Jazz & Improvisation / All styles

Lou Donaldson had been a Blue Note stalwart since his earliest recordings in 1952 and over the following 15 years produced numerous classic dates spanning bebop, hard bop, and soul jazz. But when the alto saxophonist hooked up with the funky drummer Leo Morris (aka Idris Muhammad) for 1967’s Alligator Bogaloo it began a run of great groove-oriented albums including Mr. Shing-A-Ling, Midnight Creeper, and 1968’s Say It Loud. Filling out the band were Donaldson’s fellow Blue Note labelmate trumpet…

2025 stock B.F.A.M. (Brothers From Another Mother) was founded by drummer Spyros Panagiotopoulos. The band consists of Philippos Pappas on tenor saxophone, Panagiotis Kapsabeli on guitar, Rafael Meleta on piano, Pericles Trivolis on bass, Spyros Panagiotopoulos on drums and Dimitris Papadopoulos on trumpet.

2025 stock “Diary of Dreams” began as a journal of musical ideas. Like dreams that are forgotten soon after we wake up, that’s how I felt my melodies, like memories from dreams that I didn’t want to be forgotten. My wish, was to be moved by the musical outcome which in turn I hoped to move the musicians and ultimately you, the listeners! - Stavros Lantias

2025 stock The Sonny Clark Project is a jazz ensemble dedicated to interpreting and celebrating the works of the renowned American hard bop pianist and composer, Sonny Clark. The project aims to honor Clark's legacy by performing his compositions and bringing his music to contemporary audiences.Sonny Clark, born in 1931, was a significant figure in the hard bop movement of the 1950s and 1960s. He collaborated with notable artists such as John Coltrane, Art Farmer, and Grant Green, contributing t…

The George Kontrafouris Trio, led by Greek jazz pianist George Kontrafouris, features Dinos Manos on double bass and Thanos Hatzianagnostou on drums. Known for their dynamic interpretations and contributions to the jazz scene, they have collaborated with French chromatic harmonica player Laurent Maur, celebrated for his mastery and improvisational skills. Their collaborative album, "Vin Doux," released in 2023, showcases a blend of mainstream jazz with unique harmonic and rhythmic explorations. …

Colorblind…having a decreased ability to see color or differences in color. But…what if colorblind-ness becomes an intention? A conscious choice to not pin a colored distinction on ideas, people, music or life-philosophies? A clean palette of initial curiosity and acceptance, rather than a rigidity of prejudging (prejudice) and labeling. Why pretend to know before witnessing, before engaging, before allowing perception to focus?Doesn’t life ask us to enter, without tinting the supreme arts of kn…

Across eight tracks that combine music from acoustic instruments with electronic and processed sounds, one of Athens' most prolific jazz figures, Mihalis Kalkanis, sketches a new European sound with melodic motifs that sometimes "touch" the West and others leave a Greek and Balkan scent. The resulting album "Emotions" was recorded live at the Megaron Music Hall and it is the first recorded documentation of Mihalis Kalkanis Group. "Emotions" is a landmark of the three year journey of the group, a…

Georgios Tsolis is a greek jazz pianist, arranger, and composer that was born and raised in the island of Kefalonia western Greece, currently living in the Hague the Netherlands. He is an active jazz performer since 2005 both in the Greek and Dutch jazz scene. He studied at the royal conservatory of the Hague and he holds a bachelors and masters diploma in jazz piano performance. He is mainly performing with small groups and most of his personal work refers to jazz piano trios. As a bandleader, …

The album features a collection of jazz compositions that blend traditional Greek musical elements with contemporary jazz influences, reflecting Trantalidis's rich musical heritage and innovative approach. "Looking Back" marks Trantalidis's return to discography after a 20-year hiatus since his previous album "am:pm," showcasing his enduring influence on the Greek jazz scene. George Trantalidis is a prominent figure in Greek jazz, known for his work with the band Sphinx and his contributions to …

The concept for this album was born during a rehearsal with my friends and musical partners, Alex and Kimon, as we explored the themes of composition, performance, and creativity in Greece. Through our discussions, I realized that “Conversation Helps.” Thank you both for your incredible musicianship, interaction, and support. This album wouldn’t have been possible without you. A special thank you to Theodore Bafaloukas and Dimitris Fytas for helping me bring this album to life. Special thanks to…

2010 release ** "Firehouse 12 Records welcomes esteemed pianist/composer Myra Melford to its roster with the release of The Whole Tree Gone (FH12-04-01-012), her first recording as a bandleader since 2006. Recorded in the label's own state-of-the-art studio, this is Ms. Melford's second release featuring her eclectic ensemble, Be Bread, a longstanding collection of frequent collaborators that currently performs as an all-acoustic sextet. The Whole Tree Gone documents the latest evolution of eigh…

It was a magical Autumn day in Vilnius - Mr. Howard Riley was giving his rare solo performance at St. Catherine’s Church.The outcome is this two LP set of deep musical contemplation, freedom and lyricism. After the concert Howard Riley said that this was his best solo performance in many years.

