New Jazz Releases – 03/16/2026
By Russell Perry
Walter Smith III
That was a fun week of listening to new music for me – with some truly wonderful music. We often hear vocalist Aubrey Johnson on other artists’ project and now we have a fine release from her as a leader. Saxophonist Ben Wendel has teamed up with four vibraphonists. Bionini / Godard / Niggli are back with more from their accordion / low brass / percussion trio, Gilad Barakan has a sweet acoustic guitar-led quartet. Tenor saxophonist Walter Smith III comes out strong again and Chris Parker Septet puts his strong septet on disc. Whew…
Aubrey Johnson – The Lively Air (Greenleaf Music, release 03/16/2026). Alex LoRe – alto saxophone / tenor saxophone / bass clarinet / flute, Chris McCarthy – piano, Tomoko Omura – violin, Matt Aronoff – bass, Jay Sawyer – drums, Aubrey Johnson – lead vocals / background vocals.
Recently, vocalist Aubrey Johnson has been contributing mostly to projects lead by other artists (Alex Sipiagin, Anthony Branker, Jamie Baum, Randy Napoleon). This time out she is presenting five of her compositions in conjunction with five well-chosen covers (Lyle Mays, Joni Mitchell, Kurt Elling). Her version of Mitchell’s Help Me is spooky, so strong is the affinity between their voices. Johnson races through a wordless vocal on Mays’s Chorinho showing off her amazing range and pitch. Recommended.
Review: Paris Move, Making A Scene
Ben Wendel – BaRcoDe (Edition Records, release 03/13/2026). Ben Wendel – tenor saxophone / EFX, Joel Ross – vibraphone / marimba, Simon Moullier – vibraphone / chromatic balafon / EFX, Patricia Brennan – vibraphone / EFX, Juan Diego Villalobos – vibraphone / mallet station / percussion / EFX.
Saxophonist Ben Wendel is unpredictable – last time out he recorded a straight-ahead quartet date live at the Vanguard (Understory, previewed 09/30/2024). This time, the ensemble consists of the leader on sax plus four first call vibraphonists who play a variety of tuned percussion instruments. I was entranced. Recommended.
Review: PostGenre
Jon Irabagon – Focus Out (Irabagast, release 03/13/2026). Jon Irabagon – tenor saxophone, Matt Mitchell – piano / Fender Rhodes, Chris Lightcap – bass, Dan Weiss – drums.
Multi-reedist – tenor sax in this case – Jon Irabagon (Server Farm, previewed 05/20/2025) is back in the comforting company of his longtime quartet with Matt Mitchell on piano (End Of Something, previewed 11/25/2025), Chris Lightcap on bass (Nels Cline, Darius Jones, Matt Wilson) and Dan Weiss on drums (Unclassified Affections, previewed 06/09/2026). This is the same band that came to the Front Porch early in COVID, playing on-line to an necessarily empty house. While Irabagon is the most catholic of players, constantly expanding the company he keeps (see Saturday’s Child, below), this quartet is where he makes the music that most resonates with me. He even includes a lovely, if uncharacteristic, ballad on this release.
Review: Paris Move
Jon Irabagon – Saturday’s Child (Irabagast, release 03/13/2026). Jon Irabagon – bass saxophone, Don Oestriecher – bass saxophone / bass flute.
Prolific Chicago-based saxophone player Jon Irabagon has paired with NOLA / NYC low-reed player Don Oestriecher (Trombone Shorty, New England Klezmer All Stars) for an improvised set of bass saxophone duets. Oestreicher brings swing and funk to the paring, as might be expected, and Irabagon brings his eclectic self.
Review: Paris Move
Bionini / Godard / Niggli – Fables of Time (Intakt Records, release 03/13/2026). Michel Godard – tuba / serpent / bass, Luciano Biondini – accordion, Lucas Niggli – drums / percussion.
For their third release over a thirteen-year span, Italian accordionist Luciano Biondini, Swiss percussionist Lucas Niggli and French low brass player Michel Goddard continue to make some of the more unique music being released today. By turns contemplative and energetic, the trio tackles six originals and covers ranging from Radiohead to Carla Bley to Monteverdi. So rarely played is the sinuous wooden lip-reed instrument that many of our readers may want to look up the Serpent. Recommended.
Claire Dickson – Balance(New Amsterdam Records, release 03/13/2026). Zoh Amba – tenor sax, Lex Korten – piano, Maya Keren – piano, Kitba – harp, Cleek Schrey – violin, Lesley Mok – drums , Jon Starks – drums, Claire Dickson – vocals.
