"How to tell about an album on which drummer Jerome Deupree (ex Morphine), pianist Sylvie Courvoisier, who is described in such words, play together: "she keeps you on the edge of your seat because it feels like the piano cannot contain...

"She reaches into the piano and unlocks a groan from the earth, pain, a deep disturbance, tremors in buried mountains, something old pulled to the surface.

She lifts the flute and conjures air, wind, the song of extinct birds....

"The Lava Quartet is an international quartet featuring Berlin-based singer Almut Kuhne and drummer Wieland Moller, along with Portuguese bassist Goncalo Almeida, established in the Netherlands, and Catalan pianist Jordina Milla, who li...

"Long-time collaborators and legends of the British improvised music scene, the great saxophone virtuoso John Butcher and the master of the double bass John Edwards, join forces in a duet journey through a fascinating land of sounds, so...

A first-time meeting of four free jazz luminaries — pianist Alexander von Schlippenbach, bassist Joe Fonda, drummer Barry Altschul, and bass clarinetist Rudi Mahall — captured live in Vienna, delivering a vibrant and exploratory double CD of spontaneous interplay, deep lyricism, and uncompromising freedom from a quartet of master improvisers united in real-time invention.

Pianist Simon Nabatov leads three shifting ensembles through eight distinct compositions in this richly orchestrated and stylistically diverse studio recording, blending chamber elements and jazz improvisation with musicians including Angelika Niescier, Shannon Barnett, Pascal Klewer, and Roger Kintopf, as Nabatov explores contrasting textures, political undercurrents, and tonal interplay.

A powerful live performance recorded at Barcelona's L'Auditori in tribute to the late patron of free improvisation, Marianne Brull, capturing the first meeting of soprano saxophonist Michel Doneda, percussionist Lê Quan Ninh, and Barcelona-based improviser Núria Andorrà in a set of radical listening and deep interaction exploring spontaneous collective expression.

Formed from a transatlantic friendship and deep musical rapport, the trio of clarinetist Christophe Rocher, bassist Joe Fonda, and drummer Harvey Sorgen create an inspired and richly expressive set of improvisations, balancing melodic clarity and spontaneous invention in a lyrical program that reflects themes of presence, connection, and creative renewal.

Composer, violist, and vocal innovator Charlotte Hug presents her fourth solo album in a stunning multidimensional performance blending voice, viola, and spatial resonance, emphasizing her expanded vocal range across a set of immersive, sonically rich works drawn from her 2022 Ruhrtriennale commission and captured in vivid spatial detail at La Prairie in Switzerland.

Poet and theorist Fred Moten joins bassist Brandon Lopez in their first duo recording, a powerful and searching dialog of voice, text, and bass, recorded at Greyfade Studios, where Moten's incisive spoken word and Lopez's deeply expressive playing fuse into an evocative exploration of Black cultural production, resistance, and creative solidarity.

Poet and theorist Fred Moten joins bassist Brandon Lopez in their first duo recording, a powerful and searching dialog of voice, text, and bass, recorded at Greyfade Studios, where Moten's incisive spoken word and Lopez's deeply expressive playing fuse into an evocative exploration of Black cultural production, resistance, and creative solidarity.

A remarkable live document of Finnish saxophonist Harri Sjöström's SoundScapes #4 festival in Berlin, bringing together 19 extraordinary musicians from across Europe, Australia, and the U.S. for a series of improvised performances from intimate duos to expansive octets, highlighting spontaneous collaborations all driven by creative risk-taking, deep listening, and a profound sense of musical trust.

A far-ranging transatlantic trio session from pianist Simon Nabatov, bassist Mark Helias, and drummer Tom Rainey, capturing a dynamic fusion of composed and collective free jazz, as Nabatov's intricate compositions burst with frenetic energy, shifting between exuberant rhythmic interplay, explosive improvisation, and richly textured sonic landscapes in an electrifying set of performances.

Trumpeter Thomas Heberer, bassist Joe Fonda, and drummer Joe Hertenstein celebrate the centennial of pioneering German pianist Jutta Hipp with Hipp Hooray, a set of nine compositions inspired by her life and legacy, not as a recreation of her sound but as a vibrant and personal tribute, capturing the resilience, innovation, and artistic spirit of a musician whose influence transcended generations and borders.

