Winners of the Jazz Migration and tour JMF 2018, the chamber jazz trio of Sophie Bernado (bassoon), Hugues Mayot (saxophone & clarinet) and Rafaelle Rinaudo (harp & effects) share their passion for creative music that embraces composition and improvisation, springboarding off composers like Debussy while transferring warmth and vision into free jazz; magnificent.

Starting with their 1994 "Critical Mass" album, and as a follow-up to pianist Matthew Shipp and violist Mat Maneri's initial duo on Hatology, "Gravitational Systems", the collaboration of pianist Matthew Shipp and violist Mat Maneri expands with this 13-part "Conference", in a freely improvised and empathetic music of force and fragile sophistication; beautiful.

Canadian guitarist Rene Lussier formed this quintette in 2016, with Julie Houle on tuba & euphonium, Luzio Altobelli on accordion, and drummers Marton Maderspach & Robbie Kuster, to play the intricate and lyrical pieces he developed, where up to five parts are overlaid at any given time, though the listener only hears the wonderful interplay and exultation of the resulting music.

Four improvisations in a series titled "Etoile" [star] and one composition using graphic notation titled "Toile" [canvas], from French clarinetist Joris Rhule, working with multiphonics and extended harmonic technique to extoll unusual sonorities from the single reed instrument, from fragile to forceful, fascinating examples of extreme sonic exploration.

An extremely unique sax and drums album, as Rova leader Larry Ochs and New York drummer Gerald Cleaver take their tenor and sopranino saxophones, and drums and percussion, into the absolute darkness and stillness of the Portel Cave in the South of France, using the resonance and inspiration of the cave to record these seven incredible improvisations.

A reissue of the 2002 Chloe label album, where Jean Luc Guionnet on alto saxophone, Dan Warburton on violin, and Eric La Casa on microphones use the ambiance of the Paris Pre Saint-Gervais metro station as the starting point for free improvisations, using their surrounding as inspiration while they record a most unusual album of urban sound and discourse.

Two of this generation's most influential and skilled guitarists, Mary Halvorson and Joe Morris bring their distinct styles and jaw-dropping mastery of their instruments into a duo of collective improvisation, neither player using effects but instead impressing by (often high-speed) lyricism, incredibly precise interaction, and the warmth their long association brings to them.

Two generations of improvisers--Valentin Ceccaldi on cello the senior, and the younger performer, David Chevallier on electric guitar and 6- and 12-stringed acoustic guitars--meet for the first time to intertwine strings in Nantes, France, with Benjamin Duboc recording seven diverse dialogs of imaginative style and authoritative technique.

Jean-Marc Foussat recorded the French improvising duo of electric guitairst Marc Ducret and double bassist Joelle Leandre at 19PaulFort in May, 2018, the title drawn from a poem by Edgar Allen Poe, as the two trade acoustic and electric string approaches in a sophisticated dialog of exceptional technique and inventive approaches; superb.

The French free improvising trio of pianist Cecile Cappozzo, double bassist Patrice Grente, and drummer Etienne Ziemniak are heard in performance at "la Maison en Bois" in Abbeville-la-Riviere in 2018, with trumpeter Jean-Luc Capozzo joining them on the title track, as they bring order to the 4 part "Chaos" through superb collective improvisation.

With a decade of experience, the Flandres, Netherlands free jazz quartet of Adrien Douliez on alto saxophone, Jean Baptiste Rubin on tenor saxophone, Maxime Petit on bass, and Frederic L'Homme on drums blend ethnic and world music with assertive playing, from groove oriented to more aggressive forms, a unique voice in free playing.

Musaeum Clausum is a French-German trio that features Louis Laurain on cornet (Die Hochstapler, Umlaut Big band, ONCEIM), Hannes Lingens on drums (Obliq, Konzert Minimal) and Sebastien Beliah on bass.(Un Poco Loco, Ensemble Hodos, Umlaut Big Band), in an album of patiently developing improvisation giving each player freedom and flexibility within a composed framework.

