May 26, 2026 11:08 AM
Sonny Rollins Passes Away at 95
Sonny Rollins, the iconic saxophonist, composer and improviser whose career stretched from the origins of bebop to 21st…
Everything about pianist Ben Markley’s new large ensemble project feels classic.
(Photo: Courtesy Ben Markley)A recent caller to my radio show expressed surprise that big band was music still being made in 2026. Not only is it still being made; there is both a reverence for the swing of yesteryear and thoughtful and inventive departures on display in a spate of recent large ensemble releases.
Pianist Ben Markley’s Tuesday Morning Feeling (Origin; ★★★½ 77:51) is an excellent case in point. Everything about this project feels classic. The blues inflection of the rhythm section. The vibrancy of the horn section. Fans of this sound will see it applied to Markley’s interpretations and arrangements of Thelonious Monk’s “Off Minor” and the standard “Old Folks.” On the latter, trumpeter Terell Stafford offers one of the brightest moments of the record. It is an album stock full of veterans of the large ensemble space seizing the opportunity: trombonist Steve Davis on Markley’s “Snowy Range Blues” and Steve Nelson on that tune and another original, “Tell The Truth.” As a zoomer would say, the classic sound still gives.
Ordering info: originarts.com
Since its premiere performance in 2022, Julia Keefe’s Indigenous Band has been helping us reconceive the notion of jazz as America’s only indigenous art form. Comprising performers that are all descendants of the original custodians of this land, they debut with Incarnadine (Independent Release; ★★★½ 46:01). The title of the work means “to redden.” This reddening is a frame for rethinking not only jazz, but what it means to live and be in a place where this music happened. The tunes tell broad stories of that being, with plenty of space to be taken in by Keefe’s vocals. Sharing the composing responsibilities with other ensemble members, Keefe’s leading evinces a kind of unity with each story showing the interconnectedness of us all.
Ordering info: juliakeefe.com
Another take on indigeneity comes from trombonist Javier Nero and his Jazz Orchestra’s Alkebulan (Outside In; ★★★★ 64:37), titled after an ancient name for the continent of Africa. This record exudes the primal affect of the big band idiom even as it expresses the stylistic range of modern jazz orchestra. Layered between selections of original compositions are gorgeous arrangements of standards “Softly, As In A Morning Sunrise” and “Devil May Care,” which may have worked as the album’s peak if there were not multiple peaks, like the guest appearances from trumpeter Sean Jones and vibraphonist Warren Wolf that happen early on. Nero produces a crisply delivered program that allows the listener to settle in and explore the possibilities of the orchestra form. And while it does not approach experimental territories, the ornate texture of each arrangement works as its own kind of experimentation.
Ordering info: outsideinmusic.com
Olivia Murphy’s Fateful Birds And Fledging Stories (Independent Release; ★★★★½ 56:35) marks the arrival of band that operates in an experimental register. The U.K.-based conductor’s debut is conceived as a narrative vehicle inspired by the behavior of birds as observed in literary and artistic modes. The music is itself reminiscent of flight and movement. The vocal arrangements place pressure and tension in just the right spaces. As vehicles for improvisation, Murphy’s compositions are warm environments for solemn and sonic atmospheres that never dissipate. Each soloist resonates inside the narrative thrust that privileges what we might learn from those beings who populate the sky. One does not need the titles of each composition to gauge the value of transformation and growth and how beautiful it can be to observe such things.
Ordering info: oliviamurphy.bandcamp.com
If nothing else, Arakatak (V2; ★★★ 56:21) is a documentation of the paths tread by Metropole Orkest over the last several decades. Now under the leadership of Jules Buckley, the organization, which dubs itself a pop and jazz orchestra, has a definitive sound that has lent itself to powerful collaborations with leading figures in the music world. That sound may not be the most adventurous, but neither is it cocooned in the register of the average symphony orchestra. To celebrate its 80th anniversary, permanent guest conductor Miho Hazama leads the orchestra’s interpretation of the music of eight composers, including works by Tineke Postma and Donny McCaslin. Highlights are Hazama’s own “Splash The Colors” and another rendition of KNOWER’s Louis Cole’s “Doesn’t Matter,” previously released on their collaborative project, nothing. It is orchestral fare for listeners in search for groove, space and spirit. DB
Ordering info: mo.nl
Onstage, Rollins would move about restlessly, thrusting his tenor sax in the air as he blew.
May 26, 2026 11:08 AM
Sonny Rollins, the iconic saxophonist, composer and improviser whose career stretched from the origins of bebop to 21st…
To the world, James Blood Ulmer was a legend, a visionary and a musical force whose sound was distinctive and unique. To his family, he was their teacher, their storyteller and a source of strength.
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With deep sorrow and profound love, we announce the passing of James Blood Ulmer, a boldly innovative guitarist,…
How best to mark Miles Davis’ centennial? By allowing the stories to flow, and cross-discussions to happen.
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Editor’s Note: The iconic trumpeter, composer and bandleader Miles Davis would have turned 100 today (May 26, 2026).…
Dave King (left) and Reid Anderson offer insights into why The Bad Plus’ chemistry was cool, the accomplishments many and its longevity so fruitful.
May 12, 2026 11:42 AM
The scene still sticks with me. I had heard the oddball name of this new group being dropped around town, and…
Ava Preston, a 12-time DownBeat Student Music Award winner, is currently pursuing her master’s degree in jazz voice at Juilliard.
May 12, 2026 10:00 AM
Ava Preston, from Cleveland, Ohio, was named the winner of the ninth annual Ella Fitzgerald Jazz Vocal Competition on…