A fearless and fluid exchange between saxophonist Ivo Perelman and drummer/pianist Tyshawn Sorey, this double album captures the duo's extraordinary chemistry, shifting between blistering intensity and spacious, exploratory passages as Sorey alternates between drums and piano, forging intricate dialogues with Perelman's masterful phrasing in a boundless and deeply expressive sonic journey.

Recorded at Przeswit in Warsaw, Poland, Voiceact brings together Polish vocalists Anna Gadt, Natalia Kordiak, Marta Grzywacz, and Gosia Zagajewska in an avant exploration of the art of the voice, blending ancient music, contemporary classics, and folk influences across eleven improvised pieces that showcase a captivating range of vocal styles and possibilities.

Honoring Agustí Fernández's 70th birthday, this 7-CD box set captures his innovative artistry through live and studio collaborations with performers including Barry Guy, John Butcher, Lucía Martínez, &c., recorded across global venues, showcasing his mastery of the piano, free improvisation, and profound creative dialogue with fellow improvisers.

A stunning live performance from wild to instrospective from the 2019 Copenhagen Jazz Festival, where saxophonist Lotte Anker and two pianists — Jacob Anderskov and Kamil Piotrowicz — create a rare and extraordinary interplay of alto saxophone and dual grand pianos, blending frenetic intensity and dreamlike calm in an inspired and organically evolving dialogue of composed and improvised soundscapes.

A riveting live performance from the 2023 Copenhagen Jazz Festival by Joëlle Léandre, Lotte Anker, and Kresten Osgood, whose trio of bass, saxophones, and drums delivers an enthralling journey through three improvisational worlds, blending spontaneity, profound interplay, and virtuosic intensity in a masterful exploration of sound and emotion.

Marking drummer/percussionist Zlatko Kaučič's 70th birthday, this 4-CD set presents his collaborations with luminaries including Torben Snekkestad, Axel Dörner, Rodrigo Amado, Barry Guy, and Agustí Fernández, blending intimate and transformative improvisations recorded across Slovenian festivals, showcasing Kaučič's mastery and the profound synergy of these exceptional ensembles.

Performing the lyrical compositions from the band's leader, this quartet — featuring Joe Fonda (bass), Michael Rabinowitz (bassoon), Jeff Lederer (clarinets & flutes), and Harvey Sorgen (drums) — explores a uniquely chamber-like soundscape, blending jazz and classical influences through intricately arranged compositions and inspired improvisations with a distinctively rich and unexpected ensemble voice.

Marking their decade-long collaboration, pianist Alexander von Schlippenbach and drummer Dag Magnus Narvesen present a dynamic dialogue of free jazz and structured improvisation, blending generational and cultural perspectives into deeply focused and evolving musical narratives, where melodies and rhythmic patterns unfold organically through collective discipline and creativity.

Celebrating 50 years of Andrea Centazzo's career and 45 years of ICTUS Records, this 4-CD set documents concerts over four nights at Milan's Teatro Out Off, vibrant sets of improvisation uniting global luminaries like Elliott Sharp, Ellen Burr, and Steve Swell in a boundary-pushing exploration of ICTUS's legacy and Centazzo's innovative artistry.

A 2009 live performance at the 15th Magyarkanizsa Jazz Festival in Serbia between Hungarian violist and composer Szilárd Mezei and US saxophonist Charles Gayle, an evocative meeting of transcendent free jazz and compositional precision, weaving Mezei's intricate scores with Gayle's profound, soul-searching improvisations; a dynamic and fiery celebration of freedom and expression.

Blending contemporary, orchestral, and electronic music with global cultural influences, Dominik Dolega presents 11 untitled "Memories" recorded as duets, featuring unconventional instruments like lithophones, stones, aluphone and the bassdesmophon, inviting listeners on a sonic journey that evokes personal emotions and memories through a rich global perspective.

Superlative duo work from pianist Marilyn Crispell and drummer Harvey Sorgen, recording in the studio in Woodstock, NY, blending deeply attuned free collective dialogs with one composition from each artist, in an album of dynamic and evocative improvisation that moves from vivid storytelling to introspective meditations of vision and masterful artistry.

