The first collaboration between pianist Matthew Putman and drummer Francisco Mela, joined by bassist Hilliard Greene, in a trio whose remarkable chemistry balances lyrical melodies with adventurous free jazz, experimental energy, their performance radiating both spiritual intensity and the creative synergy of long-standing artistic bonds.

The first collaboration between pianist Matthew Putman and drummer Francisco Mela, joined by bassist Hilliard Greene, in a trio whose remarkable chemistry balances lyrical melodies with adventurous free jazz, experimental energy, their performance radiating both spiritual intensity and the creative synergy of long-standing artistic bonds.

Created for the Festival of New Trumpet Music, Dave Douglas leads a sextet with a trio of trumpeters — Douglas, Alexandra Ridout & Dave Adewumi — plus Patricia Brennan on vibes, Kate Pass on bass, and Rudy Royston on drums, their collaboration unfolding from Douglas' lyrical compositions that highlight the breadth of brass voices, collective interplay, and vibrant ensemble synergy.

The first meeting as a trio between Jaap Blonk on voice, Damon Smith on bass, and Michael Zerang on percussion, captured live in Chicago and continuing the Kontrans Improvisors series, bringing together three longstanding collaborators in new formation for an inventive and uncompromising set of free improvisation that highlights their commanding spontaneity and creative rapport.

The legendary trio Joseph Holbrooke — guitarist Derek Bailey, bassist Gavin Bryars, and drummer Tony Oxley — reunited after decades for one final performance in 2001, captured in this historic live recording that highlights their uncompromising commitment to free improvisation, the set resonating with both the radical spirit of their 1960s origins and the profound artistry of three pioneering voices in avant-garde music.

Harpist and composer Zeena Parkins, a defining voice in the Downtown NY experimental music scene for four decades, presents an extended work inspired by fearless Beat-era visual artist Jay DeFeo, performed with percussionist William Winant on an array of resonant bells and gongs, their collaboration weaving bold textures and hypnotic patterns into a richly expressive and deeply imaginative sound world.

Performing two Bill Dixon works alongside pieces by pianist Alexander Hawkins, Hawkins and cornetist Taylor Ho Bynum unite in a deeply intuitive duo recorded live in New Haven, their spacious and lyrical exchange balancing improvisational freedom with structural grace as two distinct voices attuned to form, texture, and expressive subtlety.

Guitarist Oren Ambarchi, bassist Johan Berthling, and drummer Andreas Werliin return for their third ghost, expanding their collective language with looser and more immediate performances, their intricate focus and rhythmic precision balanced by playful excursions through ambient neo-jazz, post-kraut, minimal funk, and prog-like energy through an ever-evolving sonic architecture.

Recorded at Hackney Road Studios in London, vocalist, composer, and movement artist Elaine Mitchener presents her first solo LP, drawing on the works of African-American and African-Caribbean poets Edward Kamau Brathwaite, Aimé Césaire, Una Marson, and N.H. Pritchard, creating twelve vocal compositions that disrupt semantic sense through phonetic freedom, silence, and multiphonics.

Meeting for the first time at Café OTO in 2024, soprano saxophonist Evan Parker and guitarist Bill Nace on electric taishogoto create an extraordinary improvised duo, Parker's circular-breathed torrents entwining with Nace's drone-soaked dynamism, from raw intensity to transcendent stillness in a performance of unbounded spirit, deep resonance, and ecstatic liberation.

The fifth collaboration between composer-performers Eiko Ishibashi and Jim O'Rourke, reshaping material from their 2023 European tour into a vivid electroacoustic dialogue, layering live improvisations, acoustic fragments, and evolving digital textures into a kaleidoscopic sound world of subtle juxtapositions and fluid, unpredictable structures of color, resonance, and playfully reimagined form.

An extraordinary 1996 Mixtery Studio encounter between pianist Borah Bergman, Anthony Braxton on a wide range of reeds, and Peter Brötzmann on saxophones, clarinet, and tárogató, balancing ferocious torrents of free jazz interplay with moments of surprising lyricism and abstraction, as three titans of improvisation push their individual voices into a thrilling collective dialogue.

The tenth duo recording from pianist Satoko Fujii and trumpeter Natsuki Tamura presents eight compositions of slow, lyrical beauty-seven by Tamura and one by Fujii-crafted with exquisite restraint and intimacy, as the long-time collaborators sustain a dignified atmosphere of quiet intensity and emotional depth, shaping silence and subtle detail into music of profound elegance.

