Photo: Steven Laschever

On Friday, February 24th, veteran bassist/composer Mario Pavone will return to New York’s Cornelia Street Café for a two-set performance with his Mythos Sextet. The group, which features frequent collaborators Dave Ballou (trumpet), Tony Malaby (tenor saxophone), Philippe Crettien (tenor saxophone), Craig Taborn (piano) and Gerald Cleaver (drums), will debut brand new music as well as celebrate the 10th anniversary of his 2002 Playscape Recordings release, Mythos.

In its critic’s pick for his July performance at Cornelia Street, Time Out New York declared, “The work of Mario Pavone bridges the dissonant, structurally open world of the avant-garde and the pulsing, swinging accessibility of the jazz tradition.” His music has also been described as “invariably exhilarating” (Steve Futterman, Jazziz), “filled with passion and the sound of surprise” (Owen McNally, Hartford Courant) and “at once intellectual and swinging, investigative and declarative” (Josef Woodard, DownBeat).

A 45-year veteran of the creative music scene, Pavone has earned his reputation as “a bassist-composer of experience and vision” (Nate Chinen, New York Times), first as a sideman to such legendary figures as Paul Bley, Thomas Chapin and Bill Dixon, and most recently under his own name as ”one of the very best—and when on his game, by far the best—small-group composer/leaders working on the East Coast” (Brian Morton, Point of Departure).

In 2010, he celebrated his 70th birthday by releasing Arc Suite T/Pi T/Po, his 20th recording as a leader/co-leader, featuring original music commissioned by Chamber Music America’s 2009 New Jazz Works: Commissioning and Ensemble Development program. His performance of that material at the 2010 Litchfield Jazz Festival was featured on NPR’s JazzSet with Dee Dee Bridgewater earlier this month. Learn more about Mario Pavone at http://mariopavone.com

Congratulations to our clients on being recognized by the following 2011 polls and year-end lists!

Darcy James Argue

DownBeat Critics’ Poll: Rising Star Composer (#1)

DownBeat Critics’ Poll: Rising Star Big Band (#2)

DownBeat Readers’ Poll: Big Band (#2)

JazzTimes Readers’ Poll: Best Big Band (#3)

100 Composers Under 40
—NPR in conjunction with WQXR 

Top 10 concerts/gigs in Ottawa
—Peter Hum, Ottawa Citizen 

Top 10 Concerts Of The Year (Brooklyn Babylon)
—David R. Adler, New York City Jazz Record

Noteworthy Live Shows This Year (Brooklyn Babylon)
—Ralph A. Miriello, Jazz Journalists Association

AUM Fidelity

Darius Jones

Musicians Of The Year
—The New York City Jazz Record

Darius Jones & Matthew Shipp, Cosmic Lieder (AUM066)

Top 10 New Releases of 2011
—Francis Davis, Rhapsody Jazz Critics’ Poll 

Top 10 New Releases of 2011
—Steve Dollar, Rhapsody Jazz Critics’ Poll 

Top 10 New Releases of 2011
—Ed Hazell, Rhapsody Jazz Critics’ Poll 

Top 10 New Releases of 2011
—Tim Niland, Rhapsody Jazz Critics’ Poll 

Top Albums For 2011
—S. Victor Aaron, Something Else!

Top 10 New Releases For 2011
—Tim Niland, Music and More 

Top 10 of 2011
—Stanley Zappa, Free Jazz 

Top 30 of 2011
—Andrew Forbes, THIS IS OUR MUSIC.

2011’s Ten Best New Releases
—Alain Drouot, Jazz Journalists Association

Albums of the Year: Honorable Mentions
—The New York City Jazz Record 

Top 10 Concerts of the Year
—Andrey Henkin, The New York City Jazz Record

Farmers By Nature, Out Of This World’s Distortions (AUM067)

