - Cloud's vision achieves both intimacy and grandeur. Produced by Klara Cloud and recorded in Poland's Sound & Wave Studio, this record captures the essence of transformation: fragile yet fearless, lyrical yet raw. Dedicated to her children, Stefania and Julian, the album stands as both a personal diary and a universal reflection - an echo of beauty born out of silence.
This is his third album, but he is only 23 years old. No question about it: Mathieu Clement, the drummer, composer and arranger from Luxembourg, goes his way unswervingly. Stylistically, the drummer also moves with this septet on a tried-and-tested basis. The watchword is "straight ahead." Clement is basically oriented toward the achievements of those jazz currents that developed in the mid-1950s and resulted in mainstream varieties.
The title "Awaking" carries a double significance. On the one hand, it refers to the musical awakening that marks my artistic journey; on the other, it reflects the collective awakening that marked the end of the Corona pandemic. I hope that "Awaking" reflects not just the sound of my music, but my appreciation of all the people who have shared this creative path with me.
Here We Are finds acclaimed jazz vocalist Lori Williams at the heart of a soulful, cross-continental collaboration with top-tier European jazz artists. Born out of friendships from the Poysdorf Summer Jazz Workshop, the album blends original songs and timeless standards with Brazilian grooves, romantic ballads, and classic swing. Williams' warm, expressive voice shines across each track whether delivering heartfelt lyrics or improvising with grace and nuance. Backed by a band that listens and responds as one, Here We Are is a celebration of connection, creativity, and the joy of making music together.
There are good reasons why the names of all those involved in this album are listed as equal partners. "Moving Times" is the result of real teamwork and is the first production of a newly formed group in which everyone acts on an equal footing. This is not self-evident, because singer Esther Kaiser and guitarist Axel Fischbacher represent two established big names in the German jazz scene, who have been independently leading their own bands for many years and have released a large number of their own albums. The two belong to different generations while bassist Genevieve O'Driscoll and drummer/vibraphonist Michael Knippschild represent another one. That means three generations, two women and two men, and it fits as if there were nothing more normal in the world.
The carefully arranged connection between the international Arthur Possing Quartet from Luxembourg and Joel Rabesolo from Madagascar is a real stroke of luck, as the joint album Homes demonstrates. It is no coincidence that it almost overflows with captivating pieces and diverse music during approximately 70 minutes of playing time. Instead of a random of tracks, the combination of pieces is designed to create a concise whole. As a result, Homes becomes a real listening journey.
Causes of Imagination - Jazz Thing Next Generation, Vol. 107
Double Moon Records
CD
$14.99May 30, 2025
From a formal point of view, this is a classical jazz quartet line-up, complemented by a string quartet. Shogo Seifert considers the group to be a unit of eight and has composed for them accordingly. A rather handcrafted, rationally "technical" approach is foreign to him. "I need an emotional connection to transfer energy into music."
Niemandsland - Jazzthing Next Generation, Vol. 106
Double Moon Records
CD
$14.99Apr 04, 2025
Niemandsland is Matthias Meyer's first own album. The international quintet (Larsen is Danish and Braylovskiy Russian) is his first own group. This seems amazing given the maturity of the compositions and arrangements, the density of the interplay as well as the collective spirit and individual class. One reason is certainly the freshly won, purposefully implemented artistic self-image of the bandleader. The close connection between the band members is just as important.
In Germany in particular, a lot of folk culture, especially folk music, has fallen into disrepute, so that the whole thing sometimes has a not inconsiderable bitter taste. And the word "folklore" is used almost pejoratively. For me, folklore has a positive connotation in the sense of something, a fashion, tradition, festivity, discipline, an occasion, food, dance, play, music, religion,... which is able to connect different generations or social and cultural origins. The word folklore actually describes one of the target ideas, where and how the music should end up. It is meant more as a kind of wish, a "blessing wish", for the music of our trio.
In music, the new is only created by looking at tradition; the talent that comes with it only matures through mastery of the craft. The new album 'Purple Sky' by guitarist and composer Vlado Grizelj is a perfect example of how the balance of these two artistic driving forces can lead to a rousing result. His love of the funk and soul of the sixties and seventies is expressed very strongly.
Eternal Child, Avishai Cohen's new album, will be released in May and showcases the full depth of his artistry as a bassist and composer. Years later, he reunites with drummer Jeff Ballard on selected tracks, recalling their strong musical connection forged alongside Chick Corea. Recorded at the renowned Studio de Meudon in Paris, Eternal Child stands as a major new chapter in Cohen's work.
Gunter Baby Sommer is at the height of his musical career. After 'Song for Kommeno' and his Solo masterpiece 'Dedications' he presents at his 75th birthday a duo recording with German trumpet player Till Bronner. The listeners will notice quite quickly how relaxed Till Bronner and Baby Sommer correspond throughout the chosen musical material. We experience the meeting of two musicians who have found a common language despite their personal distinctness; who do not need to prove anything to anybody. That is why their very first ever recording is fed by a basic calmness. Had Baby's Party not been chosen to become this album's title, the last piece - the Duke's 'In a Sentimental Mood' - would have made an equally well fitting title. Not in the sense of a yearning retrospection but - according to the two musicians' natural disposition - in the sense of an invincible preview of what is ahead of them.
After releasing five duo CDs on Intakt Records with Silke Eberhard, Lauren Newton, Rudi Mahall, Alexander von Schlippenbach and Louis Sclavis, Aki Takase now presents a breathtaking and entertaining recording with Han Bennink - two personalities familiar with all traditions of jazz who love to go on an expedition. Aki Takase offers such wondrous compositions as the title song 'Two for Two,' an homage to Han Bennink called 'Ohana Han,' 'My Tokyo' or 'Rolled Up.' the duo also reveals it's great playfulness while playing standards by Thelonious Monk and Eric Dolphy. Han Bennink is swinging in best New Orleans tradition while Aki Takase shows more and more of her poetic and melodic side.
