Jazz & World — Music in Every Direction

From Grammy and Emmy Award-winning trumpeter, synthesist, and Academy Award-nominated film composer Mark Isham comes At the Carousel Club, a six-track album that brings together jazz improvisation, vintage analog electronics, and cinematic atmosphere into a single, deeply personal statement. The album began with Isham's towering collection of vintage analog synthesizers and modular instruments: a vast, interconnected system he used to generate massive electronic landscapes and evolving sonic textures. Those foundations became the architecture for live ensemble performance, recorded at the legendary Mad Hatter Studios with drummer Vinnie Colaiuta, bassist Kaveh Rastegar, guitarist Nels Cline, vocalist Ayo Awosika, and the Orchid String Quartet. At the center of it all is Isham's trumpet, lyrical, searching, and unmistakably human. Moving through each environment as an observer, a storyteller, and an improviser. The result is music that is electronic but organic, cinematic but intimate, structured yet alive with spontaneity. At the Carousel Club is a record for listeners who find themselves at the intersection of jazz, ambient, and contemporary classical music. For fans of Pat Metheny, Brian Eno, Jon Hassell, and Nils Frahm.

A visit to John Coltrane's home on Long Island, New York, ultimately became far more than a source of inspiration for alto saxophonist Jim Snidero. It catalyzed his continued evolution as both a composer and improviser, yielding deeply personal music while remaining firmly rooted in the tradition that shaped him. The result is an album that honors one of jazz's greatest visionaries while standing confidently as a compelling artistic statement in it's own right. Six originals reflect on various aspects of the home in which Coltrane composed A Love Supreme, with Snidero's choice of collaborators-pianist Stefan Karlsson, bassist Nat Reeves, and drummer Jason Tiemann-proving essential to transforming his vision into a distinctive musical statement.

The Game Changer, Brandon Sanders' latest Savant recording, finds the drummer doing what he does best: setting the pace, creating opportunities, and elevating everyone around him. Joining the ensemble for this outing are Stacy Dillard, with his uniquely exciting saxophone sound, and the imaginative pianist William Hill III, alongside longtime collaborators Warren Wolf and Eric Wheeler. With special guest artists vocalist Briana Swann, who brings "a little grit, a dash of soul, and a whole lot of midnight in her voice," and trumpeter Jeremy Pelt, of whom Nat Hentoff wrote "It is the beat of Pelt's heart... that underscores the future of jazz," Sanders has assembled a band that brings both seasoned authority and youthful energy to a program of originals and carefully chosen favorites. Rooted in the hard-bop tradition, The Game Changer draws on a wide variety of musical genres and influences, which Sanders enhances and expands, reflecting his broad musical vision and his belief that it's all just music.

After more than two decades as a sought-after sideman and collaborator, pianist and composer Andrew Toombs releases his long-awaited debut as a leader with Alloy. Blending jazz, soul, and hip-hop influences, the album features Makaya McCraven on drums, Junius Paul on bass, guest trumpeters Marquis Hill and Maurice Brown, and spoken word by J. Ivy. What emerges on Alloy is not a debut so much as a declaration: the sound of an artist stepping fully into himself.

Jack Wyllie, a composer, multi-instrumentalist, and co-founder of the Mercury Prize nominated Portico Quartet, debuts under his own name. The album radiates hope, mirroring nature's beauty and cyclical rhythms while weaving through contemporary jazz, ambient, classical, and post-rock. Collaborators include Hania Rani and Duncan Bellamy.

After more than two decades as a sought-after sideman and collaborator, pianist and composer Andrew Toombs releases his long-awaited debut as a leader with Alloy. Blending jazz, soul, and hip-hop influences, the album features Makaya McCraven on drums, Junius Paul on bass, guest trumpeters Marquis Hill and Maurice Brown, and spoken word by J. Ivy. What emerges on Alloy is not a debut so much as a declaration: the sound of an artist stepping fully into himself.