Seminal figures in the evolution of free or nonidiomatic improvisation, guitarist Derek Bailey and percussionist/pocket trumpeter John Stevens are heard in a 1989 London performance vividly captured by Michael Gerzon at The Duke of Wellington, their restless and enthusiastic interplay shifting from angular invention to lyrical reflection in a compelling document of their remarkable rapport.

The trio of Rachel Musson on tenor saxophone, Pat Thomas on piano, and Mark Sanders on drums perform as Shifa, their 46-minute improvisation moving through fiery intensity and spacious reflection in a cohesive journey shaped by deep trust, attentive listening, and fearless exploration, captured live at London's Café Oto in 2023.

Breaking away from their acoustic trio Bleyschool, the long-standing partnership of Pat Thomas, Dominic Lash, and Tony Orrell reconfigure as Lifeline, trading piano, bass, and drums for keyboards, electroacoustic percussion, and electric guitar in a spontaneous studio performance that channels noise, dance, and rock energy into electrified free improv brimming with risk, tension, and surprise.

The formidable trio of Larry Stabbins (saxophones, flute), Keith Tippett (piano, voice), and Louis Moholo-Moholo (drums, voice, bass) ignite with ferocious intensity and explosive interplay, unleashing torrents of fiery improvisation that surge with wit, lyricism, and raw power, captured live in Foggia, Italy in 1985 when each was at the peak of their artistry.

A purely electric album by Yoshio Machida recorded in 2023, made entirely with the EMS Synthi AKS; with its patch-matrix routing, built-in 256-step sequencer, spring reverb, three oscillators and analog coloration, Machida improvises tempo and phrasing as if in conversation with a string quartet, layering organic, nostalgic, chamber-like textures entirely without outboard gear.

A collection of Yoshio Machida's soundtracks for NHK documentaries on artists Shinro Ohtake, Junichiro Tanizaki, and Maruyama Okyo recorded between 2020 and 2023, presenting a wide stylistic range from acoustic chamber works and dreamy piano reverberations to glitch electronics, steel pan melodies, funk beats, and jazz, highlighting Machida's versatility as composer and performer.

An evocative solo album from Yoshio Machida, who performs and overdubs steelpan, piano, bass, drums, and electronics in serene, poetic soundscapes where the transparent timbre of steelpan and keys weave ambient textures of nostalgic beauty, influenced by Buddhist notions of emptiness and form, recalling the refined aesthetics of ECM while creating a deeply personal aural refuge.

Spanning a decade of collaborations, this double LP and CD set presents Phillip Schulze's electro-acoustic responsive instrument in dialogue with Anthony Braxton, Christian Jendreiko, Andrew Raffo Dewar, and Detlef Weinrich, each duo exploring transidiomatic communication through improvisations that merge analog and digital realities, resulting in vivid encounters of texture, gesture, and sonic imagination.

The transatlantic quartet of Elisabeth Harnik (piano), Dave Rempis (saxophones), Fred Lonberg-Holm (cello), and Tim Daisy (drums) in their second album, recorded live at the North St. Cabaret in Madison, WI, weaving surges of energy with passages of lyricism, deep timbral exploration, and spacious formal development, balancing ferocity and subtlety in a richly detailed and dynamic collective architecture.

Blending lush harmonies, rhythmic twists, and inspired interplay, alto saxophonist and composer Beth Schenck leads a Bay Area quintet of Cory Wright, Matt Wrobel, Lisa Mezzacappa, and Jordan Glenn in a set of fiercely original compositions that traverse ethereal soundscapes and propulsive forms, reflecting deep musical relationships, artistic nuance, and a richly personal voice.

In a live set at Amsterdam's club & workspace Splendor, Argentinian tenor/sopranino explorer Ada Rave and Polish pianist Marta Warelis shape an intimate but volatile dialogue, fusing air, resonance, clusters, and melody into patient arcs that bloom from microscopic detail to surging release, a great example of the city's improvising community at their most attentive and fearless.

The debut of Sydney-based quartet Believe-Peter Farrar (alto saxophone), Novak Manojlovic (piano), Clayton Thomas (double bass), and Laurence Pike (drums)-unleashes three expansive improvisations of visceral energy and nuanced intimacy, blending extended techniques, shifting textures, and percussive interplay into a powerful free jazz statement that feels as natural as wind and waves.

