Spring 2022

Preludes:

• Percussionist-composer Adam Rudolph recently released a new album titled Resonant Bodies (Meta) with his Go: Organic Guitar Orchestra, which comprises a slew of remarkable guitarists: Nels Cline, Liberty Ellman and Joel Harrison among others. Examining the sonic possibilities of nine guitarists utilizing various effects pedals, Rudolph attempts to expand the sounds of typical guitar ensembles as well as the typical hierarchies of orchestral music. By Shaun Brady
• Trumpeter Wadada Leo Smith adds to his long discography of duo recordings with his new four-disc box set, Emerald Duets (TUM), in which he duets with a remarkable slate of adventurous drummers: Pheeroan akLaff, Han Bennink, Andrew Cyrille and Jack DeJohnette. By Neil Tesser
• Paul Motian was a truly one-of-a-kind artist. His drumming and compositions are hallmarks of the modern-jazz era, and he was a quirky character who, in his later years, rarely left New York City. Director Michael Patrick Kelly talks about his new documentary, Motian in Motion, which chronicles a most unusual voice in the jazz world with a remarkable history. By Bob Weinberg

Features:

• Drummer Jorge Rossy returns with a new trio album, Puerta (ECM), on which he plays vibes and marimba in the company of bassist Robert Landerfmann and drummer Jeff Ballard. It’s Rossy’s debut on ECM, and showcases a new direction for the Spanish drummer, who became interested in vibes about a decade ago and finally had the confidence to record on it as his primary instrument. By Ted Panken
• Jazz and fusion vet Mike Clark, 75, discusses working with Herbie Hancock, as well as new projects with saxophonist Mike Zilber and bassist Leon Lee Dorsey. By John Frederick Moore
• Marcus Gilmore is a drummer of remarkable scope. He’s played with the diverse likes of Steve Coleman, Gonzalo Rubalcaba, Vijay Iyer and Robert Glasper, as well as with Robert Glasper and Brandee Younger, and more recently, recorded with the Le Coq Allstars and John Patitucci and Andy James. As the grandson of jazz drum legend Roy Haynes, who gifted him his first drum set at age 10, he comes by it honestly. By Ted Panken
• Essential recordings by jazz drummers. By Brian Zimmerman

Columns:

• Louis Hayes is a hard-bop veteran whose résumé reads like a dream jukebox: Horace Silver, Cannoball Adderley, John Coltrane and Freddie Hubbard, among many others. His latest album, Crisis (Savant), takes its title from Hubbard’s composition of the same name, and features tunes from other Hayes associates such as Lee Morgan, Bobby Hutcherson and Joe Farrell, as well as originals by the drummer and bandmates Steve Nelson and Dezron Douglas. At age 84, he continues to stay busy, with dates at January’s WInter Festival in NYC, and at Scullers in Boston. By Bob Weinberg
• Makaya McCraven injects modern grooves into vintage Blue Note label fare with his recent remix album Deciphering the Message (Blue Note). Past and present converge as the drummer receives contributions from Joel Ross, Marquis Hill, Jeff Parker and Greg Ward, among other, for reworkings of vault classics by the likes of Art Blakey, Horace Silver and Hank Mobley. By Jonathan Widran
• Blu Notes: Billy Hart discusses his rich and varied career, including his recent recordings and performances with the all-star Cookers. By Larry Blumenfeld
• Lead Audition: Tomas Fujiwara has been the go-to drummer for adventurous musicians such as Mary Halvorson and Anthony Braxton, and also is a leader of his own equally boundary-pushing ensembles. His new recording, March (Firehouse 4), features mirrored groups under the Triple Double banner, which encompasses drummers Fujiwara and Gerald Cleaver; guitarists Halvorson and Brandon Seabrook; and cornetists Taylor Ho Bynum and Ralph Alessi. The album, which is being released on March 4, explores various themes and meanings of the word “March,” not just related to protests, but also to the two-year anniversary of the COVID lockdown.
• Coda: Pianist Russ Lossing worked with Paul Motian for years, allowing the non-music-reading drummer to hear and notate the music in his head. By Russ Lossing