By Ed Enright | Published January 2026
Korean pianist Sujae Jung and German bassist Wolf Robert Stratmann, known for their collaborative contemporary jazz recordings and live performances, expand their long-established New York-based duo into a quartet for their latest release with the inclusion of U.S. guitarist Steve Cardenas and Serbian drummer Marko Djordjevic. The result is a highly refined program of five nature-inspired original compositions that flow with intricate collective interplay while tapping the wealth of globe-spanning, genre-transcending musical influences engrained deep within these four exceptional artists, who converge as one unified spirit on this synergetic outing. Tellingly titled Confluence and recorded in front of an audience at the recently opened Second Take Sound Studio in Manhattan, the album has an authentic live record vibe that nicely complements the high-fidelity sound listeners have come to expect from Jung Stratmann projects. The album opens with a graceful, whirling group take on “Tree Huggers,” the title track of Jung and Stratmann’s recently released duo EP. “Summer Whale,” a sun-warmed, wave-riding composition in 5/4, is an older piece by the duo that makes its recording debut in this deep-water quartet setting. No strangers to the ebb-and-flow of rubato playing, Jung and Stratmann gently lead the way on an ethereal approach to the beautifully melancholic ballad “This Wine Tastes Very Dry.” A major highlight of Confluence is “The Pull,” a bright and joyful track with catchy melodic lines riding on mesmerizing ostinato bass patterns. A trio performance of Jung’s dreamlike “After Sunset,” another rubato ballad whose transcendent harmonies have the power to hold listeners rapt in reflection, cools convictions and elicits feelings of an enveloping dusk as the program draws to its natural conclusion.