Sebastien Beliah is a Paris-based double bass player, a member of Umlaut Big Band, The Coquettes, Un poco loco, &c., here in a solo album of bass noir, dark and resonant tones evoked through strong bowing, finding harmonics between the strings and from the instrument itself, creating beautiful passages in a mirage of engulfing deep timbre.

Seeking to extend the guitar trio into new and unique territory, the Quebec trio of Eric Normand on electric bass, Louis Beaudoin-de-la-Sablonniere on electric guitar, and Louis-Vincent Hamel on drums, reference performers like Jim Hall, Sonny Sharrock, John Abercrombie, & Bill Frisell while focusing on harmolodic force and unusual melodic lines.

Tenor and baritone saxophones in an exchange of spectral interactions that emphasize harmonic overtones and intersections, unusual emanations from both instruments in a perfectly paced improvisations, each of the 12 dialogs named aptly for locations and crossing in Englad and France, adding a sense of journey to these mysterious and wonderful expeditions.

An unusual mix of instruments from the Montreal trio of percussionist Michel Bonneau on congas & balafon, John Heward on drums, and Scott Thomson on trombone, all members of Ratchet Orchestra and Heward's Murray Street Band, in an album of active and uniquely layered confident rhythmic floors over which Thomson freely plays with remarkable technique.

Combining folk and ethnic rhythms in traditional popular forms, the Trio La Soustraction of des Fleurs of Jean-Francois Vrod on violin & voice, Frederic Aurier on violin & voice, and Sylvain Lemetre on zarb & voice focuses on the music of the mountains of the Massif Central, melodic music with unique timbres, forms, pre-texts, and a richly complex set of musical objects.

A 5-part work of improvisations on keyboards, voice, guzheng and flute from French improviser Jean-Marc Foussat and Bao Luo (Beijing Talking), a mysterious album of nocturnal sounds, grand expressions, furtive language, and rich textures and timbres, as Bao Luo provides a guiding voice in song and speach to their beguiling dialog; an exotic and expressive album.

Saxophonist Jemeel Moondoc takes his masterful NY quartet of pianist Matthew Shipp, bassist Hilliard Green, and drummer Newman Taylor Baker to perform live at Bimhuis in Amsterdam in 2016, capturing four remarkable improvisations of Moondoc compositions including an extended rendering of "Cosmic Nickelodeon", the band balancing lyricism with intensely creative playing.

A unique ensemble performing a long-form composition by French saxophonist Christophe Monniot with the 12-piece Grand Orchestre du Tricot, 12 movements that are punctuated by layered spoken words, a subtle and sophisticated work realized with performers including Roberto Negro, Florian Satche, Quentin Biardeau, Jean-Baptiste Lacou, &c.

Using the building site of the Paris Philharmonie as their source location and inspiration, the trio of Pascal Battus using found objects, Bertrand Gauget on saxophone, and Eric La Casa on microphones, improvise and record the background sounds, machines, and environmental influences, using those recordings to create these three fascinating compositions.

Copenhagen drummer Peter Bruun leads a band with guitarist Marc Ducret, trumpeter Kasper Tranberg and synth player Simon Toldam, and upbeat electric free jazz album of powerful intent and compelling compositions performing melodic and insightful compositions, the band well acquainted from work on Ducret's own albums and with Samuel Blaser; recommended.

Recorded in concert during "Culture with a Big Q" in Toulouse, France in 2017, the duo of Xavier Camarasa on piano/prepared piano and Matthias Mahler on trombone, take Camarasa's compositions and arrange them to alternate between melodic free sections and contemporary abstract passages using extended techniques, heard in this captivating and versatile performance.

French experimental improviser Jean-Brice Godet, a frequent collaborator with Joelle Leandre and a member of Cuir, in a solo album of 8 etudes for dictaphone, radio, and clarinet, a unique album of extreme and eccentric technique on reeds punctuated by unearthly voice and radio transmissions, a curious album that rewards detailed listening.

The french electroacoustic improvising trio of synth player and engineer Jean-Marc Foussat (Fou Records) with the father/son pair of saxophonist Quentin Rollet (Workshop De Lyon) and drummer/percussionist Christian Rollet (Rectangle Records, Bisou), in a rich, intensifying and often enthusiastically exploding set of extended and masterful improvisations.

