New Jazz Releases – 02/08/2026
By Russell Perry
John Vanore
Of the releases that came to WTJU in the past week, two caught my attention – a Big Band suite by John Vanore and a 2018 release from bass clarinetist Todd Marcus. Thanks to Gary Funston for dropping of several discs from artists (like Todd Marcus) that have been brought to town by the Charlottesville Jazz Society.
Please note that on Thursday February 12th, to celebrate Black History Month, The Charlottesville Jazz Society, WTJU and The Center at Belvedere present Michael Hawkins and The Brotherhood with special guest John D’earth, performing at 6 pm at The Center at Belvedere. See you there.
Ryan Murphey / Howard Hudiburg / Paul Piper – Rio Grande Reveries (self produced, release 02/09/2026). Ryan Murphey – guitar, Howard Hudiburg – bass, Paul Piper – drums / percussion.
The members of this guitar – bass – drums trio are all unknown to me. Their nine track set is composed by guitarist Ryan Murphey and/or bassist Howard Hudibeurg and all the tracks reflect some aspect of the southwest of the US.
John Vanore & Abstract Truth – Easter Island Suite(Acoustical Concepts, release 02/06/2026). John Vanore – trumpet plus three big bands.
With a nod to Oliver Nelson’s 1961 class Blues & The Abstract Truth, composer / trumpeter John Vanore has composed a sweeping suite that captures the isolation and grandeur of Easter Island. Composed and recorded over a 35-year stretch, the four movement suite is endlessly evocative and rich. Highly recommended.
Review: UK Vibe, AllAboutJazz, Downbeat
James Fernando – Philly 3 (Spring Garden Records, release 02/06/2026). James Fernando – piano, Dan McCain – bass, Kyon Williams – drums with Sam Harris – bass.
Pianist James Fernando and his Philadelphia-based working trio have recorded a set of eight originals plus one Erroll Garner cover. Unfailingly melodic, Fernando also evidences a deep romantic streak.
Review: Paris Move
Mark Christian Miller – Strange Meadowlark (Sliding Door Jazz Productions, release 02/06/2026). Robert Kyle – tenor saxophone / flute / alto flute, Chris Dawson – piano, Chuck Berghofer – bass, Joe LaBarbera – drums, Mark Christian Miller – vocals / piano with Josh Nelson – piano.
Backed by a piano trio plus reeds, West Coast vocalist Mark Christian Miller brings a soft and breathy delivery to a set of mostly familiar standards.
Julia Hülsmann Octet – While I Was Away(ECM, released 01/30/2026). Julia Hülsmann – piano, Héloïse Lefebvre – violin, Susanne Paul – violoncello, Eva Kruse – double bass, Eva Klesse – drums, Aline Frazão – vocals, Live Maria Roggen – vocals, Michael Schiefel – vocals.
German pianist Julia Hülsmann has been recording in a trio, quartet and quintet setting recently (Under the Surface, previewed 02/03/2025), but has expanded the ensemble for this new release to an octet that can function as a classic piano trio, a piano-violin-cello trio or a vocal choir. The set of five selections by the leader, three others by band members and two covers is quite varied.
Review: The Big Takeover, Jazz Views, UK Vibe
Björn Meyer – Convergences(ECM, release 01/23/2026). Björn Meyer – bass.
Swedish bassist Björn Meyer has recorded a solo set on acoustic and electric bass with remarkable fluidity and melodic power. Through overdubbing, the music is much more than a solo effort.
Charlottesville Jazz Society President and WTJU announcer Gary Funston (Living Times, Wednesday 7:00 – 9:00) has brought a number of recent releases to the WTJU music library from artists who have been featured recently by CJS:
Remedy +Aki Takase (Fundacja Stuchaj, release 12/01/2025). Thomas Heberer – trumpet, Aki Takase – piano, Joe Fonda – bass / flute, Joe Hertenstein – drums / percussion.
Avant-garde trio Remedy (including Charlottesville-favorite bassist Joe Fonda) joins with Japanese pianist Aki Takase for a live set of original compositions by members of the band.
Gebhard Ullman / Use Oberg / Joe Fonda / Dieter Ulrich – New Conference Call (Hat Hut Records, release 11/12/2025). Gebhard Ullmann – tenor saxophone, Uwe Oberg – piano, Joe Fonda – bass, Dieter Ulrich – drums.
In the first decade of the new millennium, Conference Call, a musicians collaborative, recorded several releases featuring saxophonist Gebhard Ullmann, pianist Michael Jefry Stevens, Joe Fonda and drummers George Schuller, Gerry Hemingway or Han Bennick. Now the group is back with Uwe Oberg on piano and Dieter Ulrich on drums. By turns playful, melodic and abstract, the group never ceases to surprise.
Review: Sondohm
Sunna Gunnlaugs – Ástin, bjartsýnin og andskotans blaðrið í fólkinu (Sunny Sky, release 11/01/2024). Sunna Gunnlaugs – piano, Nico Moreaux – bass, Scott McLemore – drums, Marína Ósk Þórólfsdóttir – vocals.
Icelandic pianist Sunna Gunnlaugs has written a suite of music as settings for the poetry of Jón úr Vör. Heartfelt vocals (in Icelandic) by Marína Ósk Þórólfsdóttir supplement Gunnlaugs’s customary piano trio. This is a very pretty record.
Todd Marcus – On These Streets: A Baltimore Story (Stricker Street Records, released 04/27/2018). Todd Marcus – bass clarinet, George Colligan – piano, Kris Funn – bass, Eric Kennedy – drums / vocal with Warren Wolf – vibraphone & drums, Paul Bollenback – guitar.
Bass clarinetist Todd Marcus composed this set as a musical portrait of his West Baltimore neighborhood (site of the tragic demise of Freddie Gray in 2015). Played by a collection of Baltimore musicians, when it came out, Capital Bop named it the “#1 Album of 2018.” Driving and emotional by turns, this is a terrific record that we missed when it first came out and we are happy to now have in the collection. Highly recommended.
Review: New York Music Daily, Capital Bop
I’ll be back with more new releases next week.
Russell Perry
Jazz at 100 Now!
If your music isn’t changing your life, you’ve simply picked the wrong songs. – Ted Gioia
