HENNING KRAGGERUD | BUGGE WESSELTOFT — Last Spring (2012) FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

Every ACT Album has it´s own story. Schloss Elmau plays a role in many. This magnificent hotel at the foot of the Bavarien Alps, far removed from everyday life and constantly flooded with culture, has inspired a number of outstanding artists from Gidon Kremer and Brad Mehldau to Esbjörn Svensson. Moreover in recent times several award-winning albums by ACT artists such as Joachim Kühn and Michael Wollny, Gwilym Simcock and Dieter Ilg have been recorded at this unique place. This time it was the launch pad for a new and surprising collaboration, simultaneously building a bridge between Classical and Jazz, and helping many people revisit and resume a long-awaited success story.
In early 2011, label owner Siggi Loch attended a concert by the Norwegian violinist Henning Kraggerud at Schloss Elmau. Afterwards, the two of them got talking, and Kraggerud mentioned the legendary Christmas album "It's snowing on my piano" by his countryman Bugge Wesseltoft: "That's our absolute favourite CD! It plays non-stop at our place every year from early December to the end of January." Upon hearing that, Siggi Loch happily introduced himself as the producer of the album. "Why don't you make another album for the rest of the year?" Kraggerud then asked. "Would you play on it?" Loch countered. "Of course," came the immediate response. The only thing that remained was to convince Bugge Wesseltoft to join them on the project. He didn't hesitate to consent, and so it was that they came together in November 2011 to record "Last Spring" in Oslo's famous Rainbow Studio, the place where "It's snowing on my piano" was recorded.
It is no coincidence that the Classical musician Kraggerud is a fan of that CD, which is the most successful ACT album to date, and which has been lauded repeatedly since its release in 1997 for its "almost celestial beauty" and as the "greatest Christmas CD of them all" (Westdeutsche Allgemeine Zeitung).
There are tangible musical predilections of Kraggerud that make understandable his love of the minimalistic and "classically" austere "It's snowing on my piano", which at the same time celebrates variation and the spirit of freedom. This 38 year-old is one of the most successful solo violinists of his time, having played with the best orchestras – most recently with the Danish National Orchestra and the London Philharmonic Orchestra – and conductors in the most prestigious concert halls around the world.
This multi-talented pupil of Camilla Wicks, Emanuel Hurwitz and Stephan Barratt-Due also lives out his passion as a chamber musician – for example in an all-star quintet with Martha Argerich, Joshua Bell, Yuri Bashmet and Mischa Maisky – as festival director, university professor and composer, and not least of all as improviser. This makes Kraggerud one of a growing number of classical musicians for whom the two great music forms Classical and Jazz are not mutually exclusive but instead complement each other – which goes without saying for this largely classically educated modern Jazz exponent.

This is important for Bugge Wesseltoft, the grand master of the synthesis of live electronics and jazz improvisation, to now show his more tranquil, classical side again. Together, Wesseltoft and Kraggerud let time progress one season from the winter theme of "It's snowing on my piano" and put together a sparkling program of 16 pieces with connections to spring for "Last Spring", which is founded mostly on Norwegian folk music. The title track is based on a theme from the great Nordic Romantic Edvard Grieg which is also apparent in many of the other tracks. Alongside folk songs like "Om Kvelden" and "Hei hu", also called upon are indigenous composers from various ages, largely unknown to us: from Anne Haavie, deceased in 1888, and Lars Søraas the Elder, to the Danish organist Otto Mortensen, who died in 1986 and the young singer and lyrist Øyonn Groven Myhren. Then there is also an improvisation on the baroque La Folia, the oldest melodic-harmonic compositional structure, and finally a rendition of Johannes Brahms' Lullaby.