Pioneering West Coast flute improviser Robert Dick, whose command over the instrument is startlingly profound, is joined by young Bay Area drummer Tiffany Chang for nine studio recordings of brilliant interplay, from energetic interaction to introspective beauty, with unusual moments of extended flute technique, an astonishing and engaging album.

Two dark works of sound creating a mysterious chasm of drones, pulsations, electronic stretches, and mysterious percussive engines, a strange pair of recordings that definitely fit the title of this 7" record from Norwegian sound experimenter Lasse Marhaug.

An album of rich aural environments contrasted with clamorous action and disintegrating sound from the duo of French percussionist Rodolphe Loubatiere performing on snare drum and Berlin-based sound sculptor Pierce Warnecke, their second album as a duo presenting a sophisticated and diverse set of compositions that both entrance and disrupt their listeners.

Rough and ready, angular instrumental rock from this Stavanger, Norway-based instrumental duo of Kristoffer Riis on guitar and Thore Warland on drums, two parts of the power-trio Staer, here creating a massive dose of momentum as they push heavy rhythmic riffs with odd tonality and a great sheen of prickly effect layers, in a compelling and muscular album.

The third album from the French/Belgium La Baracande, with vocalist/violinist Basile Bremaud leading a quartet of violin, guitar, lap steel, pedal board, bagpipes, hurdy-gurdy, and drone, singing long form ballads of epic tales of life and love that they describe as speaking with a voice to the living and our ghosts.

A collective trio of vanguard improvisers and frequent New York collaborators, Daniel Levin on cello, Chris Pitsiokos on alto saxophone, and Brandon Seabrook on electric guitar, a working band captured here in the studio at Firehouse 12 for a powerful set of idiosyncratic and exhilarating improvisations with tracks and the title named for a family of deep sea fish.

The 2nd volume in New York free improvising basist William Parker's "Conversations" series, more than 500 pages with 32 interview between William Parker and artists including Marshall Allen, Tim Berne, Wadada Leo Smith, Mark Dresser, Henry Grimes, &c &c, plus a CD excerpting those interviews and punctuated with duos between Parker and saxophonist Kidd Jordan.

Quebec improvisers Pierre-Yves Martel on Viola da Gamba, objects, and feedback, Eric Normand on electric bass and snare drum, are joined by Berlin pianist Magda Mayas for two extended works of free improvisation, manipulating and contorting strings with an electroacoustic edge, dark ruminations of exquisite detail, patience, and adroit interaction.

An exceptional free improvising quintet of Montreal & Quebec improvisers--bassist Eric Normand, drummer Michel F. Cote, and bass clarinetist Philippe Lauzier--with French clarinetist Xavier Charles and German trumpeter Franz Hautzinger, performing live during the 2016 Festival de Musique de Creation, creating fascinating commotion with incredible restraint.

Dark Tree's Southern California archive series adds this phenomenal session from multi-woodwind player Vinny Golia's Wind Quartet with clarinetist John Carter, trombonist Glenn Ferris, and cornetist Bobby Bradford, recorded fairly early in their careers in 1979 live at Century City Playhouse in LA for two sets of exploratory, dexterous and astounding jazz.

Steve Swell presents an homage to composer Olivier Messiaen in a sextet with Rob Brown (saxophone), Jason Kao Hwang (violin & viola), Robert Boston (piano & organ), Tomas Ulrich (cello), and Jim Pugliese (drums & percussion) performed live at Metro Baptist Church in NYC, 2017, a presentation of encompassing and passionate free music that knows little boundary.

An absolutely phenomenal example of free improvisation, both on cello and on voice, from French improviser Didier Petite performing live at La Plantation, in Beijing, China in 2016, showing profoundly great skill, a fount of creative impulse and ideas, and wonderfully idiosyncratic vocals and songs to accompany himself; an inspiring and delightful record.

