Fred Tompkins spans decades with new album Stretching Time

Flute player and composer Fred Tompkins has released a new album called Stretching Time.

The CD (pictured) includes eleven tracks spanning more than 40 years (hence the title), including eight new works mixing free improv with composed material that feature Tompkins on C flute and bass flute with pianist Greg Mills, clarinetist Eric Mandat, and cellist Tracy Andreotti.

The other three compositions date back to the late 70s when Tompkins was living in New York, and are performed by an ensemble including bassist Harvie Swartz (aka Harvie S), guitarist Chuck Loeb, French horn player John Clark, drummer Rick Cutler, and other NYC-based players.

While Tompkins anticipates the CD being available on the usual digital music services in the near future, and for purchase as a physical CD at Vintage Vinyl and Euclid Records once they've fully re-opened for business, for now, you can hear some audio excerpts and order it from his website at http://tompkinsjazz.com/.

Funky Butt Brass Band showcases guest singers on new Christmas album

The Funky Butt Brass Band has released a new holiday-themed album, A Funky Butt Family Christmas.

The album (pictured) includes a remix of their original song “Because It’s Christmas” and  covers of seven more holiday songs, featuring some of the guest vocalists who have been part of the band's annual "Holiday Brasstravaganza' concerts at Off Broadway. 

The guest singers include Big Mike Aguirre, Steve Ewing, Dave Grelle, Al Holliday, Roland Johnson, Brian Owens and Emily Wallace. Along with the FBBB's six musicians, the album also features additional instrumental contributions from Grelle and Holliday on keyboards, Aguirre on guitar, Matt Henry on percussion and chimes, Ben Reece and Derick Tramel on saxophones, Matt Brinkmann on sousaphone, Emma Tiemann on violin, and Andy Hainz on cello.

A Funky Butt Family Christmas is on sale now at FBBB's live shows, and will be available within the next few days for order or download from iTunes and CDBaby. The 2018 Holiday Brasstravaganza will take place on Friday, December 15 and Saturday, December 16 at Off Broadway, and for the first time this year, will include a children's matinee on Saturday afternoon.

Trumpeter Jim Manley releases new album Funk Factory 2

Trumpeter Jim Manley has a new album, Funk Factory 2, out this month.

The prolific trumpeter's 15th release as a leader, Funk Factory 2 is, as the title suggests, the sequel to Manley's 2015 recording Funk Factory.

It features 12 original tunes in a upbeat, contemporary jazz style similar to its predecessor, as performed by Manley, guitarist Jeff Snider, and keyboardist Chris Swan. 

Funk Factory 2 is available now on all the major streaming services and online music retailers, and as a physical CD from CD Baby. You can hear the title track in the embedded player below.

Freedonia Music releases three new albums

The St. Louis-based indie label Freedonia Music, which documents free improv, experimental, and creative music from the city's past and present, has three new releases out this month, all featuring pianist Greg Mills.

Mosaique is a solo effort from Mills described as "improvised classical music" that was "created in the spirit and practice of free improv utilizing a language of musical possibilities based in Modern Classical," with each of the nine improvised compositions dedicated to a different 20th century composer.

Duets features the pianist in a series of improvised partnerships with musicians including cellist Tracy Andreotti, saxophonist/clarinetist Dave Stone, percussionist Henry Claude, and flute player Fred Tompkins.

Circle pairs Mills once again with multi-instrumentalist and Freedonia Music proprietor Jay Zelenka. The two worked together in the 1980s as the duo Exiles, and this album features studio recordings from that period, originally released on various cassette projects and now remastered for CD, plus an unreleased live performance from a 1997 New Music Circle concert featuring Mills, Zelenka, Dave Stone, and bassist Eric Markowitz.

All three albums are available now from download and streaming sites, and in CD format from the Freedonia Music website.

Fred Tompkins releases new CD Another Place

Flute player and composer Fred Tompkins has released a new CD, Another Place, featuring eight original compositions performed by a cast of St. Louis musicians and singers.

In addition to Tompkins' work on flutes, piano, and sampler, the self-produced release (pictured) features performances from guitarists Dave Black and Lee Scott Price, saxophonist Paul DeMarinis, drummers Gary Sykes, Kevin Cheli and Charlie Dent, keyboardists Jim Hegarty, Greg Mills and Henry Palkes, and singer Debby Lennon.