As the title intimates, "Last Spring" is a revisiting of spring. It is not an exulting, whirling awakening, but a sustained, minimalistic meditation, oriented strongly towards the details, the variance of the melodies, the breadth and beauty of the sound. It is based on the most perfect interaction possible: Wesseltoft's soft piano daubs melt like wax into the pizzicato melodies that Kraggerud entices out of his 1744 Guarneri violin, his Harald Lund viola and his unique six-stringed viola Concorda.
This magical duo succeeds in gleaning new sound ideas and facets from spring, just as the original concept intended. There won't be much doubt as to which CD will be playing from February to May in Norway. And not just then and there... ACT
Tracklist :
1    Blåmann    4:55
2    Om Kvelden    6:12
3    Margit Hjukse    3:24
4    Stevtone    5:44
5    Hei Hu    3:57
6    Jeg Lagde Meg Så Silde    5:58
7    Lilja    5:08
8    Last Spring (Based On Edvard Grieg)    5:52
9    Byssan Lull    2:58
10    Den Fyrste Song    3:38
11    Gjendines Bådnlåt    5:46
12    Maria Durch Ein Dornwald Ging    4:42
13    Sæterjentens Søndag (Based On Ole Bull / Johann Svendsen)    4:58
14    La Folia (Improvisation)    2:44
15    Til Ungdommen     3:39
16    Wiegenlied (Johannes Brahms)    3:10
Credits :
Piano – Bugge Wesseltoft
Composed By [Melody By] – Anne Haavie (tracks: 1), Lars Søraas Senior (tracks: 10), Otto Mortensen (tracks: 15)
Violin, Viola, Viola [Viola Concorda] – Henning Kraggerud

SATOKO FUJII 藤井郷子 — Kitsune-bi (1999) Serie New Japan | FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

Pianist Satoko Fujii leads a beautiful date featuring solo pieces, duets with soprano saxophonist Sachi Hayasaka, and trio numbers with eminent bassist Mark Dresser and ingenious percussionist Jim Black. Kitsune-Bi sounds great the first time through, and becomes more wildly impressive with each listen, revealing multi-layered depths. The pieces are all originals (except Jimmy Giuffre's "Moonlight"). The album opens with "Hizumi," a trio tune that begins with the musicians feeling each other out. They gel within the first minute, and Dresser soon starts performing double duty, moving around rhythmically with Black while simultaneously interacting with Fujii. The clincher is Dresser's ability to mimic all the sounds of the piano theme; it's mind-boggling that he can create these sounds with a bass. "Sound of Stone" is a solo piano piece that Fujii opens by musically chalking out the boundaries. A dark chord signals the end of the sketching, and she proceeds to fill the piece with dramatic runs and stalls, momentous build-up and thinning-out contrasts, and clusters that move up the scale followed by single notes that tinkle back down. This excellent melodic piece showcases her ability without turning into a show of empty virtuosity. "Zauzy" is a duet between piano and soprano saxophone; Fujii and Hayasaka play foil to each other, giving the impression of notes flying from a large, spinning music wheel. About 18 minutes into the trio piece "Past of Life," the group recalls the groove and interaction of Tim Berne's Bloodcount. Altogether, Kitsune-Bi is a stunning album filled with amazing interplay and stellar compositions. The astonishing skill and distinctive style on display here is somewhat surprising, considering that this is only Satoko Fujii's second U.S. release. Kitsune-Bi is an achievement of constantly flowing brilliance and creativity. Joslyn Layne
Tracklist :
1    Hizumi    6:26
 Composed By – Satoko Fujii
2    Sound Of Stone    4:56
 Composed By – Satoko Fujii
3    Zauzy    2:08
 Composed By – Satoko Fujii
4    Past Of Life    6:34
 Composed By – Satoko Fujii
5    Bal-lad    3:02 |
 Composed By – Satoko Fujii
6    Drops    7:09
 Composed By – Satoko Fujii
7a    Moonlight    9:00
 Composed By – Jimmy Giuffre
7b    Sola
 Composed By – Satoko Fujii
8    Kitsune-bi    8:10
 Composed By – Satoko Fujii
9    This Is The Thing That I Have Forgotten    4:32
 Composed By – Satoko Fujii
Credits :
Design – Ikue Mori
Double Bass – Mark Dresser
Drums – Jim Black
Executive-Producer – John Zorn
Painting [Cover] – Ichiji Tamura
Piano – Satoko Fujii
Soprano Saxophone [Soprano Sax] – Sachi Hayasaka (tracks: 3, 5, 8)