Top 5 Albums of 2011
—Kevin Le Gendre, BBC 

Top 10 New Releases of 2011
—David Fricke, Rhapsody Jazz Critics’ Poll 

Top 10 New Releases of 2011
—John Sharpe, Rhapsody Jazz Critics’ Poll 

Top Ten New Releases of 2011
—Kevin Le Gendre, Jazzwise 

Top Ten New Releases of 2011
—Daniel Spicer, Jazzwise 

Best New Jazz/Improvised Music Albums of 2011
—Steve Holtje, Culture Catch

Albums of the Year: Honorable Mentions
—The New York City Jazz Record 

Best Releases of 2011
—John Sharpe, AllAboutJazz.com 

David S. Ware/Cooper-Moore/WilliamParker/Muhammad Ali, Planetary Unknown (AUM068)

Jazz & Improv A-Z
—The Wire 

Record Of The Year (#34)
—Rhapsody Jazz Critics’ Poll

Top 10 New Releases of 2011
—Clifford Allen, Rhapsody Jazz Critics’ Poll 

Top 10 New Releases of 2011
—Larry Birnbaum, Rhapsody Jazz Critics’ Poll 

Top 10 New Releases of 2011
—Troy Collins, Rhapsody Jazz Critics’ Poll 

Top 10 New Releases of 2011
—Steve Dollar, Rhapsody Jazz Critics’ Poll 

Top 10 New Releases of 2011
—David Fricke, Rhapsody Jazz Critics’ Poll 

Top 10 New Releases of 2011
—Aiden Levy, Rhapsody Jazz Critics’ Poll 

Top 10 New Releases of 2011
—Chris Monsen, Rhapsody Jazz Critics’ Poll 

Top 10 New Releases of 2011
—Bret Saunders, Rhapsody Jazz Critics’ Poll 

Top Ten New Releases of 2011
— Daniel Spicer, Jazzwise 

Top 10 Satisfying CDs of 2011
—Bret Saunders, Denver Post

Top 10 Albums of 2011
—Lawrence Joseph, Montreal Mirror

Best New Jazz/Improvised Music Albums of 2011
—Steve Holtje, Culture Catch

Top 10 of 2011
—Stanley Zappa, Free Jazz 

Best New Releases of 2011
—Troy Collins, AllAboutJazz.com 

Best New Releases of 2011
—Clifford Allen, Ni Kantu 

Top 10 New Releases For 2011
—Tim Niland, Music and More 

Best of 2011
—Antonio Terzo, Jazz Journalists Association 

Favorite 20 + 3 for 2011
—John Braithwaite, CKUT 90.3 FM

Albums of the Year: Honorable Mentions
—The New York City Jazz Record 

Darius Jones Trio, Big Gurl (AUM069)

Albums of the Year
—The New York City Jazz Record 

Record Of The Year (#19)
—Rhapsody Jazz Critics’ Poll

Top 10 New Releases of 2011
—Larry Birnbaum, Rhapsody Jazz Critics’ Poll 

Top 10 New Releases of 2011
—Troy Collins, Rhapsody Jazz Critics’ Poll 

Top 10 New Releases of 2011
—Steve Dollar, Rhapsody Jazz Critics’ Poll 

Top 10 New Releases of 2011
—Laurence Donohue-Greene, Rhapsody Jazz Critics’ Poll 

Top 10 New Releases of 2011
—Alain Drouot, Rhapsody Jazz Critics’ Poll 

Top 10 New Releases of 2011
—Tad Hendrickson, Rhapsody Jazz Critics’ Poll 

Top 10 New Releases of 2011
—Lyn Horton, Rhapsody Jazz Critics’ Poll 

Top 10 New Releases of 2011
—Chris Monsen, Rhapsody Jazz Critics’ Poll 

Top 10 New Releases of 2011
—John Sharpe, Rhapsody Jazz Critics’ Poll 

Top 10 New Releases of 2011
—Jeff Stockton, Rhapsody Jazz Critics’ Poll 

Top Jazz Albums of 2011
—Shaun Brady, Philadelphia City Paper 

Best New Releases of 2011
—Troy Collins, AllAboutJazz.com 

Best Releases of 2011
—John Sharpe, AllAboutJazz.com 

Top 10 of 2011
—Guy Peters, Free Jazz 

Top 10 of 2011
—Tony Verstraete, Free Jazz 

Top 10 of 2011
—Lyn Horton, The Paradigm For Beauty

Top 10 New Releases
—Laurence Donohue-Greene, Jazz Journalists Association

Top 10 New Releases
—Shaun Brady, Jazz Journalists Association

Top 10 for 2011
—Tad Hendrickson, Jazz Journalists Association

Best of 2011: New Releases
—Luke Stewart, Jazz Journalists Association

Favorite 20 + 3 for 2011
—John Braithwaite, CKUT 90.3 FM

David S. Ware, Organica (AUM070)