Dreamlike and evocative, Dream Walks is the second duo album from Michael Attias and Simon Nabatov, following 2021's Brooklyn Mischiefs, inviting listeners to transcend the physical world through telepathic improvisations, uncanny encounters, and surreal visions, capturing the essence of nocturnal wanderings and the ethereal interplay between two masterful musicians.

Four journeys in passionately rich sound merging synthetics, acousmatic sources, field recordings and acoustic violin from the duo of Anne Foucher, who has worked with the Acousmaki collective, on violin and electronics, and Jean-Marc Foussat on Synthi AKS, piano, toys and voice, captured live in 2022 at rue Floreal, in Montpellier and at rue de Genac, in Bignac, France.

Recorded live in Oslo, the Norwegian jazz-rock trio Elephant9 of Torstein Lofthus (drums), Nikolai Haengsle (bass) and Stale Storlokken (keys) join with legendary guitarist Terje Rypdal, channeling the intensity of bands like King Crimson and Mahavishnu Orchestra as they blend and evolve layered psychedelia with angular improvisation for a raw, electric fusion experience.

Recorded live in Oslo, the Norwegian jazz-rock trio Elephant9 of Torstein Lofthus (drums), Nikolai Haengsle (bass) and Stale Storlokken (keys) join with legendary guitarist Terje Rypdal, channeling the intensity of bands like King Crimson and Mahavishnu Orchestra as they blend and evolve layered psychedelia with angular improvisation for a raw, electric fusion experience.

The eighth album from the Thumbscrew trio of Tomas Fujiwara on drums & vibraphone, Michael Formanek on double bass and Mary Halvorson on guitar, developed during the trio's three-week residency in Pittsburgh for the community-based City of Asylum project, each member contributing three compositions, along with Charles Mingus' "Orange was the Color of Her Dress, Then Blue Silk".

With two reeds--Paul Dunmall on tenor & soprano saxophones & clarinet, and tenor saxophonist & clarinetist Tobias Delius--and the masterful rhythm section of Olie Brice on double bass and Mark Sanders on drums, this superb collective quartet leverages the long relationships between players, particularly the trio of Sanders/Brice/Delius and Dunmall & Sanders' extensive work together.

Featuring distinctively voiced collective free improvisation, this transatlantic quartet recording on the West Coast brings together legendary musicians Frode Gjerstad on alto saxophone and clarinet, and Bobby Bradford on cornet, alongside contemporary classical and improvising tuba virtuoso William Roper and drummer Alex Cline, delivering five dynamic improvisations with remarkable direction.

An "auditory exploration of the fragile balance between creation and destruction, echoing the forces that sculpted Earth's geological history" from the collective free improvising trio of two New York luminaries--Taylor Ho Bynum on cornet, flugelhorn & trombone and Joe Morris on guitar & effects--with Boston double bassist Brad Barrett, also on cello & effects.

An energetic set of collective studio improvisations between three transatlatic travelers — Brazilian-born / New York-based tenor saxophonist Ivo Perlman, Cuban-born / Brooklyn-based pianist Aruán Ortiz and Spanish-born / French-based drummer Ramon Lopez — recording in Barcelona for eight substantial conversations of vivacious and expressive free jazz.

Polish wind player Dominik Strycharski combines traditional blockflutes (recorders), saxophones spanning sopranino to tenor, and electronic synthesizers to create nine original compositions of distinctive improvisation and captivating soundscapes, recorded at ZPSM im. S. Moniuszki in Bielsko-Biała, a music school named after the celebrated Polish composer Stanisław Moniuszko.

Recorded across two live sessions in Munich, Ephemeral Locations expands Udo Schindler and Paul Rogers' LowToneStudies with the addition of drummer Eric Zwang Eriksson on several tracks, blending Schindler's mastery of bass reed instruments, Rogers' unique 7-string double bass, and Eriksson's dynamic percussion in a captivating exploration of deep tonal textures and spontaneous improv.

Chicago-based bass clarinetist-composer Jason Stein returns from a six-year hiatus as bandleader with a beautifully personal, nuanced, and expansive album, created with bassist Joshua Abrams (Natural Information Society), drummer Gerald Cleaver, and guitarist and co-producer Boon, in a suite of seven Stein compositions ranging from meditative calm to gripping intensity.

