ECM

After Mette Henriette’s critically acclaimed, self-titled first recording comes Drifting – and album pervaded by trio conversations of idiosyncratic and original expression. With Johan Lindvall returning on piano, new addition Judith Hamann on cello and h

Joe Lovano and his Polish conspirators from the Marcin Wasilewski Trio are endowed with an especially adventurous spirit on their second joint endeavor for ECM. On Homage, the quartet investigates the type of free-flowing interplay and expansive passages

Paul Bley is one of the most influential pianists in the history of jazz. His touch instantly recognizable. Bley’s career, which now spans seven decades, has continued to be a reference for successive generations of musicians. This is unsurprising, given

Having previously joined forces on several Louis Sclavis recordings for ECM (including the clarinetist's last album, Characters on a Wall), Sclavis and pianist Benjamin Moussay have been increasingly focused on their two-way communication in recent years,

Idiosyncratic, large-scale and in its fundamental disposition one-of-a-kind, Florian Weber’s Imaginary Cycle, conceived for the unique instrumentation of brass ensemble and piano, is a hybrid of multiple musical languages that seamlessly blends the harmon

Vocalist and violinist Alice Zawadzki, pianist Fred Thomas and bassist Misha Mullov-Abbado present a rare alchemy on their trio debut, fusing folk idioms from a multitude of sources with free-flowing interplay and fluid structures. Inhabiting their own st

"Incomparable” is what the German weekly paper Die Zeit called this album on its release in 2000, before going on to describe the music as follows: “A high, warm voice sings fragile songs, Annette Peacock accompanies herself on the grand piano, a string q

Rekindling the familiarly flowing interplay with fellow travellers Thomas Morgan and João Lobo – the trio’s musical partnership goes back over a decade at this point –, on A New Day Italian pianist Giovanni Guidi moreover expands the group’s instrumental

Drummer Gard Nilssen’s ECM leader debut follows acclaimed recordings for the label with the Maciej Obara Quartet and with Mathias Eick. Elastic Wave presents Nilssen’s powerful trio with fellow Norwegian André Roligheten on reeds and Swedish bassist Pette

Keith Jarrett’s account of Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach’s Württemberg Sonatas is a revelation. “I’d heard the sonatas played by harpsichordists, and felt there was room for a piano version,” says Jarrett today. This outstanding recording, made in 1994 and pr

Luminessence, a product of the creative synergy between Keith Jarrett and Jan Garbarek, was recorded in 1974, following their dynamic Belonging album. Jarrett’s melodies resemble Garbarek’s improvisations, reflecting their strong rapport, as noted by Ian

Frozen Silence is the third ECM release from alto saxophonist Maciej Obara’s Polish-Norwegian quartet, bringing the story forward to its strongest musical statement to date. Alert interactivity is the hallmark of the group’s approach, in a program of new

Wolfgang Muthspiel and his trio, Scott Colley on bass and Brian Blade on drums, reach a new creative peak on Dance of the Elders. Here, Wolfgang’s successful stride continues with his unique compositional signature on one hand and the particularly vibrant

Luminessence, ECM's new audiophile vinyl-reissue series, is a kaleidoscope, shedding light on the jewels of the label's deep catalogue in elegant, high-quality editions. The hallmarks of the series: original and evocative music, imaginatively played and s

Recorded in New York in 1975, and produced by Manfred Eicher, Gnu High brought Canadian trumpeter Kenny Wheeler to a new level of international acclaim, for both his impassioned playing and his profoundly lyrical writing. Here Kenny is fronting an extraor

Brazilian percussionist Naná Vasconcelos's album Saudades, recorded in March 1979, was the culmination of a dream for a musician who had long yearned to hear the berimbau in an orchestral context. This ‘concerto' for an innovative player of a traditional

On the album Opening, Tord Gustavsen reveals a fresh angle to his particularly unique trio investigations into Scandinavian folk hymns, gospel, chorale and jazz, as he introduces a different voice on bass. With a new fellow-traveller on board and its reco

A fresh and open music, delicate and space-conscious, is shaped as drummer Thomas Strønen and Ayumi Tanaka, previously heard in the ensemble Time Is A Blind Guide on Lucus, resurface in a new trio with clarinettist/singer/percussionist Marthe Lea. The gro

Revisited and remastered, with additional takes, texts and photos, here is the very first ECM session, recorded in November 1969, featuring the great American pianist Mal Waldron, whose resume included work with Coltrane, Mingus, Dolphy and Billie Holiday