Berlin-based vocalist Claire Dickson has written and recorded a set of impressionistic tunes, sparely orchestrated for a variety of small ensembles. The vocals are whispered and sighed over an ambient soundtrack. Note the contributions of violinist Cleek Shrey, a Charlottesville native.
Review: Women In Jazz Media
Gilad Barakan – Unsettled (Elza One Records release 03/10/2026). Ahmed Alom – piano, Gilad Barakan – guitar, Tal Mashiach – bass, Ofri Nehemya – drums.
In his debut, Israeli-born guitarist Gilad Barakan has brought us a lovely acoustic set with his bright guitar in the New York-based international company of Cuban-born pianist Ahmed Alom (Pedrito Martinez), Israeli-born bassist Tal Mashiach (Anat Cohen), and Israeli-born drummer Ofri Nehemya (Shai Maestro, Kurt Rosenwinkel). I don’t know much about these players, but I cannot stop listening to these beautiful tracks. Highly recommended.
Walter Smith III – Two, Vol. 2 (Blue Note, release 03/06/2026). Walter Smith III – tenor saxophone, Joe Sanders – bass, Kendrick Scott – drums with Ron Carter – bass, Branford Marsalis – tenor saxophone.
Tenor saxophonist Walter Smith III is on a tear. His last two releases as a leader were terrific (three of us are from Houston and Reuben is not, previewed 09/30/2024 & Return to Casual, previewed 04/03/2023). Now Smith returns to the trio format that was so successful for him on the original Twio dating to 2018. This time he runs through a program of covers that feature his rich tone and fluid sound. Branford Marsalis makes it a quartet on two tracks and the unison playing brings Al Cohn and Zoot Sims to my mind. Half the tracks also feature the legendary bassist Ron Carter. Spectacular. Highly recommended.
Review: Glide Magazine, AllAboutJazz
Chris Parker Septet – Reunion (Circle Nine Records, release 03/06/2026). Doug Beavers – trombone, Alejandro Aviles – alto saxophone / soprano saxophone, Dave Riekenberg – baritone saxophone / bass clarinet, Chris Parker – piano, Rob Thomas – violin, Tony Marino – string bass / electric bass, Marko Marcinko – drums / bongos / percussion, Luisito Quintero – congas / percussion.
Port Jervis, New York-based pianist Chris Parker has assembled a top-flight septet to record a set of dozen originals. The front line features trombonist Doug Beavers (Luna, previewed 07/17/2023), saxophonist Alejandro Aviles (Interplay Jazz Orchestra, Stuart Mach, Arturo O’Farrill’s Afro-Latin Jazz Orchestra), and Dave Riekenberg on baritone and bass clarinet (Hells Kitchen Funk Orchestra, Pete McGuinness Jazz Orchestra). The tunes range from samba to tango and from funk to NOLA grooves. Recommended.
Review: AllAboutJazz
Dan West – Presenting The Dan West Big Band (Wayside Records, release 03/06/2026). Ron Blake – trumpets, Francisco Torres – trombones, James King – saxophones, Tom Luer – saxophones, Dan West – piano, R.J. Root – guitar, Andrew Hill – bass, Tony Pia – drums with Lenny Castro – percussion.
LA-based pianist Dan West leads a “Big Band” created by overdubbing single trumpet, trombone and saxophone players into sections to combine with a four-piece rhythm section. The production work is seamless on a set of five originals plus covers of Herbie Hancock and Nirvana.
Review: AllAboutJazz
Gafieira Rio Miami – Beleza Pura(DBB Productions, release 10/2025). Pete Francis – trumpet, Chris Santiago – trumpet, Joel Martinez – trombone, Amed Torrecilla – tenor sax, Yainer Horta – alto saxophone, Cassio Coutinho – keyboards, Ramatis Moraes – guitar, Diogo Brown – bass, Wesley Cosvok – drums, Wesley Cosvok – drums, Hugo Sandim – percussion, Isa Duarte – vocals with Roberta Sá – vocal, Luciana Mello – vocal, Yamandu Costa – acoustic guitar, Antonio Adolfo – piano, Nestor Torres – flute, Tony Succar – percussion, Eylen Remon – vocal.
Miami-based Brazilian 11-piece big band features Samba de Gafieira, a partner dance music from Rio in the 40’s, characterized by fleet percussion-intensive poly-rhythms.
Review: Jazz Views
I hope you enjoy these discs as much as I have.
Russell Perry
Jazz at 100 Now!
If your music isn’t changing your life, you’ve simply picked the wrong songs. – Ted Gioia