Edition of 300. Featuring Alexander von Schlippenbach and Aki Takase both on piano, recorded at Cafe Amores in Yamaguchi. Japan in August of 1995. Although Ms. Takase and Mr. Schlippenbach have been married for many years (she moved to Berlin in 1987), it seems as if their music collaborations began in the early 1990’s. There are some half dozen or so discs of duos (1993, ’94 & 2014), a trio/quartet (from 2005), the Berlin Contemporary Jazz Orchestra (BCJO) (1993 & 1996), collaborations with Sve…

This is the first recording of Szilard Mezei released on LP. Synthesis of free jazz with some elements of folk music makes it an intrigue and challenging recording."Februári Fadöntés documents a fairly rare appearance on wax of Serbian-Hungarian violist / composer Szilárd Mezei, who's worked in formats ranging from string trio to orchestra, mostly in situations that allow a commingling of Hungarian folk forms (he also plays traditional music) and free improvisation. He's joined here on three sui…

Edition of 300 copies. Brand new album for the trio comprised of Larry Ochs (tenor and sopranino saxophones), Mark Dresser (bass) and Vladimir Tarasov (drums and percussion)

*2025 stock* Beauty No Beauty is the debut of Andreas Wildhagen’s Spiralis quartet. The lineup features Kasper Værnes on alto and soprano saxophones, Anja Lauvdal on piano and synth, Adrian Myhr on bass and Andreas Wildhagen on drums and compositions. All have collaborated with Andreas in earlier projects, but this constellation is new and some of the members had never worked together prior to the recording, which was made shortly after a few days of rehearsals while everything was still fresh. …

Tip! *2025 stock* Segaki is the second album of the Norwegian-Malaysian trio Hungry Ghosts, consisting of Malaysian tenor saxophonist Yong Yandsen accompanied by the Norwegian powerhouse duo of Christian Meaas Svendsen on double bass and Paal Nilssen-Love on drums. Their debut record has been described as an album with an «unstoppable energy» and like actual hungry ghosts — the unfortunate souls who are reborn as pitiful creatures into their own miserable realm, punished for their mortal vices —…

Tip! *2025 stock* During three days in June 2021, reed players Klaus Ellerhusen Holm and Andreas Røysum recorded in three different locations in Trondheim: Vår Frues Church, Øra Studios and Bymarka. This was done in close collaboration with sound wizard Kyrre Laastad. The general idea for the record was to present the same material in three completely different acoustic settings. The music explores phenomena such as acoustic space, sound in motion and the perception of depth and dimensions in so…

*2025 stock. 300 copies limited edition* Motvind Records continues to collaborate with musician and composer Signe Emmeluth in an attempt to present art music that emphasizes deep listening, reflection and expressive emotions. Vossajazz is a really cool jazz festival, it has a rich program history and are still holding the line. They’ve commissioned many works from composing jazz musicians, and one of the more unpredictable and surprising pieces that has come in recent years was Banshee by the a…

*2025 stock. 200 copies limited edition* Joel and the Neverending Sextet, led by cellist Joel Ring and consisting of a cohesive group of musicians from Sweden and Norway, takes the listeners on a musical journey through the borderlands of avant-garde jazz. Following their critically acclaimed debut album "Pouring Textures" (2021), the sextet is now releasing their second album, "Marbled," on Motvind Records. The title Marbled evokes associations with flowing structures. Listening to the album, w…

*2025 stock* ‘Name of the Wind’ is Erlend's second album as a bandleader and composer (his debut album, ‘A Glass Door,’ was released in 2018). It presents a new musical direction, featuring electro-acoustic landscapes with sounds, rhythms, and instruments from traditional music in Norway, North India and Morocco on the horizon. The group moves from scenery to scenery so quickly that one wonders if their bandwagon might be a time machine. As they approach you, remember that although they insist, …