Four fascinating compositions by Pascale Criton exploring microtonalities on instruments tuned in 1/16th tone (violin, viola, guitar) based on gestural processes developed in close collaboration with the musicians: one duo with Silvia Tarozzi and Deborah Walker, one solo piece with Deborah Walker, and two pieces performed by Dedalus Ensemble.

Reissuing La Casa's 2006 album of ventilation systems, which started with a bathroom vent and expanded to a sonic exploration of aeraulic devices and air flows in Paris buildings of various ages and dimensions, documenting their sonic and musical qualities, functioning as a sound study, a sonic data bank, a CD of environments, and finally as music.

Primarily a creative filmmaker, Blick here provides narrative improvisation--phonemes, gutturals, word fragments, and spoken word--over improvising keyboardist Jean-Marc Foussat's Synthi AKS, creating expansive landscapes or curious audio aberrations, through four recordings demonstrating a diverse set of sonic environments interweaving voice and sound.

An album of spoken word and sound, Jean-Francois Pauvros reads from Tristan Tzara's "L'homme Approximatif" (The Approximate Man) over flutes from Chicago producer and flautist Jamal Moss, AKA Hieroglyphic Being, and Jean-Marc Foussat on synth and voice, a mysterious album of subtle insinuation with an intriguing underpinning of electroacoustic sound.

Translating to "Fever Counts" and "At Lightening", the trio of Jean-Luc Petit on bass clarinet and alto & sopranino sax, Fabrice Favriou on electric guitar, and Julien Touery on piano and objects create impressive improvisations, the first a disruptive piece of detailed electracoustic colective interaction, the second a swelling work of sonic landscape.

Matching two distinct keyboards--Xavier Camarasa's piano with Jean-Marc Foussat's synthi AKS--two improvisers present two extended works roughly translating to "The Immensity of The Instincts" and "There, or all is water ...", contrasting between melodic and otherworldly sounds, a complex tapestry that guides and excites the listener in an unusual convergence.

A magnificent album of sound-oriented free improvisation from the French duo of Jean-Luc Petit on bass clarinet, alto saxophone and sopranino sax, and Benoit Kilian on the horizontal bass drum, a beast of an instrument that create massive tones over which Petit employs an incredible array of techniques and tones on his reeds, creating other-worldly sonic environments.

Phil Minton started as a trumpeter and became one of free improv's most outside vocalists; Joelle Leandre is a double bassist who also performs free vocal improv; this is their first recorded collaboration, and it's an unusual and wonderful album of heavy tone improvisation, plucked and bowed, and a masterfully odd free association of vocalisation.

German composer and improviser Simon Rummel presents the 2nd release from his 11-piece Simon Rummel Ensemble, blending his interest in acoustic phenomena and improvisational harmonics in an extended work that shifts from beautiful tonal work to disruptive cacophony and back to melodic music, blending jazz and 20th century approaches; a great achievement.

The Montreal free improvising trio Still of Nicolas Caloia on bass, Peter Valsamis on drums, and Yves Charuest on saxophone is joined in the studio by visiting Spanish pianist Agusti Fernandez for a superb set of detailed and energetic free jazz, 6 pieces titled "(un fold)" I - VI, making an album of first rate and exciting collective music.

Montreal Musique Actuelle turntablist Martin Tetreault and sound artist Erick d' Orion created this project as a tribute to the original explorers of electronic music and musique concrete -- GRM, Stockhausen, Henry, Oram, Schaeffer, &c. -- using historic sound recordings and new sources, presenting this incredible concert live at Au Mois in Quebec.

The creative NY jazz trio led by pianist Matthew Shipp with Rob Brown on alto sax and flute and William Parker on bass re-release and re-master their 1999 Bleu Regards album "Magnetism", a 20-part suite of concise and informed dialogs; and add a live CD of the trio recording three larger "Magnetism" improvisations captured at the Stone, 2016.

Rova leader Larry Ochs takes his Sax and Drumming Core to the next level with this charged album of mind-bending free improvisation with an hallucinatory edge, joined by Libra artists Satoko Fujii on piano & synth and Natsuki Tamura on trumpet, with Scott Amendola on drums, William Winant and Matthias Bossi on a wild set of percussive instruments.