This is the first Meredith d'Ambrosio CD made up of only her own material, albeit in collaboration with jazz instrumentalist composers, Kenny Dorham, Harold Land, Clifford Brown, Tom McIntosh, eddie Higgins and Ralph Moore.

PAQUITO & MANZANERO - PAQUITO D'RIVERA PLAYS THE

JAZZ MEETS THE CLASSICS

As quiet as it is kept, vocalist/composer Meredith d'Ambrosio has become one of jazz music's most highly regarded storytellers and performers. Her artful approach to musical interpretation has been treasured by many and has inspired numerous fruitful collaborations. Her new recording, Some Other Time, finds her working with two masters of song, pianist Randy Halberstadt and trumpeter Don Sickler.

In a 2019 article, Forbes Magazine decreed that the two characteristics women need most to thrive in the business world are "grit and grace." Bass trombonist Jennifer Wharton has exemplified those qualities in the music she's made with her brass-forward band Bonegasm since it's 2019 debut. How else to explain Wharton's venture into improvising and bandleading after years in the classical world, big band sections and Broadway orchestra pits? Or her dedication to giving the oft-neglected trombone - and more to the point, her own bass trombone - it's place in the spotlight? And not least, that she's done so with a tricky balance of elegant arrangements, bold musicianship, and audacious wit?

In 1962, two of the most influential and talented instrumentalists that Cuba ever produced were brought together. Saxophonist/clarinetist Paquito D'Rivera was invited to hear pianist Chucho Valdes at a local club in his Marianao neighborhood of South Havana. The two soon became a musical partnership that helped shape jazz in Cuba. Their paths would separate in 1980 when D'Rivera left Cuba. // Sixty years after their initial meeting, the pair has finally reunited to create a monumental new recording. Their I Missed You Too! Marks D'Rivera and Valdes's first recording since they were both members of Cuba's most influential jazz/fusion ensemble, Irakere.

On Sanctuary, the gifted drummer and composer Matt Slocum continues his long-standing practice of documenting original music and arrangements, eight songlike pieces in total. It's his fourth recorded encounter with master pianist Gerald Clayton, a friend and musical partner for close to two decades, who stands out among a high-technical-bar generational peer group for applying his nuanced touch and precise articulation to telling stories that blend the dialects and syntaxes of the tradition and the here-and-now. It's Slocum's first recorded interaction with bass giant Larry Grenadier, a fixture on the international jazz scene for his 25-year association with Brad Mehldau Trio, as well as consequential engagements with Pat Metheny, Paul Motian, Charles Lloyd, Joshua Redman, and Mark Turner.

The variety and fluidity of bodies of water has always fascinated guitarist/composer Scott DuBois and inspires his first solo guitar recording, Summer Water. The view of Lake Michigan from his window was a daily reminder of the range of water's expressive forces. During the bone-chilling Chicago winter of 2019, he wrote pieces for solo guitar that would not only utilize his symphonic compositional voice but would emulate the sound without the use of overdubs, loops or layering. DuBois has captured the textures and colors of an orchestra and has maintained a bold sound, not just in terms of volume, but in the intensity, much as one hears from an orchestra, whether loud or soft. He has also created great variety within the sound and the compositions, an important aspect of his work. All of this was accomplished with the barest of essentials: a solo guitar. // This double LP set is the vinyl version of the CD album released in the spring of 2021.

Hailed as "a blazing hot mess of awesome" by The New York City Jazz Record, the Michael Leonhart Orchestra (MLO) traverses a huge swath of musical terrain, guided by the highly developed ears, ceaselessly omnivorous tastes and playful yet meticulous artistry of it's leader, Michael Leonhart. Following their 2018 debut album The Painted Lady Suite, MLO will release their second full length, Suite Extracts Vol. I on August 30, via Sunnyside Records. // The surprising collection documents an aspect of the MLO 's mission: playing covers, but in the Leonhart way - with widely disparate material ranging from Fela Kuti to Spinal Tap to Howlin' Wolf to Ornette Coleman curated into song sequences, forming anarchic yet internally coherent thoughts on some of Leonhart's chief musical passions. The album features notable guests Chris Potter, Nels Cline, Donny McCaslin, John Ellis, Erik Friedlander and many others in the context of a vibrant and unclassifiable 20-piece ensemble. // The MLO has developed and refined the suites through the course of it's monthly residencies at Jazz Standard, one of New York's most prestigious jazz rooms. Leonhart continues to pursue his vision there, with unconventional instrumentation and a shapeshifting community of sought-after players from a variety of cutting-edge scenes and disciplines.