Top 10 New Releases of 2011
—Larry Birnbaum, Rhapsody Jazz Critics’ Poll 

Top Jazz Albums of 2011
—Shaun Brady, Philadelphia City Paper 

Best of 2011: Jazz
—Bill Meyer, Dusted 

Best New Jazz/Improvised Music Albums of 2011
—Steve Holtje, Culture Catch

Top 30 of 2011
—Andrew Forbes, THIS IS OUR MUSIC.

Top 10 New Releases
—Shaun Brady, Jazz Journalists Association

James Falzone

DownBeat Critics’ Poll: Rising Star Clarinet (#4)

Great Arts Events I Was At 2011
—Janis Hashe, Chattanooga Pulse

KLANG, Other Doors (Allos Documents)

The year’s best jazz CDs
—Neil Tesser, Examiner.com 

Top 10 New Releases of 2011
—Lyn Horton, Rhapsody Jazz Critics’ Poll 

Top 10 New Releases of 2011
—Derek Taylor, Rhapsody Jazz Critics’ Poll 

Favorite 20 + 3 for 2011
—John Braithwaite, CKUT 90.3 FM

Albums of the Year: Honorable Mentions
—The New York City Jazz Record

Best of 2011
—Antonio Terzo, Jazz Journalists Association

Top 13 of 2011
—Neil Tesser, Jazz Journalists Association

Mary Halvorson

DownBeat Critics’ Poll: Rising Star Guitar (#1)

Best Guitarist 2011
—Village Voice, Best of New York

100 Composers Under 40
—NPR in conjunction with WQXR 

Mary Halvorson & Jessica Pavone, Departure Of Reason (Thirsty Ear)

My favorite albums of 2011
—Peter Margasak, Chicago Reader 

Top 10 New Releases of 2011
—Lyn Horton, Rhapsody Jazz Critics’ Poll 

Top Albums for 2011
—Mark Saleski, Something Else!

Top 10 of 2011
—Lyn Horton, The Paradigm For Beauty

Weasel Walter/Mary Halvorson/Peter Evans, Electric Fruit (Thirsty Ear)

Top 10 New Releases of 2011
—Alain Drouot, Rhapsody Jazz Critics’ Poll 

2011’s Ten Best New Releases
—Alain Drouot, Jazz Journalists Association

Fay Victor

Other Dimensions In Music featuring Fay Victor, Kaiso Stories (Silkheart)

Vocal Releases of the Year
—The New York City Jazz Record 

Best Vocal Album (#6)
—Rhapsody Jazz Critics’ Poll 

Record Of The Year (#40)
—Rhapsody Jazz Critics’ Poll 

Vocal Release of the Year
—John Szwed, Rhapsody Jazz Critics’ Poll 

Vocal Release of the Year + Top 10 New Releases of 2011
—Laurence Donohue-Greene, Rhapsody Jazz Critics’ Poll 

Vocal Release of the Year + Top 10 New Releases of 2011
—Ed Hazell, Rhapsody Jazz Critics’ Poll 

Vocal Release of the Year + Top 10 New Releases of 2011
—Robert Iannapollo, Rhapsody Jazz Critics’ Poll 

Vocal Release of the Year + Top 10 New Releases of 2011
—Chris Monsen, Rhapsody Jazz Critics’ Poll 

Vocal Release of the Year + Top 10 New Releases of 2011
—Derek Taylor, Rhapsody Jazz Critics’ Poll 

Albums of the Year
—Laurence Donohue-Greene, The New York City Jazz Record

Best of 2011
—Derek Taylor, Dusted

Vocal releases of 2011
—John Szwed, Jazz Journalists Association 

Top 10 New Releases + Vocal releases of 2011
—Laurence Donohue-Greene, Jazz Journalists Association 

