This Is What ECM Sounds Like in 2018

  I  
Image

Pianist Keith Jarrett—along with bassist Gary Peacock and drummer Jack DeJohnette—released After The Fall (ECM) in March.

(Photo: Rose Anne Jarrett)

As ECM Records wades deeper into its 49th year, the German imprint has maintained a stunning persistence of vision—in both the types of jazz projects it produces and the visual aesthetic that’s become its trademark.

But it’s tough keep up with the label’s torrent of releases, so DownBeat has put together a helpful guide to some of ECM’s recent recordings. Dig in. DB



  • Sheila_Jordan_by_Mark_Sheldon_copy.jpeg

    Jordan was a dyed-in-the-wool bebopper whose formative musical experiences were with Charlie Parker.

  • DownBeat_palmieri.jpg

    “I don’t guess I’m going to excite you; I know I’m going to excite you,” Palmieri said in an August 1994 DownBeat feature.

  • Buster_Williams_by_Jimmy_Katz_copy.jpg

    “What I got from Percy was the dignity of playing the bass,” Buster Williams said of Percy Heath.

  • 02_Ryan_Truesdell_%28studio%2C_conducting%29%2C_photo_by_TODD_CHALFANT_lo_res.jpg

    ​“I love the place that fate or whatever has positioned me in Gil Evans’ life and legacy,” said Ryan Truesdell.

  • Don_and_Maureen_Sickler_by_Richard_Halterman_copy_2.jpg

    Don and Maureen Sickler serve as the keepers of engineer Rudy Van Gelder’s flame at Van Gelder Studio, perhaps the most famous recording studio in jazz history.