Interviews

Natural Rhythm (Posi-Tone, 2025) is the seventh album by composer and trombonist Altin Sencalar. The album features unorthodox takes on jazz standards through Latin interpretations. Originals combine unusual instrumentation with different styles, ranging from Mexican Corrido and Mariachi to Puerto Rican influence, clave in 7/4, Afro-Cuban 6/8, and more, all with an emphasis on dance.   Natural… Read more: Review: Altin Sencalar’s ‘Natural Rhythm’

Despite the instrument‘s long history in improvised music, the clarinet is often still an outlier instrument in contemporary jazz. Yet, clarinetist Harry Skoler will surprise you with his well-conceived Echoes, the inaugural release on his Red Brick Hill label (2026). The album’s CD jacket is a treasure in itself as Skoler recounts stories and remembrances… Read more: Review: Harry Skoler’s ‘Echoes’

Jean-Michel Basquiat once noted that “Art is how we decorate space, music is how we decorate time.” But such a sentiment oversimplifies the power of music. Instead, some of the greatest works transport you to another place. They force you to leave behind your surroundings and find yourself lost in a new terrain. Has anyone… Read more: Between Beauty and Horror: A Conversation with David Torn

The chordless trio, and especially the saxophone trio, continues to thrive in increasingly adventurous ways. New Jazz Underground (“NJU”), a viral internet sensation of saxophonist/vocalist Abdias Armenteros, bassist Sebastian Rios, and drummer T.J. Reddick, has successfully tapped into a new, younger audience, attuned to the internet and YouTube. The three united during the COVID-19 pandemic… Read more: Review: New Jazz Underground’s ‘Hoodies’

Few figures have shaped the course of modern music as much as Miles Dewey Davis III. His chameleonic career can be seen as a throughline of innovation. In the half-century that was geopolitically known as the Cold War, there is hardly a sub-genre of jazz not radically reshaped by Davis. Bop, cool, third stream, hard… Read more: Remembering Miles Davis at 100: A Conversation with Marcus Miller