Top 10 of 2011
—Guy Peters, Free Jazz

Top 10 of 2011
—Stanley Zappa, Free Jazz

Favourites for 2011
—CKUT 90.3 FM 

Favorite 20 + 3 for 2011
—John Braithwaite, CKUT 90.3 FM 

Photo by Steven Laschever

Veteran bassist/composer Mario Pavone and his band Nu Unit will perform music from his latest release, Arc Suite T/Pi T/Po (Playscape Recordings), in Boston and New York respectively over the next two nights.

Nu Unit, a touring version of Pavone’s acclaimed Orange Double Tenor ensemble, features saxophonists Tony Malaby and Philippe Cretien (tonight only), cornetist Dave Ballou, pianist Craig Taborn, guitarist Michael Pavone and drummer Matt Wilson.

Tonight at 6:00 p.m., the group will play at The Rivers School Conservatory Jazz Festival in the Boston suburb of Weston, Massachusetts (a master class precedes the show at 3:00 p.m.), followed by a two-set performance at New York’s Cornelia Street Café on Saturday night starting at 9:00 p.m.

Arc Suite T/Pi T/Po is Pavone’s 20th recording as a leader/co-leader and its release last fall was part of the celebration of his 70th birthday.

Reviewers called the music “vivid from start to finish” (Jeff Stockton, Jazziz), “rich and adventurously probing” (Josef Woodard, DownBeat), “emotionally charged and intellectually stimulating” (Glen Hall, Exclaim!) and “a superb demonstration of Pavone’s authoritative writing and leadership skills” (Troy Collins, Point of Departure).

AllAboutJazz.com’s Nic Jones adds, “In view of how far jazz/improvised music has come, carving out fresh territory in the small group area is a feat in itself, but Pavone and his group do it with aplomb. The result is fresh, invigorated, compelling music-making.”

Learn more about Mario Pavone at http://mariopavone.com

DownBeat‘s August issue is reaching subscribers now and with it the results of the 59th Annual Critics Poll.

We’re very pleased to report that our clients are well represented and in more categories than ever before.

AUM Fidelity earned the number nine spot on the Jazz Album of the Year list with William Parker’s I Plan To Stay A Believer: The Inside Songs of Curtis Mayfield, while its recording artists Darius Jones (Rising Star Alto Saxophone) and David S. Ware (Tenor Saxophone) made strong showings in their respective categories.

The members of Farmers By Nature, who recently released their second AUM Fidelity record, Out Of This World’s Distortions, also made some noise for their recent individual accomplishments. William Parker and Gerald Cleaver were recognized in the Bass and Rising Star Drums categories respectively, and Craig Taborn scored a hat trick with wins for Rising Star Piano, Electronic Keyboard and Rising Star Organ.

Darcy James Argue got the most votes in the Rising Star Composer category and his GRAMMY® nominated big band Secret Society grabbed the second spot for Rising Star Big Band. He and the group were also recognized in the Arranger, Rising Star Arranger, Composer and Big Band categories.

James Falzone, who appeared on three very different recordings in the past year (KLANG’s Other Doors, Allos Musica Trio’s Lamentations and Vox Arcana’s Aerial Age), was fourth in the Rising Star Clarinet category.

Firehouse 12 Records and Mary Halvorson share the credit for Saturn Sings‘ number eight spot on the Jazz Album of the Year list.

Ms. Halvorson also went on to win for Rising Star Guitar while also being recognized in the Rising Star Jazz Artist category. Her longstanding trio, featuring Rising Star Bass winner John Hébert, finished fourth in the Rising Star Jazz Group category.

Last but definitely not least, Fay Victor, who has been impressing critics and fans alike in recent months with her own bands as well as collaborations with Other Dimensions In Music and the ICP Orchestra, was recognized in both the Rising Star Female Vocals and Female Vocals categories.

Congratulations to all the musicians and labels on this recognition of their work and thanks to all the voters for their attention and support of our clients and their music.