As a follow-up to the critically acclaimed debut 'Name of the Wind' from last year, the multi-instrumental ensemble Basspace is now releasing its second album, 'When Light'. Releasing on May 16th, 'When Light' is a compilation of recordings from a chapel, a community house and a church during a tour on the east side of Oslo in October 2023, and the music is based around compositions by Erlend, ranging from jazz to modern chamber music to Norwegian folk. 'Into' reports from the jazz-campfire, whe…

*2025 stock* Chet Baker's voice and trumpet defined cool jazz. How do his stories read in our own mother tongue? Since 2010, Baker Hansen has endeavoured to answer this question in language and interaction, based on the music that Chet Baker played. The songs are timeless and well-known, but the lyrics have been thoroughly and skilfully rendered into dialect by singer Sigurd Rotvik Tunestveit from Ål in Hallingdal. When "The night we called it a day" becomes "Midnight sun" and Columbus and Ediso…

"The complicated rhythm patterns and diverse sonic textures on Olé Coltrane are evidence that John Coltrane was once again charting his own course. His sheer ability as a maverick -- beyond his appreciable musical skills -- guides works such as this to new levels, ultimately advancing the entire art form." - Lindsay Planer

Chihei Hatakeyama, who has become a leading figure in the ambient/drone music scene in Japan, has now announced his second collaboration with jazz drummer Shun Ishiwaka. The two had been sharing the stage together in live performances since meeting on a radio show recording, and in May 2024 they released the first of a two-part series, "Magnificent Little Dudes Vol.1", and this is the second installment.This album includes the album's opening track, “M3,” featuring award-winning British cellist …

2010 release ** "This project originates from a pleasurable Roman afternoon spent by yours truly with Hubert Bergmann, who – having known that this writer’s spouse is, in essence, an atypical songwriting specimen – thought that some experimentation using her vocalism would have constituted an intriguing attempt to do something singular. Files of Bergmann’s duets with Udo Schindler were emailed, and in a matter of several months Yellerwood recorded and “assembled” a number of parts, adapting them…

2004 release ** "Founded by Village Voice icon Greg Tate and co-led with Dayton Ohio monster bassist Jared Michael Nickerson since 1999, Burnt Sugar the Arkestra Chamber is a sprawling band of musicians whose prodigious personnel allows them to freely juggle a wide swath of the experimental soul-jazz-hip hop spectrum. Burnt Sugar was originally conceived as a forum for the New York area improvisational musician to compose, record and perform material which reflects the breadth and depth of Ameri…

2005 release ** "Founded by Village Voice icon Greg Tate and co-led with Dayton Ohio monster bassist Jared Michael Nickerson since 1999, Burnt Sugar the Arkestra Chamber is a sprawling band of musicians whose prodigious personnel allows them to freely juggle a wide swath of the experimental soul-jazz-hip hop spectrum. Burnt Sugar was originally conceived as a forum for the New York area improvisational musician to compose, record and perform material which reflects the breadth and depth of Ameri…

1998 release (RARE) ** "This is a wonderful release capturing a live duo performance of percussionist Susie Ibarra and her mentor Denis Charles, who was active in free jazz from the time of recording on Cecil Taylor's earliest albums until his death just two months after this concert. Warm, intuitive, and often lovely, the music created by the two percussionists this day is worth sitting down and getting hypnotized by for awhile; a touching document of Charles and his legacy."

Biggest Tip! 180 gram Vinyl Edition. Gatefold Cover. Recorded at A & R Studios in New York City on July 1, 1970, Pharoah Sanders' album Deaf Dumb Blind (in Arabic "Summun Bumun Umyun" was released on Impulse! Records that same year. It features the leader along with fellow stars Woody Shaw, Gary Bartz and Lonnie Liston Smith. The album received a **** rating on AllMusic, with reviewer Thom Jurek staring that this is a stunningly beautiful and contemplative work that showcases how intrinsic melod…

2009 release ** "The Foot Job Band is a tough one to pin down, hard to label, and not easily put in box. You can’t tie up with a pretty red bow to be given as a present, even though producer/director Esmerelda Ronchi would love to receive such a risque gift! The ensemble, a true sextet in all senses of the word, take the listener through 14 tracks of lusty improvisation, deep composition and sensual spoken word. Some of the highlights: The drama kicks off on the the fiery 70’s tinged “Arpeggi” w…

