The radical discovery by Amir Abdullah of 5 two-track master tapes in the care of Hermine Brooks ­– widow of innovative Detroit drummer Roy Brooks – of the Charles Mingus Quintet recorded live in Detroit at Strata Concert Gallery is cause for some serious celebration.

Garbarek's second album for ECM found him conducting further explorations in two separate directions. On the one hand, his playing and, to some extent, his composing were becoming increasingly avant-garde, a path which would culminate in the ensuing Tryptikon disc. His stark cries clearly owed something to the then burgeoning AACM movement as well as to European musicians like Peter Brotzmann. At the same time, pieces like the title track here nodded toward the contemporary jazz-rock experiments of Miles Davis. "Sart"'s descending five-note theme and the space it leaves in its wake are reminiscent of one of Davis' approaches on records like Bitches Brew. Garbarek utilizes this structure to good dramatic effect, generating mini-climax after mini-climax, only to recede at the end.

It was a moving experience on that Saturday evening in November 2025 at the Berlin Jazz Festival: On the stage of the Haus der Berliner Festspiele was the current edition of the London Jazz Composers Orchestra with a line-up specially assembled for the occasion. The work that was on the program was a new edition, but sounded – to my ears – no less exciting than a completely new composition. “Double Trouble III”. The origin of this piece lies in 1989. At that time, bandleader and composer Barry Guy recorded his composition in the radio studio in Zurich, with drummer Paul Lytton, bassist Barre Phillips and saxophonists Trevor Watts and Evan Parker, among others. To bring this work out again 36 years later – and this in the third version – did not mean that the result was primarily an echo of past times. Quite the opposite: this strongly structured piece, which pays meticulous attention to proportions in its architecture, gives the players so much freedom that, depending on the line-up, it can become a captivating new sound.

The spirit of Don Cherry soars again. For Record Store Day 2026, Charly Records and BYG Records present the first-ever official reissue of Blue Lake, Cherry’s transcendent live set originally released in 1974 only in Japan and long out of print. Fully restored and remastered from the original master tapes, this deluxe 2LP gatefold edition brings back to life one of the rarest treasures in the avant-jazz canon — a record that has fetched hundreds of dollars on the collector market for decades.

Duo recording by Japanese pianist Aki Takase and German saxophonist Daniel Erdmann. Takase now 78 and a long-time resident of Berlin has performed with legends ranging from Joe Henderson to David Murray and garnered numerous awards, most recently the German Jazz Prize for lifetime achievement. Her bands have long served as launchpads for the inventive avant-garde. Working alongside her offers a unique opportunity for artistic growth - as was the case for Daniel Erdmann, whom Takase recruited for her Berlin sextet in the 1990s.

Creative Inspirations is the debut recording by Trio Imagination, an extraordinary collaboration that brings together pianist David Virelles, bassist Reggie Workman, and drummer Andrew Cyrille. It pairs Virelles - who is known for his all-encompassing approach to creativity that is deeply-rooted in the Cuban influences of his upbringing - with two towering figures of creative music, whose individual work have helped shape the evolution of modern jazz for more than six decades. Together, they create music that is spacious, lyrical, and uncompromisingly inventive, grounded in profound listening and collective imagination.

Saxophonist Patrick Shiroishi and drummer Jason Nazary present their new album, here i am no i, on September 18th. The release marks their duo debut for We Jazz Records, adding to an expanding release catalog also including Nazary’s solo album Spring Collection (2021). here i am no i is a free-flowing body of work with continuous forward-motion, building on the acoustic duo setting and expands with electronics and voice landing somewhere beyond genre. Dedicated to jaimie branch, the album is a spontaneous product of trying to come to terms with the unimaginable loss of a close friend.

Present is an avant-garde jazz reflection on the passage of time, where Lina and her chordless ensemble playfully move between joy and sorrow. Lina’s intricate compositions form the backbone of the album, providing ample space for the musicians to shine and flourish. Lina Nyberg is an outstanding artist and, in many ways, a pioneer. Her spirit of experimentation and uncompromising artistic vision continually lead her into new and remarkable musical territory.

Out of print for over 40 years and originally released on Mingus' own Jazz Workshop label, this legendary recording features a powerhouse sextet featuring Eric Dolphy, Johnny Coles, Jaki Byard, Clifford Jordan, and Dannie Richmond. In conjunction with Jazz Workshop Inc., the Charles Mingus Estate, the original material has now been carefully remastered by five-time Grammy Award-winning engineer Michael Graves, with vinyl mastering by Jeff Powell.

If you think of Erik Satie — keep the characteristic melancholy, enrich it with serenity and a subtle touch of humor, and place it in the context of a contemporary jazz piano trio, you begin to sense what this album is about: a quest to picture the invisible in Satie’s music.

John Coltrane recorded Sun Ship in 1965, among the last sessions by the classic John Coltrane Quartet (pianist McCoy Tyner, bassist Jimmy Garrison and drummer Elvin Jones), marking the end of a year in which Coltrane arguably reached his creative peak. Sun Ship was not released until 1971, one of several Coltrane albums that came out after his death. When the original three-track masters were discovered, including previously unavailable alternate takes, the complete session was reissued for the first time with great sonic results, a major improvement on the existing LP mix.

Alice Coltrane had become a disciple of Swami Satchidananda, which explains the title of her 1971 masterpiece Journey in Satchidananda, recorded November 8, 1970 (except for one live track) and issued in January of 1971. It was recorded at the Coltrane home studio in Dix Hills, New York. Coltrane and Ed Michel produced the album. Album photography was by Chuck Stewart and Ed Michel. It was issued as impulse! AS 9203.

Returning to Rune Grammofon, Norwegian guitarist and bandleader Hedvig Mollestad acknowledges Miles Davis's enduring fusion milestone on 'Bitches Blues', firing up her Weejuns for dynamic set of contemporary jazz jams.

The highly original free jazz / avant garde trio Sulida, featuring three of Norway's most visionary musicians in Marthe Lea, Dag Erik Knedal Andersen and Jon Rune Strøm, played an amazing show together with the legendary trumpeter Axel Dörner at Kongsberg Jazz Festival in 2025.

Once again studio master / composer / bassist Guy Segers assembles a huge cast of progressive musicians to perform / improvise 8 new pieces. Guy's methods of composition and collage remain as before, but each new Eclectic Maybe Band release brings a new perspective to the music. This time round harder, more brittle sounds emerge from an album with a very punchy attitude. A mixture of avant pop and progressive complexity.