THE KALEIDOSCOPE QUINTET — Dancing On The Edge (2020) FLAC (tracks), lossless

Tracklist :
1    Topsy Turvy 10:10
Composed By – Joe Lovano
2    Day And Night 15:30
Composed By – David Liebman
3    Blackwell's Message 18:02
Composed By – Joe Lovano
4    There Is No Greater Love 8:25
Composed By – Isham Jones
5    Get Me Back To The Apple 10:37
Composed By – David Liebman
Credits :
Bass – Tony Marino
Drums, Liner Notes, Producer [Produced By] – Michael Stephans
Tenor Saxophone, Flute, Producer [Produced By] – Joe Lovano
Tenor Saxophone, Soprano Saxophone, Flute, Producer [Produced By] – David Liebman
Voice, Featuring, Painting [Cover Painting] – Judi Silvano

THUMBSCREW — Never Is Enough (2021) FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

Tracklist :
1    Camp Easy 6:41
Tomas Fujiwara
2    Sequel to Sadness 6:14
Mary Halvorson
3    Never Is Enough 6:54
Michael Formanek
4    Through an Open Window 5:33
Tomas Fujiwara
5    Heartdrop 4:47
Mary Halvorson
6    Emojis Have Consequences 5:55
Michael Formanek
7    Fractured Sanity 5:43
Mary Halvorson
8    Unsung Procession 6:25
Tomas Fujiwara
9    Scam Likely 8:36
Michael Formanek
Credits :
Double Bass, Electric Bass – Michael Formanek
Drums – Tomas Fujiwara
Guitar – Mary Halvorson

PRINCE LASHA QUINTET ft. SONNY SIMMONS – The Cry ! (1963-2001) RM | Original Jazz Classics Limited Edition Series | FLAC (image+.cue), lossless

In the early '60s, flutist Prince Lasha's work with alto saxophonist Sonny Simmons was often compared to the trailblazing free jazz that Ornette Coleman was exploring at the time. To be sure, Coleman was a major inspiration to both of them. And yet, The Cry! demonstrates that Lasha's work with Simmons had an avant-garde energy of its own. Coleman is a strong influence on this 1962 session -- which Lasha co-led with Simmons -- but The Cry! isn't an outright imitation of Coleman's work any more than Phil Woods' recordings are outright imitations of Charlie Parker's. For one thing, The Cry! is slightly more accessible than the albums that Coleman recorded for Atlantic in the early '60s. Free jazz performances like "Bojangles," "A.Y.," and the rhythmic "Congo Call" are abstract, cerebral, and left-of-center, but they're still a bit more accessible than Coleman's harmolodic experimentation. The same thing goes for the Latin-influenced "Juanita" and the bluesy "Red's Mood," which is Coleman-minded but also has a strong Charlie Parker influence -- in fact, the tune successfully bridges the gap between Bird and Coleman and shows listeners what those altoists had in common. It should be noted that, even though The Cry! (which employs Gary Peacock or Mark Proctor on acoustic bass and Gene Stone on drums) is free jazz, it isn't the blistering, ferocious stuff that Albert Ayler, Cecil Taylor, and late-period John Coltrane were known for in the 1960s. This album is quirky and dissonant, but it isn't harsh or confrontational. In avant-garde circles, The Cry! went down in history as one of Lasha's finest accomplishments -- and deservedly so. Alex Henderson
Tracklist :
1    Congo Call    5:02
  Written-By – Prince Lasha, Sonny Simmons
2    Bojangles    7:00
  Written-By – Prince Lasha, Sonny Simmons
3    Green And Gold    4:52
  Written-By – Prince Lasha, Sonny Simmons
4    Ghost Of The Past    4:49
  Written-By – Prince Lasha, Sonny Simmons
5    Red's Mood    5:04
  Written-By – Prince Lasha, Sonny Simmons
6    Juanita    5:32
  Written-By – Prince Lasha, Sonny Simmons
7    Lost Generation    5:15
  Written-By – Prince Lasha, Sonny Simmons
8    A.Y.    4:46
  Written-By – Prince Lasha, Sonny Simmons
Credits :
Alto Saxophone – Sonny Simmons
Bass – Gary Peacock, Mark Proctor (tracks: 1, 3 to 6)
Drums – Gene Stone
Flute – Prince Lasha