Celebrating guitarist Joe Morris's 70th, this trio with Brad Barrett on cello and Beth Ann Jones on bass unfolds with deliberate restraint and deep listening, Morris layering textures around Barrett's lyrical and percussive bowing while Jones anchors with sculptural, propulsive bass, the group seamlessly shifting between spacious intimacy and taut collective momentum in an immersive improv dialogue.

Documenting Anthony Braxton's 1985 UK tour with his classic quartet, Forces in Motion combines travel diary, interviews, and essays to present both the warmth of Braxton's personality and the depth of his visionary musical and philosophical project, offering an essential introduction to his art and a profound exploration of sound, creativity, and spirit.

A solo double bass album from Colombian-born, Montreal-based improviser Pablo Jiménez, recorded at the Conservatory of Music in Montreal in 2024, where his imaginative use of extended techniques and deep engagement with improvisation reveal a distinctive personal language that merges avant and contemporary traditions into a striking and sensitive exploration of the instrument.

A collaborative project by Éric Normand, Dur Temps Pour les Rouges (Hard Times for the Reds.) combines recordings from 2020-2025 by a large ensemble of voices, horns, strings, guitars, drums, synths, and electronics to realize a textured and emotionally rich sound world: intimate and expansive, lyrical and experimental, a striking and immersive listening experience.

A 46-page French-language book with download code from bassist Éric Normand, combining text, illustrations by Robert Marcel Lepage, and partial scores with recordings of duo improvisations made between 2020 and 2022 with Sarah Albu, Philippe Lemoine, Xavier Garcia, Rémy Bélanger de Beauport, Tom Malmendier, Lori Freedman, and Jean-Sébastien Mariage; inventive and exploratory.

A captivating solo recording from multi-reedist Ned Rothenberg on alto sax, clarinets, and shakuhachi, showcasing his extraordinary mastery of circular breathing, overtones, and multiphonics in works of rhythmic intensity, lyrical sensitivity, and soulful depth, culminating in a graceful rendering of Monk's "'Round Midnight" as an aural refuge of beauty and resolve.

Recorded at Roulette Intermedium in Brooklyn, drummer and composer Tomas Fujiwara introduces his Percussion Quartet with Patricia Brennan on vibraphone, Tim Keiper on African strings and percussion, and Kaoru Watanabe on Japanese drums and flute, blending global traditions into vivid, imaginative works that traverse groove, texture, and color with striking originality and depth.

Brooklyn trumpeter Adam O'Farrill leads a superb octet — Mary Halvorson (guitar), Patricia Brennan (vibes), Tomas Fujiwara (drums), and others — through dramatically inventive compositions inspired by the literature and arts of the 1930s, balancing angular rhythmic intensity, rich melodic lyricism, and expressive improvisational depth with adventurous sophistication.

Five years after their debut, co-leaders Anna Webber and Angela Morris return with a 19-piece large ensemble recording that showcases their next-level compositional voices, unfolding through the "Just Intonation Etudes for Big Band" suite and a series of richly orchestrated works that balance drones, contrapuntal density, rhythmic blasts, and lyrical themes in an adventurous exploration of sound and structure.

Composed in 2020 during the first months of the pandemic and recorded at Oktaven by Ryan Streber, this striking work for strings expands the JACK Quartet with violist Yura Lee and cellist Michael Nicolas, delivering two masterful pieces of dramatic tension, mercurial movement, and virtuosic beauty that stand among Zorn's most compelling contributions to modern chamber music.

Marking their 39th year together, pianist Chris Abrahams, drummer Tony Buck, and bassist Lloyd Swanton expand their immersive approach to improv across three discs of evolving intensity, recording in the studio in Australia, where four long-form pieces unfold with hypnotic patience, microscopic detail, and The Necks' hallmark balance of restraint, texture, and boundless improvisational discovery.

Composer Henry Threadgill conducts a suite for six acoustic guitars and two pianos, bringing together Bill Frisell, Miles Okazaki, Brandon Ross, Gregg Belisle-Chi, Jerome Harris, Stomu Takeishi, Maya Keren, and Rahul Carlberg in an intricately orchestrated work whose intervallic syntax and meticulous counterpoint entwine with unexpected timbres to reveal his singular and sublime vision.