While most of the album was recorded in Tompkins' studio, several tracks also incorporate live improvisations from performances at the now-closed Tavern of Fine Arts.

Another Place is available as a CD from Vintage Vinyl, Euclid Records, CD Baby and Tompkins' website, and also can be purchased in digital form at iTunes, Amazon, and other online retailers.

Freedonia Music issues three new albums; CD release event set for Tuesday, December 20

Freedonia Music, the St. Louis based independent label specializing in adventurous jazz, free improv, and related sounds, has released three new albums this month:

Described as "a celebratory cycle of free improvisations deriving and departing from the euro-classical avant-garde," A Day at the Circus! is the new release from pianist Greg Mills' Perhelion Quartet, which also includes cellist Tracy Andreotti, percussionist Henry Claude, and saxophonist Dave Stone.

Mills and the group will celebrate the release of the CD (pictured) with a performance and "avant garde holiday party" starting at 8:00 p.m. this Tuesday, December 20 at Jackson Pianos. The event is free and open to the public.

The Free Jazz Posse's CONSPIRE features saxophonist and label founder Jay Zelenka, trombonist Jeremy Melsha, and saxophonist Dave Stone, plus "a changing line-up of guitar and synth players" and wordless vocals on three tunes by singer Lika Shubitidze.

Illumination by the James Marshall Human Arts Trio is a remastered recording from 1980 now including an additional, never-before-released 18-minute bonus track. Marshall, a co-founder of the Human Arts Ensemble who died last winter, is featured on alto, tenor and soprano saxophones with drum set and percussion accompaniment. Marshall also was a visual artist, cartoonist and poet, and his artwork is used on the covers of both CONSPIRE and Illumination.

You can hear sample tracks from all three albums and purchase them directly from Freedonia Music's website.

Sidney Street Shakers releasing debut CD on Wednesday, Nov 2 at The Stage at KDHX

The Sidney Street Shakers will celebrate the release of their debut CD Laugh My Weary Blues Away with a performance at 7:30 p.m., Wednesday, November 2 at The Stage at KDHX.

Recorded this past winter at Native Sound Studios in St. Louis, the album features renditions of 15 jazz and blues songs from the 1920s that originally were recorded by St. Louis performers such as trumpeter Dewey Jackson, the Mound City Blue Blowers, the Missourians, the St. Louis Levee Band, and more.

Formed in 2013, the Sidney Street Shakers (pictured) include TJ Muller (trumpet), Chloe Feoranzo (clarinet, C melody sax), Kellie Everett (bass sax, tenor sax), Jacob Alspach (trombone, tenor banjo), Joe Park (guitar, plectrum banjo), Mary Ann Schulte (piano), Ryan Koenig (washboard, percussion), and Matt Meyer (drums). Laugh My Weary Blues Away also features guest performances by Mike Davis (cornet), Kyle Butz (trombone), and Joey Glynn (bass).

The CD includes an eight-page booklet with artwork and liner notes by St. Louis author, illustrator and historian Kevin Belford, whose 2009 book Devil at the Confluence remains the definitive work on pre-WWII blues in St. Louis.

"New Music/Free Improv" CD release event reset for Tuesday, July 12 at Jackson Pianos

The release party for New Music/Free Improv Live at the Tavern of Fine Arts, a new CD collecting improvised performances by 14 different St. Louis musicians, has been rescheduled for 5:30 p.m., Tuesday, July 12 at Jackson Pianos, 4354 Olive St in the Central West End.

(The event originally was scheduled to take place at the album's titular Tavern of Fine Arts, but had to be moved after that venue closed on Saturday, June 25.)

Produced by flute player/composer Fred Tompkins and pianist Greg Mills, the album (pictured) contains ten tracks recorded at a half-dozen different events held between March 2014 and March 2016 at the now-shuttered tavern. Performers include Tompkins, Mills, cellist Tracy Andreotti, poet Michael Castro, percussionist Henry Claude, violinist Alex Cunningham, keyboardist James Hegarty, clarinetist Eric Mandat, trombonist Jeremy Melsha, guitarist Lee Scott Price, trumpeter George Sams, saxophonist Dave Stone, bassist Josh Weinstein, and percussionist Thomas Zirkle.

Pressed in a limited edition of 100 CDs, the album will be available to buy for $10 at the CD release event, and also is now on sale at local retailers Euclid Records and Vintage Vinyl.

