Listen to this week’s playlist on YouTube and Spotify
Noah Haidu’s Standards Trio has played the top jazz venues from New York to Los Angeles, and will be out on the road from coast to coast and in key European cities throughout this year in support of their new album. “Standards III” continues Noah’s critically acclaimed collaboration with legends Buster Williams (bass) and Billy Hart (drums) while debuting an equally impressive new band featuring bassist Gervis Myles and drummer Charles Goold. Haidu’s clear, light touch renders variations on themes composed or inspired by Thad Jones, Richard Rodgers, Sammy Cahn, Dinah Washington and Jerome Kern. Popular artists Chappell Roan and Stevie Wonder provide additional source material.

Lively, dynamic, and brimming with brash energy, charanga is a flute-and-violin-driven Cuban dance style that fused Spanish danzon with African influences before finding renewed force in New York’s Afro-Caribbean scene. Venezuelan-born violinist and composer Ali Bello embraces this beloved form with “Ali Bello & The Charanga Syndicate,” a new release featuring a set of originals and classics with top-shelf guests including Arturo O’Farrill and Silvano Monasterios. The nine-song collection breathes new life into the charanga tradition for new audiences.

Also this week, the Freedom Art Quartet channels the spirit of Ornette Coleman on their latest released, “First Dance”; veteran singer, pianist and songwriter Ben Sidran was recorded in concert at the Sunside Club in Paris for his new disc, “Are We There Yet”; and pianist Danny Grissett, known for his work with Tom Harrell and Nicholas Payton, offers up his new trio recording, “Travelogue.”

Listen to this week’s playlist on YouTube and Spotify
A few years back, bassist John Clayton got in touch with his friend Mulgrew Miller and invited him into the studio to record. Not with the intentions of making an album, but simply for the joy of playing music with a good friend. That day, as did with every other time Mr. Clayton had the honor of playing with the pianist, magic happened. He filed it away in his archives and hoped perhaps the two of them could revisit it at some point as a document of their friendship. Sadly, Mr. Miller passed away in 2013, and John was even more grateful having spent that time with him. Now, the session is being shared for the first time with the new album, “Talk to Me About Mulgrew.”

Vibraphonist Behn Gillece returns with “Pivot Point,” his dynamic eighth release for Posi-Tone Records, offering a deep dive into the soul of the blues through the lens of modern straight-ahead jazz. Showcasing a fresh set of originals alongside contributions from a stellar ensemble, Gillece assembles a potent lineup featuring saxophonist Willie Morris, pianist Jon Davis, bassist Boris Kozlov, powerhouse drummers Rudy Royston and Jason Tiemann, trading off with seamless intensity. The result is a swinging, melodic, and deeply expressive affair.

Also this week, the recipient of the 2023 American Piano Awards, pianist/composer Isaiah J. Thompson, enlisted legendary pianist Cyrus Chestnut to produce his 8-song autobiographical musical statement, “The Book of Isaiah: Modern Jazz Ministry,” exploring faith, musicianship, race and humanity; pianist Greg Murphy’s eighth album, “Snap Happy,” abounds with infectious rhythm and jubilant melodies with special guest guitarist Mark Whitfield joining the trio; and “First Impressions” showcases young-star drummer Marcello Carelli’s true development as a player, composer and bandleader, written and arranged in his new home city of Los Angeles and featuring Bob Mintzer and Russell Ferrante of the Yellowjackets.