Seventeen years after their last recording, the New York trio of Steve Lehman (alto saxophone), Vijay Iyer (piano, Rhodes), and Tyshawn Sorey (drums) reunite with dense, high-impact compositions and fearless interplay, blending complexity with groove as they reaffirm their status as one of the most vital ensembles in contemporary improvised music.

Drummer and composer Dan Weiss brings together Peter Evans (trumpet), Patricia Brennan (vibraphone), and Miles Okazaki (guitar) in a set of compositions written for their distinct voices, shifting from meditative calm to intense peaks, weaving intricate contrapuntal textures and improvisations into a mysterious and transcendent collective sound.

A collection of Yoshio Machida's soundtracks for NHK documentaries on artists Shinro Ohtake, Junichiro Tanizaki, and Maruyama Okyo recorded between 2020 and 2023, presenting a wide stylistic range from acoustic chamber works and dreamy piano reverberations to glitch electronics, steel pan melodies, funk beats, and jazz, highlighting Machida's versatility as composer and performer.

Brooklyn pianist Eva Novoa joins saxophonist Daniel Carter and drummer Francisco Mela for the second volume of The Freedom Suite, a set of twelve pieces blending piano, Rhodes, harpsichord, gongs, and vocals with Carter's multi-reed brilliance and Mela's Cuban-inflected drumming, creating an urgent, intimate, and fluidly improvised dialogue of words, sound, and fearless imagination.

After a six-year hiatus, The Young Mothers return with their third album as Ingebrigt Håker Flaten, Jawwaad Taylor, Jason Jackson, Stefan Gonzalez, Jonathan F. Horne, and Frank Rosaly merge jazz, hip-hop, experimental rock, electronics, and free improvisation into a restless and unpredictable collective statement, balancing cinematic flair with raw immediacy in their most dynamic release to date.

After a six-year hiatus, The Young Mothers return with their third album as Ingebrigt Håker Flaten, Jawwaad Taylor, Jason Jackson, Stefan Gonzalez, Jonathan F. Horne, and Frank Rosaly merge jazz, hip-hop, experimental rock, electronics, and free improvisation into a restless and unpredictable collective statement, balancing cinematic flair with raw immediacy in their most dynamic release to date.

In a fully improvised solo recording, pianist Matthew Shipp channels a lifetime of discipline and influence into an expansive and deeply personal work whose shifting architectures, sly dissonances, and luminous pacing unfold with the gravity of composed modern classical music while retaining the spontaneous intensity of free jazz, reframing his sound in a broader, genre-fluid context.

With longtime collaborators Jason Lindner, Ben Monder, Tim Lefebvre, Zach Danziger, Nate Wood, Ryan Dahle, and Jonathan Maron, visionary saxophonist Donny McCaslin channels the raw intensity of improvised jams into a cinematic, high-energy sound world, blending jazz with rock, electronica, and soulful urgency, a fierce and timeless statement.

Recorded live at the 2022 Vision Festival in Brooklyn, Jason Kao Hwang conducts a remarkable ensemble of strings, guitars, bass, and percussion in a work that blends notated passages with conduction-driven improvisation, forging a powerful and fluid language that transcends cultural and stylistic boundaries while illuminating collective individuality and truth.

The duo Senso di Voce, with Esin Gunduz on voice and Paul J. Ferington on oboe, create an immersive chamber work of voice, oboe, and electronics whose movements balance the ancient and the contemporary, weaving resonances, silence, and philosophical imagery into a meditative and exploratory sound world that rewards repeated listening with new layers of detail and emotional depth.

For their third studio release, bassist and composer Ingebrigt Håker-Flaten leads his (Exit) Knarr septet through graphic scores that blend visual art, mythology, electronics, and free jazz into a vivid collective process, the ensemble — now including Amalie Dahl and Marta Warelis — shaping long and short forms alike into explosive, texturally rich works of improvisational energy and imagination.

The duo of Roscoe Mitchell on bass and sopranino saxophones with percussion, and Michele Rabbia on percussion and electronics, engage in a meticulous and expressive dialogue where the smallest breath or strike is amplified into vivid detail, redefining improvisation as an inclusive and responsive art of conversation that balances order, disorder, and creative transformation.