The CD release event is free and open to the public, and will feature performances from most of the musicians who appear on the album, plus "free drinks and snacks."

New CD release showcases St. Louis free improvisors

A loosely organized collective of St. Louis improvising musicians is releasing a CD documenting their live performances over the past two years.

New Music/Free Improv Live at the Tavern of Fine Arts contains ten tracks recorded at a half-dozen different events held between March 2014 and March 2016 at the Central West End restaurant and bar referenced in the album's title.

With production overseen by flute player/composer Fred Tompkins and pianist Greg Mills (both of whom also perform on some of the tracks), the album compiles music from monthly jam sessions at the ToFA; last fall's "3 Nights In September" festival; and more, all recorded live to two-track by Tompkins.

In addition to the two producers/project managers, performers include cellist Tracy Andreotti, poet Michael Castro, percussionist Henry Claude, violinist Alex Cunningham, keyboardist James Hegarty, clarinetist Eric Mandat, trombonist Jeremy Melsha, guitarist Lee Scott Price, trumpeter George Sams, saxophonist Dave Stone, bassist Josh Weinstein, and percussionist Thomas Zirkle.

To help promote the album (pictured), the various musicians involved will stage a CD release event at 8:00 p.m. Wednesday, July 13 at the ToFA. Admission is free.

Update, 12:00 a.m., 6/17/16: The proprietors of the Tavern of Fine Arts announced late yesterday that they'll be closely permanently on Saturday, June 25, meaning that the CD release event on Wednesday, July 13 is canceled. If it is rescheduled at another venue, depending on the timing there will be either another update or a new post here on StLJN.

Pressed in a limited edition of 100 CDs, the album will be available to buy for $10 at the event on July 13, and also will be available for purchase from the participating musicians and soon, at local retailers Euclid Records and Vintage Vinyl. Plans for a digital release are pending, said Tompkins.

Ally Hany celebrating release of first CD Sunday, November 22 at Ferring Jazz Bistro

Trumpeter Ally Hany will celebrate the release of her first CD with a performance at 6:00 p.m. this Sunday, November 22 at Ferring Jazz Bistro.

Released by the indie label Armored Records, the album (pictured) is titled Journeys Ahead, and features six original compositions by Hany, performed with a backing band including saxophonists Devin Eddleman and Jon Mones, pianist Damian Garcia, bassist Jake Greenburg, and drummer Connor Kent.

At the Bistro show, her first local performance since moving last year to New York City, Hany will be joined by Jason Swagler (alto sax), Nathan Pence (bass), Adam Maness (piano), and Jharis Yokley (drums).

A native of Webster Groves, Hany played locally during her teen years with the Webster Groves High School jazz band, Jazz St. Louis All-Stars, Missouri All-State High School Jazz Band, and St. Louis Symphony Youth Orchestra, as well as in Colorado with the Telluride Jazz Festival All Stars.

She then enrolled in the famed jazz studies program at the University of North Texas, where she performed, toured and recorded with the One O’Clock Lab Band and was featured on the their recording Lab 14, as well as on the Two O’Clock Lab Band's recordings Two’s Two and Kind of Two.

After graduating last year, Hany moved to NYC, where she's been teaching, gigging with the Seth Weaver Big Band and other local groups, and plans to begin graduate studies this fall at the Manhattan School of Music. While she's back home, Hany also will be taking part in the WGHS jazz program's annual fundraising concert on Tuesday, November 24 at Highway 61 Roadhouse.

Tickets for Ally Hany's CD release show are $16.50 and are on sale now via the Jazz St. Louis website and box office.

Sarah Jane and the Blue Notes to release second CD on Friday, January 30

Swing, hot jazz, and jump-blues band Sarah Jane and the Blue Notes will celebrate the release of their second CD with a performance at 9:00 p.m. Friday, January 30 at Venice Cafe.

Titled Sarahnade En Bleu, the disc (pictured) was recorded this past fall at Red Pill Studios by Sam Ohlhausen, and includes 17 songs ranging from swing and blues numbers dating back to the 1930s to slightly newer standards such as "Mack The Knife" and "Fever."

The band's namesake and lead singer Sarah Jane Ulrich is accompanied on the recording by Blue Note regulars Jerry Greene (saxophones, clarinet), Ben Osborne (guitar), Mark Hochberg (bass) and Kevin Cheli (drums), as well as a crew of guest musicians including Tommy Halloran on vocals, Joe Bozzi on vibes, Doug Burns on trombone, Randy Holmes on trumpet, and Tim Garcia on piano.