Chicago-based bass clarinetist-composer Jason Stein returns from a six-year hiatus as bandleader with a beautifully personal, nuanced, and expansive album, created with bassist Joshua Abrams (Natural Information Society), drummer Gerald Cleaver, and guitarist and co-producer Boon, in a suite of seven Stein compositions ranging from meditative calm to gripping intensity.

The project of Korean-American guitarist, improviser and composer Han-earl Park, Gonggong 225088 is his trio with Argentinian saxophonist, composer and visual artist Camila Nebbia, and Greek drummer, improviser and sound artist Yorgos Dimitriadis, in an album of collective improvisation that expands its percolating jazz roots with spacious moments of electronics and extended expression.

Finnish saxophonist and improviser Harri Sjöström assembles this quartet with some of the most innovative and in-demand players in Europe, the UK & Australia--Tony Buck from The Necks on drums & percussion, John Edwards on double bass, and Elisabeth Harnik on piano--captured live at Panda Platforma in Berlin in 2023 for a stellar concert of collective improvisation.

Bringing together as a trio two improvisers who have both worked previously with bassist Joëlle Léandre in various configurations--drummer Zlatko Kaučič, and pianist Elisabeth Harnik--for a magnificent concert of innovative expression through intent conversation of impressive and unusual technique, captured live at the 2023 ARTACTS Festival in Tirol, Austria.

During double bassist Barry Guy's time in Porto Portugal with the Blue Shroud Band, he also took time to join in the studio with a quintet of like-minded improvisors — Savina Yannatou on vocals, Julius Gabriel on tenor & baritone saxophones, Agusti Fernandez on piano, and Ramon Lopez on drums — to record this exceptional collective improv session.

Recorded at Przeswit in Warsaw, Poland, Voiceact brings together Polish vocalists Anna Gadt, Natalia Kordiak, Marta Grzywacz, and Gosia Zagajewska in an avant exploration of the art of the voice, blending ancient music, contemporary classics, and folk influences across eleven improvised pieces that showcase a captivating range of vocal styles and possibilities.

Four electroacoustic improvisations recorded in Italy between Jean-Marc Foussat on Synthi AKS, piano, toys & voice, Guy-Franck Pellerin on saxophones & percussion, and Eugenio Sanna on amplified guitar, metal strips balloons, cellophane & voices, an album of unconventional orchestration and approach that fascinates in its unusual sonic journey.

Trumpeter Jac Berrocal's 80's underground avant-garde band Catalogue with drummer Gilbert Artman (Lard Free, Urban Sax) and electric guitarist Jean-Francois Pauvros were known for their merging of experimental and boundary pushing forms of improvised jazz, punk, and rock (Think Etron Fou or This Heat); these early recordings by Jean-Marc Foussat find the band at their most assertively eclectic.

The duo of French sound artists J-Kristoff Camps and Carole Rieussec, whose long-running duo project Kristoff K.Roll creates sound labyrinths of electroacoustic and acousmatic sources, meets with pianist Sophie Agnel and saxophonist Daunik Lazro for two extended works of sonic twists and turns, acoustic improvisation infiltrated with mysterious and startling sound; fascinating.

The French/Danish band Sparkling Sessions merge free improvisation and experimental music styles, borrowing from outsider jazz and electronic music, with collaborations from well-known musicians including trumpeter Jac Berrocal or synth player Vincent Epplay, here in a collection of performances at the Sparkling Sound Festival in Copenhagen in 2022.

Three improvisations recorded in concert at Impromptu, in Bordeaux, France and at Cameleon, in Toulouse, between Xavier Camarasa (MILESDAVISQUINTET!) on Fender Rhodes and Jean on Marc Foussat on Synthi AKS, voice & toys, with Marc Maffiolo joining on baritone saxophone for one piece at Cameleon; rich interactions of incredible texture & detail and unforeseen twists & turns.

Applying unique techniques to percussive instruments and drums, French free jazz drummer Luc Bouquet (Pli Urgent Quartet, Cyanur) performs six improvisations as an homage to his father--a ballroom and jazz drummer who risked his freedom to perform at "Clandestine Balls" during the WW II German occupation--reflected in Bouquet's edgy sonic palette and overall narrative in presentation.