Hailed as "a blazing hot mess of awesome" by The New York City Jazz Record, the Michael Leonhart Orchestra (MLO) traverses a huge swath of musical terrain, guided by the highly developed ears, ceaselessly omnivorous tastes and playful yet meticulous artistry of it's leader, Michael Leonhart. Following their 2018 debut album The Painted Lady Suite, MLO will release their second full length, Suite Extracts Vol. I on August 30, via Sunnyside Records. // The surprising collection documents an aspect of the MLO 's mission: playing covers, but in the Leonhart way - with widely disparate material ranging from Fela Kuti to Spinal Tap to Howlin' Wolf to Ornette Coleman curated into song sequences, forming anarchic yet internally coherent thoughts on some of Leonhart's chief musical passions. The album features notable guests Chris Potter, Nels Cline, Donny McCaslin, John Ellis, Erik Friedlander and many others in the context of a vibrant and unclassifiable 20-piece ensemble. // The MLO has developed and refined the suites through the course of it's monthly residencies at Jazz Standard, one of New York's most prestigious jazz rooms. Leonhart continues to pursue his vision there, with unconventional instrumentation and a shapeshifting community of sought-after players from a variety of cutting-edge scenes and disciplines.

There is something entrancing about the natural cycle of water. There is the constant ebb and flow. Then there are the nearly limitless variations, like the lightness of sprinkling rain, babbling brooks or the relentless force of crashing waves and storms. The variety and fluidity of bodies of water has always fascinated guitarist/composer Scott DuBois and inspires his first solo guitar recording, Summer Water, which is also the first recording on his new record label / publishing company, Watertone Music. // DuBois's 2015 album, Winter Light (ACT), began a series of recordings featuring music inspired by the four seasons that would be performed by varied ensembles. Winter Light featured DuBois's quartet of the past 15 years, featuring Gebhard Ullmann, Thomas Morgan and Kresten Osgood, while his 2017 album, Autumn Wind (ACT), added a string and wind ensemble in addition to his quartet. // Summer Water is the third release in the series and a true departure for DuBois. The view of Lake Michigan from his window was a daily reminder of the range of water's expressive forces. During the bone-chilling Chicago winter of 2019, he wrote pieces for solo guitar that would not only utilize his symphonic compositional voice but would emulate the sound without the use of overdubs, loops or layering. DuBois has captured the textures and colors of an orchestra and has maintained a bold sound, not just in terms of volume, but in the intensity, much as one hears from an orchestra, whether loud or soft. He has also created great variety within the sound and the compositions, an important aspect of his work. All of this was accomplished with the barest of essentials: a solo guitar.

On Sanctuary, the gifted drummer and composer Matt Slocum continues his long-standing practice of documenting original music and arrangements, eight songlike pieces in total. It's his fourth recorded encounter with master pianist Gerald Clayton, a friend and musical partner for close to two decades, who stands out among a high-technical-bar generational peer group for applying his nuanced touch and precise articulation to telling stories that blend the dialects and syntaxes of the tradition and the here-and-now. It's Slocum's first recorded interaction with bass giant Larry Grenadier, a fixture on the international jazz scene for his 25-year association with Brad Mehldau Trio, as well as consequential engagements with Pat Metheny, Paul Motian, Charles Lloyd, Joshua Redman, and Mark Turner.

Archive release from the jazz great. The recording of Idrees Sulieman's fantastic quartet on The 4 American Jazz Men In Tangier not only spotlights the incredible talents of Oscar Dennard, a voice that left the jazz world too quickly due to his passing of typhoid fever in 1960, but also gives the world a fantastic example of how America's musical gift to civilization touched all corners of the world. There are those musicians who are given legendary status by their peers and the lucky few who were able to hear them. One such player is pianist Oscar Dennard. Though his professional career only lasted for a little over a decade, his modern touch on the instrument inspired an incredible list of piano masters, including Randy Weston, Ahmad Jamal and Harold Mabern. The release also includes another never before released session from the quartet that was recorded live at a party before their tour departure. The tape was allegedly recorded at Quincy Jones's apartment. Though the tape was in bad condition, the sound has been wonderfully polished by sound engineer, Blaise Favre.