Incredible vinyl release of a previously unreleased  live recording of a Belgian concert by the Freddie Hubbard Quintet in 1973. It was recorded by Belgian radio & television broadcasting service (BRT) and is now remastered. It is a sweet electric set recorded right in the middle of his classic years for CTI – and with a sound that's maybe even more sublime than his work for that legendary label! The group here is a hip quintet – with Junior Cook on tenor, and George Cables on some especially gr…

Black vinyl Cape Town, South Africa-based drummer Asher Gamedze explores relationships of time between music and history on his new album Turbulence and Pulse, out May 5th 2023. Gamedze’s critically-acclaimed debut album Dialectic Soul was released at the height of the Covid-19 pandemic in July 2020. Around the release of that record, with friend and writer Teju Adeleye he organized and participated in a joint online discussion “Poesis,” with historian Robin D.G. Kelley and others. One of the no…

Even in the wildly eclectic ICP catalog, this 66th release stands out. Absent are the ‘3 T’s’ (Tristan Honsinger, Tobias Delius, Thomas Heberer); instead, you get familiar guests (Joris Roelofs and Terrie Ex) and the musical direction of ICP co-founder Han Bennink. And then there is the setting: Le Brocope, a gallery, music venue, caférestaurant situated in a tiny village in Holland’s far North. An inspiring location that takes up a central role on Komen & Gaan. The ensemble begins by airing out…

Dutch drummer Han Bennink, who turns 75 next month, has been an unrelenting creative force in jazz and improvised music since the early 60s. In 1964 he played on Eric Dolphy's legendary final record, Last Date, and in '67 he formed the Instant Composers Pool with pianist Misha Mengelberg (who died two weeks ago) and reedist Willem Breuker. He has an instantly recognizable sound—loud, chaotic, furiously swinging—and he's applied it to hundreds of records. He's all about improvisation, so leading …

Instant Composers Pool presents Goede Reis !. All music composed by Oscar Jan Hoogland and Han Bennink except Hornin’ In, Epistrophy and Ugly Beauty by Thelonious Monk, Peer’s Counting Song by Misha Mengelberg, Aanhanghuis by Oscar Jan Hoogland, Rhythm Three by Cor Fuhler and Fleruette Africaine by Duke Ellington.  Recorded & Mixed by Marc Schots at Bimhuis, Amsterdam August 13th 2020. Artwork by Han Bennink. Photo artwork by Pieter Boersma. Graphic Design by Emma Fischer.

"The road to this collaboration starts at the 1985 Holland Festival, when Hoketus—the flinty post-rock new-music ensemble founded by Louis Andriessen—premiered Rokus de Veldmuis (Rokus the Fieldmouse) by Misha Mengelberg (1935–2017). As Hoketus pianist Gerard Bouwhuis recalls, it generated some minor grumbling within the band; the chipper first movement appeared to mock Hoketus’s hard-edged seriousness. But the second half—“Een hutje van gras” (A Little Grass Hut)—was a wow: a hurtling triple ca…

Dutch drummer Han Bennink, who turns 75 next month, has been an unrelenting creative force in jazz and improvised music since the early 60s. In 1964 he played on Eric Dolphy's legendary final record, Last Date, and in '67 he formed the Instant Composers Pool with pianist Misha Mengelberg (who died two weeks ago) and reedist Willem Breuker. He has an instantly recognizable sound—loud, chaotic, furiously swinging—and he's applied it to hundreds of records. He's all about improvisation, so leading …

Instant Composers Pool presents Restless In Pieces, a studio session performed by ICP Orchestra. Recorded October 21 & 22, 2015 by Kasper Frenkel, Electric Monkey Studio, Amsterdam. Mixed and Mastered February 9th, 2016 by Micha de Kanter, Mideka Music, the Hague. Ab Baars clarinet, saxophones; Michael Moore clarinet, saxophones; Tobias Delius clarinet, tenor saxophone; Thomas Heberer cornet, trumpet; Wolter Wierbos trombone; Mary Oliver violin, viola; Tristan Honsinger cello, vocals; Ernst Gler…

Instant Composers Pool presents Mij Een Biet ! a live session performed by Guus Janssen on piano and Han Bennink on drums. Live recording by Marc Schots at the Beauforthuis, Austerlitz (NL) on September 5th, 2020.  Mixed by Marc Schots. Artwork by Han Bennink. Photo artwork by Pieter Boersma. Graphic design by Emma Fischer.