Copies of the CD will be available initially only at Blue Notes gigs, with a special sale price of $10 on January 30 only, and $15 thereafter. Ulrich said the disc subsequently will be available for mail order via the band's website, exact date TBD, with digital downloads to follow "within 30 days."

Jim Manley to release new album Chilled Brass on Monday, June 23

A little more than seven months after his last album Short Stories and Tall Tales, trumpeter Jim Manley is preparing to put out a new recording, Chilled Brass, on Monday, June 23.

The album (pictured) features ten of Manley's original compositions plus cover versions of "Wade in the Water" and "Walk on By."

Like its immediate predecessor, Chilled Brass is a solo album, and represents Manley's second venture into putting together backing tracks using samples, loops and synthesizers. "The one thing different this time is I added a lot of keyboard parts including some bass lines - and I can't really play piano - just enough to get me in trouble!" said Manley in an email to StLJN.

Another difference was that in addition to spending more time on mixing, "I did have some funding to get this release mastered by Greg Trampe from Music Masters," said Manley, "and that made a huge difference in the final product."

You can hear some audio excerpts from Chilled Brass in the embedded video window below. The album will be available for purchase in CD format at Manley's gigs and via his website, and a digital version will be sold on iTunes.

The 442s to celebrate release of debut album Friday, May 23 at Centene Center

The 442s will celebrate the release of their first album with a live performance at 8:00 p.m. Friday, May 23 in the Rialto Ballroom of the Centene Center for the Arts, 3547 Olive St. in Grand Center.

The eclectic, mostly instrumental quartet is comprised of two members of singer Erin Bode's band, bassist Sydney Rodway (who's also Bode's husband) and multi-instrumentalist Adam Maness, plus two members of the St. Louis Symphony, cellist Bjorn Ranheim and violinist Shawn Weil.

Financed via Kickstarter, their self-titled album (pictured) features 13 tracks composed by Maness, who plays piano, guitar, accordion, melodica and glockenspiel, in collaboration with the rest of the group.

Adding a family feeling to the proceedings, Erin Bode performs on two tracks as a guest, as does flute player Judy Ranheim, aka Bjorn Ranheim's mother.  The recording was engineered by Paul Hennerich of the Pan Galactic Company over six days this past December and January at Shock City Studios in St. Louis.

You can hear streaming audio samples from the album for free on The 442s' Bandcamp page, and purchase it as a digital download there, from the band's website, or on Amazon, Spotify or iTunes. A physical CD also will be available, but not until after the album release event.

Tickets for The 442s album release event are priced at, appropriately enough, $4.42 each, and are on sale now.

Jason Swagler & Adaron Jackson to release Map of The World on Tuesday, January 28

Saxophonist Jason Swagler and pianist Adaron "Pops" Jackson have teamed up for a new recording, Map of the World, to be released next Tuesday, January 28.

The EP (pictured) includes duo versions of four ballads from an eclectic group of songwriters, starting with Pat Metheny's "A Map of The World," and continuing with Henry Mancini's "Dreamsville," Ivan Lins' "Choro Das Águas," and Randy Newman's "When She Loved Me."

"As we worked through arrangements for a full length ballads album, these four tunes began to stand out almost as a collection or suite," said Swagler in an email to StLJN. "The original idea was to create an intimate and introspective backdrop, and these four songs did just that, and they stood best on their own. So we decided to release the four tunes as a singular statement, rather than as part of a traditional full length album."

Map of the World was produced by Swagler, engineered by Miles Vandiver, and recorded and mixed in the studio at SIU-E. It will be available as a digital download from iTunes and Amazon, and as a physical CD available for purchase via CD Baby and at Swagler's and/or Jackson's live shows.

Coincidentally, Swagler, Jackson and guitarist Rick Haydon also will be performing at 7:00 p.m. this Saturday, January 25 at Jacoby Arts Center in Alton. While the concert is not specifically intended to promote the album release, Swagler said they may have advance copies for sale if they arrive from the manufacturer in time for the show.

Edited 1/29/14 to add links to iTunes and CD Baby.

MAXJAZZ deal with Naxos begins with three new releases

After an initial announcement was made back in July of this year, the latest three releases from the St. Louis-based independent label MAXJAZZ are the first to be distributed under a new agreement with Naxos of America.