2017 release. Smulyan's expert service in the fantastic large ensembles of Thad Jones and Mel Lewis, Woody Herman, Dizzy Gillespie and the Village Vanguard Orchestra has made him a standout section player and soloist. A voice that is distinctive and also an important element to the given ensemble. It is a rare pleasure to hear Smulyan in a small ensemble performance, a setting where you can really hear his genius unabated. A terrific opportunity came about during the fall of 2016 as the saxophonist was on a tour through Europe. Smulyan invited producer Jacques Muyal to a gig in Lausanne, Switzerland, which Muyal wasn't able to attend. Knowing that Smulyan would be in Paris shortly thereafter, Muyal reached out to the world-renowned club, Le Duc des Lombards, to secure permission to record. The subsequent Royalty at Le Duc presents the brilliant Smulyan in a setting that allows his music to truly blossom, live in a jazz club. The European rhythm section that Smulyan assembled for the tour was composed of French pianist Olivier Hutman, Italian bassist Michel Rosciglione and Austrian drummer Bernd Reiter. The ensemble was more than capable of handling the diverse program of jazz classics, including Thad Jones's "Thedia" and "Elusive," Billy Strayhorn's "The Star-crossed Lovers," Pepper Adams's "Cindy's Tune," Joe Henderson's "Serenity," Raksin and Mercer's "Laura" and Johnny Green's "Body & Soul."

From my very first visit in the summer of 1980, the city of Barcelona fascinated me in all it's senses, from Montjuic, Las Ramblas and the monumental cathedral of La Sagrada Familia to the Palau de la M sica, La Boquer a market and Plaza de Espa a. This must have influenced positively in my relationship with the members of the "Barcelona Clarinet Players," which was love at first sight that began in 2018 during my conversation with the outstanding Cuban-Spanish pianist Pepe Rivero at the AIE headquarters in Barcelona. That afternoon they told me about the arrangement they had made of my "Afro" for a music program for children, so when I got back home I started sending them pieces of mine adapted from versions for previous formats, such as "Cuban Sharks", "A Farewell Mambo", "The Elephant and the Clown", "La Fleur de Cayenne","Kites over Havana" or "Wapango". All of this until one fine day the restless Barcelona Clarinetists got excited at commissioned me an original work for this very special musical ensemble. "Fantas as Barcel nicas" was born, moved by three emblematic Catalan artists whom I have admired for years: The inspired novelist Carlos Ruiz Zaf n, who narrated the mysteries of the night in Barcelona, the charismatic pianist Tete Montoliu, whose sense of swing and jazz improvisation are an indispensable part of the soundtrack of the city where Mir and Caball were born; and finally the brilliant architect Antoni Gaud , who with his amazing and luminous style, fills the streets of his native land with unrepeatable architectural gems. The fact that this extraordinary group of fellow clarinetists decided on recording a CD with works of my own honors me by offering me the opportunity to sing publicly my love for this magical city and my devotion to some of his most beloved children. -Paquito D'Rivera, December 2021

Trumpeter Diego Urcola has proven to be a player of incredible range and dexterity throughout his career, a large part of it playing alongside Paquito D'Rivera in the legendary saxophonist/clarinetist's various eclectic projects. On Urcola's new recording, El Duelo, the trumpeter recruits D'Rivera to join him in a very rare, and exposed, playing scenario, the piano-less quartet. // Originally from Buenos Aires, Argentina, Urcola has been a part of the New York City jazz scene since the 1990s. His work with D'Rivera, Guillermo Klein y Los Guachos, Enrico Pieranunzi, and as a leader has been celebrated by many, even garnering him a Grammy nomination for his album, Soundances. // It was during a regular visit to Uruguay's Punta Del Este Jazz Festival that Urcola was asked to present a musical tribute to the revered Gerry Mulligan Quartet that featured Chet Baker. During the quartet's performance, Urcola invited D'Rivera to the stage, and the idea of recording in a piano-less quartet was cemented by the resounding performance.

2017 release. For all that it has done in the world of jazz, blues and rock, it is easy to forget that the saxophone was originally created as a classical instrument. The horn met difficulties as it tried to integrate into the symphonic world, not truly fitting into the brass or woodwind sections. The saxophone did meet a true champion in Marcel Mule, who became the true champion of classical saxophone and also the first saxophone quartet, Quatuor de la Garde Republicaine. The concept of creating saxophone ensembles for chamber music grew steadily thereafter. In 1943, Cuban saxophonist Tito D'Rivera established his own saxophone chamber group called Conjunto Sinfonico de Saxofones, which debuted at the National Conservatory in Havana. Over 70 years later, D'Rivera's son, and world famous woodwind master, Paquito D'Rivera is proud to present the Vitral Saxophone Quartet and their recording, Kites Over Havana. The terrific Vitral Saxophone Quartet is composed of four Cuban master saxophonists who all now live in the United States: Oscar Gongora on soprano, Roman Filiu on alto and soprano, Alejandro Rios on alto and tenor and Raul Cordies on baritone saxophone. The recording also features a handful of impressive guests, including Yosvany Terry on tenor and shekere, Dr. Paul Cohen on C melody saxophone, Dr. Adonis Gonzalez on piano and Paquito D'Rivera, himself, on clarinet and soprano saxophone. The compositions presented on Kites Over Havana are a mixture of

