“It’s an honor and a blessing to be in this universe with Mr. Smith,” said Vijay Iyer, left, of Wadada Leo Smith, right, at the March 20 release party for their latest duo recording, Defiant Life (ECM).

A recent batch of great jazz from today’s most caliente Latin artists, clockwise from top left: Zaccai Curtis, Salsa de la Bahia, Melfis Santa, Leiba Trio, Duduka Da Fonseca Trio, Hamilton De Holanda & Gonzalo Rubalcaba, Diego Figueiredo and The John Santos Sextet & Friends.

“It sounds together, there’s nothing random, yet hardly anything was said,” saxophonist Ohad Talmor said of Back To The Land.

“This is one of the great gifts that Coltrane gave us — he gave us a key to the cosmos in this recording,” says John McLaughlin.

“I attribute the jazz elements to my upbringing in the Black American classical pedagogy, to my grandparents Kenny and Joanne Barron,” says NIKARA.

Ayers began to play the vibraphone at age 5 after seeing a performance by Lionel Hampton, who gave him a pair of vibraphone mallets.

Green rose to prominence in the 1960s, performing with jazz greats such as Charles Mingus, Sonny Stitt and Elvin Jones.

The decision to stick to just piano and saxophone gives Just Us a flavor unlike any recording Bob James (left) or Dave Koz has ever done.

“While most organists would play with three drawbars out, he would pull the fourth one out, too — a little bit of a brighter sound,” Charette says of Jack McDuff.

Larry Appelbaum with Wayne Shorter in 2012.