Headquartered near Nashville in Franklin, Tennessee, Naxos is the leading independent distributor of classical music in the U.S. and Canada, and in recent years also has begun to add selected jazz labels to its roster.

The first three MAXJAZZ albums that Naxos is handling are bassist Ben Wolfe's From Here, first released back in August; Essential Elements, a trio date that came out in October and is the label's first from NYC pianist/organist Ben Paterson; and Where or When, the brand new release and MAXJAZZ debut from Italian saxophonist Emanuele Cisi (pictured).

Naxos distributes nearly 35,000 titles on CD and DVD to traditional retail stores, and also supplies a catalog of more than 30,000 albums to various digital music outlets. The company also offers marketing, publicity, e-commerce, and various other support services to its distributed labels.

Hegarty, Steinbeck & Del Robles explore Time Space on new album

Keyboardist Jim Hegarty has teamed with bassist Paul Steinbeck and drummer Shane Del Robles to release a new collaborative album titled Time Space.

The album (pictured) features 12 tracks of improvised music, recorded at Hegarty's home studio in June of this year. "We basically set up and played," Hegarty told StLJN via email. "I changed the order of the tracks a little but there is no editing except trimming up the openings."

"The music is completely free improv, no plan, no scores, just going for it," he said. "The interaction and ideas are really what inspire me about this group."

Hegarty is associate professor of music and department chair at Principia College in Elsah, IL, and also has served on the board of directors and as music committee chair for St. Louis' New Music Circle. He previously has recorded and produced albums including the dance-oriented Leaving Venice; Off Topic, a live experimental quartet recording made in conjunction with New Music Circle, and two solo piano albums, Antithesis Reflex and Cut It/Out.

Steinbeck, a professor of music at Washington University in St. Louis, worked with the late Chicago saxophonist Fred Anderson to co-author Exercises for the Creative Musician, an instructional book for improvisers that now is in its second edition. His previous recordings include three CDs as a leader: Nine Ways (2004), Three Fifths (2005), and Sun Set (2007).

Del Robles, a native of El Paso, TX, is a former student of Hegarty's at Principia who also has studied drums with Mark Guiliana, Jason Marsalis, and Matt Wilson, and played with the pop-rock band The Royalty.

You can listen to and download the individual tracks from Time Space for free from Hegarty's website, or purchase a digital download of the entire album from Amazon, iTunes, or CD Baby. Hegarty said that while there are physical CDs, too, they'll be used mostly for promotional purposes. He hopes to book some live dates for the trio in the near future; for details, stay tuned.

Jim Manley releases new album Short Stories & Tall Tales

Though trumpeter Jim Manley has just released a new CD, Short Stories & Tall Tales, don't look for him to play any of the music from it when he headlines next week at Jazz at the Bistro.

That's because this latest offering, following up on 2011's Brass Poison Too, represents a significant musical departure for Manley. The trumpeter's recent releases have included rock and funk backbeats and electronic instruments, but mostly have remained rooted in traditional recording methods, live jazz instrumentation and song forms, with a mix of standards, contemporary covers and occasional originals.

Manley's gig at the Bistro, meanwhile, is with Mad Brass and Rhythm, a horns-plus-rhythm-section grouping certainly capable of reproducing some of those recorded arrangements, but, if live clips on YouTube are any indication, arguably leaning a bit more toward a straight-ahead sound.

Short Stories & Tall Tales, however, is something different entirely - a true solo effort, created by Manley alone, with a major assist from technology. "I did the CD using all professional loops," he explained in an email to StLJN, "like a building block of compositions and then added my trumpet, valve bone and various keyboard parts to the mixes - then mixed and mastered the whole thing." The project took four months "and way too many hours," said Manley, "but I love doing it."

Given the rather radical departure from his previous working methods, "We won't be playing any of the music from the CD, as it is a total different vibe then Mad Brass & Rhythm," said Manley.

You can hear some audio excerpts from Short Stories & Tall Tales (pictured) in the embedded video window below. And although Manley won't be playing any music from the CD at the Bistro, he will have copies on sale there. Online buyers can get a physical CD from Manley's website, and it will be available to download from iTunes in about a week.