There have been many instances where a musician specializing in a particular genre has taken a detour to investigate another. Bassist/composer Clovis Nicolas has focused on jazz music since he picked up his instrument, but it was his chance meeting of a classical music mentor at Juilliard that piqued his curiosity in classical composition. Nicolas's new recording, The Contrapuntist, presents his first recorded foray into classical music, which features his new string quartet, along with a fascinating reflection of the piece for jazz quartet. Clovis Nicolas shows the two sides of his music personality on his new recording, The Contrapuntist. There is the jazz honed contrabassist that regularly drives the rhythm sections for some of New York's best bands. But there is also the classically trained composer who focuses on making beautiful written music through voice-leading and counterpoint. These two sides mirror one another fantastically.

Danish drummer/composer Stefan Pasborg grew up in a household of ballet dancers, allowing him to have an intimate relationship with their lifestyle and performances. One of his first formative musical experiences was witnessing a performance of Igor Stravinsky's legendary ballet, The Rite of Spring, by The Danish Royal Ballet. The experience embedded a love for Stravinsky's work that has manifested in Pasborg's new recording, Ritual Dances.

Recording a solo album is perhaps the most daunting feat for any instrumentalist. The time it takes for a musician to hone skills, develop a repertoire and then learn to trust his or her instincts is enough to turn most off from the project. The opportunity provided by the extreme situation of the pandemic allowed bassist Clovis Nicolas to complete this solo album, Autoportrait, an encapsulation of his 2020 spent working on himself and his art. // Nicolas began the project in September 2019 by composing "Four Steps," but paused the operation until he had a casual meeting with his peer and friend, producer Daniel Yvinec, in January 2020, over coffee. After telling Yvinec of his thoughts of recording a solo album, Yvinec reinforced the importance of the project. It became clear to Nicolas that he found the right person to help produce the album and be a sounding board for his ideas as the project unfurled. It was shortly thereafter that the world was stricken by the COVID-19 pandemic. The work for freelance musicians all but disappeared. The saving grace for Nicolas was that he found time. Time to spend on this work he had been obsessing over for years.

The OJOYO sound (Safrojazz) is a fusion of Capetown born Morris Goldberg's South African music heritage, with the American music he learned to love from listening to records. Morris has performed with many American artists, notably Paul Simon, Harry Belafonte and Herbie Hancock; and South African artists including Hugh Masekela, and Jonathan Butler. Several other OJOYO musicians have recorded and toured with Paul Simon, Lori Anderson, and Edie Brickell, while Capetown native Anton Fig appears nightly on the David Letterman show.

The Music of Billy Strayhorn long thought of as a chapter within the Duke Ellington songbook has become recognized as one of the most important bodies of work in 20th century American music. In Strayhorn's short life time the greater part of recorded examples of his masterworks were by the Ellington Orchestra or groups led by players from that revered organization. In the half century since the death of the man affectionately known as Sweet Pea many of his classic compositions have found their way into the mainstream jazz repertory via recordings by some of the genre's greatest players. Ellington's eulogistic 1968 LP And His Mother Called Him Bill brought into sharp focus the breadth of Strayhorn'swork. Now we can add John DiMartino's uniquely personal interpretations to that illustrious list.

DISTANCIA

As the title of Christian Artmann's new CD The Middle of Life suggests, he's no ingenue. The German-born flutist, now based in the San Francisco Bay Area after living for more than 15 years in New York, is a seasoned composer with a small but acclaimed discography that's contributed significantly to keeping the flute in the foreground of the contemporary jazz scene. As for many of us, the experience of the pandemic inspired deep reflection, and with his fourth album (and third for Sunnyside) Artmann takes stock of what matters most. Part of what makes The Middle of Life a strikingly cohesive project is Artmann's choice of ensemble. The album features Hungarian-born pianist Laszlo Gardony (also on Artmann's previous release Our Story), as well as Gardony's longtime collaborators, bassist John Lockwood and drummer Yoron Israel.

When the history of Jazz during the COVID-19 pandemic gets written, Armen Donelian warrants a detailed chapter. Though he composed more than a dozen new pieces through the spring of 2021, the veteran pianist and educator didn't use the downtime to reinvent his repertoire as much as he deepened his pianistic approach and sharpened his ears in the context of a supremely sensitive new trio with bassist Jay Anderson and drummer Dennis Mackrel. The group's unabashedly beautiful debut, Fresh Start, is Donelian's 14th album and his 11th for Sunnyside, the label that has documented the bulk of his work as a leader since the mid-1980s.