Elliott Ranney releasing new CD Bellevue Shuffle this Sunday, October 20

St. Louis singer, songwriter and guitarist Elliot Ranney is putting out a new CD titled Bellevue Shuffle, and will perform to celebrate the release at 2:00 p.m. this Sunday, October 20 at Kirkwood Station Brewing Company.

The album (pictured) includes 15 original songs, all written and arranged by Ranney, with help from his wife Ellen Ranney on one track, "Without You."

It features the leader on vocals and finger-style classical guitar, backed by Stephen Ranney on upright bass and Joe Winters, plus an extensive lineup of guest musicians including guitarists Jon Ferber, Dave Black and Tom Byrne, saxophonist Paul DeMarinis, trumpeter Randy Holmes, and numerous others. Many of the musicians from the recording will be joining Ranney for Sunday's gig at Kirkwood Station, he said.

Ranney describes the sound of Bellevue Shuffle as "an acoustic jazz hybrid with undertones of Latin and Swing." There are tracks paying tribute to Antonio Carlos Jobim and Tom Waits, and in further describing the album, the composer also name-checks Miles, Trane, Steely Dan and Stéphane Grappelli.

More than three years in the making, Bellevue Shuffle was recorded, mixed and mastered by Billy Engel at his EAR Studios in Wildwood. "The rhythm tracks only three months," said Ranney via email. "Getting the session players took a little longer. Ultimately, I'm glad I took my time to get it as right as I could."

Ranney, who grew up in Kirkwood, performs around town at spots including Venice Cafe, Picasso's, Van Gogh's, and various Missouri and Illinois wineries. His previous CD, An Aging Sailor's Dream, came out in 2001 on the local Wildstone Media label, and in 2012 was re-released overseas by the Japanese label Rip Curl Records.

Bellevue Shuffle will be issued on Ranney's own label, Rope Yarn Records, with CDs available for purchase at live gigs, and both CDs and digital downloads available via CD Baby. Admission to Sunday's performanceis $5 at the door, and copies of the CD will be on sale for $15 each.

Tom Kennedy releases new album Just Play

Bassist and St. Louis native Tom Kennedy has released a new CD titled Just Play on the Colorado-based indie label Capri Records.

The album (pictured) is Kennedy's fourth release as a leader, and features him on acoustic bass, along with fellow St. Louis native Dave Weckl on drums.

The rest of the cast includes the stellar guitarists Mike Stern and Lee Ritenour, as well as pianist Renee Rosnes, saxophonists George Garzone and Steve Wirts, trumpeter Tim Hagans, and trombonist John Allred.

They take on a program of eight standards, including "Airegin," "The Night Has A Thousand Eyes," "In A Sentimental Mood" and "What Is This Thing Called Love," plus Stern's original "One Liners."

The album is dedicated to Kennedy's brother Ray, a pianist and composer best known for his work with singer-guitarist John Pizzarelli. The Kennedy brothers also performed and recorded together from childhood until 2008, when Ray was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis.

Just Play is available now in CD format, with digital release to follow. You can read a review of the album by Edward Blanco of AllAboutJazz.com here.

Freedonia Music releases four new CDs

Freedonia Music, the St. Louis-based independent label run by multi-instrumentalist Jay Zelenka, has released four new CDs from local/regional jazz and creative music performers:

Ghost Machines (pictured) is a sampler album showcasing the label's various recordings of "avant-garde, free jazz & free improv artists from St. Louis USA," including the Human Arts Ensemble, EXILES, The Free Jazz Posse, Squid Choir Orkestra, J.D. Parran, Michael Castro, Greg Mills, and Dave Stone.

Needle of Light is a previously unissued recording of vintage performances featuring saxophonist James Marshall's iteration of the Human Arts Ensemble teamed with poet Michael Castro for "old school free jazz avant-blues & theatrical constructions...deep roots performance poetry 30 years before it became a fashion & acquired a name."

Infinite Circus is the latest release from Squid Choir Orkestra, an electronic free-improv ensemble that includes Zelenka, Jeremy Melsha, Dave Stone, Ajay Khanna, Aaron Smith, and Derek Leu.

Zelenka and Stone also figure in the fourth new release, Lifeline, a series of improv duets and trios for voice, baritone sax and electronic alto sax that also features vocalist Lika Shubitidze.

StLJN will have some impressions of these recordings in a future post, but you can hear extensive audio excerpts from all four albums, and/or purchase your very own copies, right now at the Freedonia Music website.