Photo by John Rogers

Farmers By Nature, featuring pianist Craig Taborn, bassist William Parker and drummer Gerald Cleaver, kicks-off its six-city European tour tonight in Amsterdam.

The four year-old improvising trio is celebrating the release of its second AUM Fidelity recording, Out Of This World’s Distortions, with performances in The Netherlands, France and Slovenia.

Friday, June 24th at 8:30 p.m.
Bimhuis
Amsterdam, The Netherlands

Saturday, June 25th at 6:00 p.m.
musée du quai Branly
Paris, France

Sunday, June 26th at 7:00 p.m.
Jazz Agricole Day
Puimichel, France

Monday, June 27th at 9:00 p.m.
Cité de la Musique de Marseille
Marseille, France

Tuesday, June 28th at 8:30 p.m.
Petit Kursaal
Besançon, France

Wednesday, June 29th at 9:15 p.m.
Klub CD
Ljubljana, Slovenia

Critics have called Out Of This World’s Distortions “a conversation at an otherworldly level” (S. Victor Aaron, Something Else!), ”a deeply wistful, bracing musical adventure” (Kevin Le Gendre, Jazzwise), and ”a novel variation on an enduring format that transcends customary expectations through considered interplay and empathetic unanimity” (Troy Collins, Point Of Departure).

“Like on the previous album,” adds Free Jazz blogger Stef Gijssels, “this piano trio again demonstrates that it’s one of the best around…one of those rare piano trios that manages to create a common sound, rather than being just a piano plus rhythm section. The music is intelligent, creative, expressive, incredibly well-paced and precise.”

Learn more about Farmers By Nature and its members’ other AUM Fidelity releases at http://www.aumfidelity.com

The July issue of Jazzwise features four-star reviews of the two latest AUM Fidelity releases, Farmers By Nature’s Out Of This World’s Distortions (AUM067) and David S. Ware/Cooper-Moore/William Parker/Muhammad Ali’s Planetary Unknown (AUM068).

In his review of the former, Kevin Le Gendre notes the trio’s trademark “contrast of high energy sonic exuberance and meditative delicacy.”

“Creating a developmental arc in a song that is more about understated, incremental movements rather than outright ‘chapter headings’ has been practiced by many in jazz over the years,” he writes, “but it is done with consummate authority here, and the title track is the high point of this extreme attention to detail in the touch of every member of the band. The result is a deeply wistful, bracing musical adventure.”

“The four musicians had never worked together as a group when they gathered in Brooklyn in late 2010,” explains Marcus O’Dair in his review of Planetary Unknown, “but the seven tracks they laid down are gravity-defying.”

He adds, “Both Ware and Parker have worked with Cecil Taylor, while Ali—who hasn’t recorded for 30 years—played with Albert Ayler; the spirits of both forefathers are evident here, alongside that of Coltrane at his most ecstatic. Despite its debt to the blistering, transcendent spirit of the 1960’s, however, the album feels fresh.”

Farmers By Nature kicks off its six-city European CD release tour tomorrow in Paris and Ware will play back-to-back solo sets this weekend in New York at AUM Fidelity’s two-week series at The Stone (Friday) and Undead Jazzfest (Saturday).

Learn more about AUM Fidelity, its artists and its releases at http://www.aumfidelity.com

Tonight at 8:00 p.m., Farmers By Nature will celebrate its latest AUM Fidelity release, Out Of This World’s Distortions (AUM067), with a performance at Montreal’s Suoni Per Il Popolo Festival.

The group, which features Craig Taborn (piano), William Parker (bass) and Gerald Cleaver (drums), will then head to Europe for a six-city tour of France, Slovenia and The Netherlands beginning on Friday.

“Like seeds planted in the fertile ground of inventiveness,” writes AllAboutJazz.com’s Mark F. Turner, “the trio’s ideas germinate into enthralling music that is organic and spontaneous.”

Reviewers have called them “three of the most accomplished improvisers to be found anywhere” (Eric Snider, Creative Loafing), “a testament to rumination” (Jim Macnie, Village Voice), and “a group that has a language all its own” (Bill Meyer, DownBeat).

“Sensitive and subtle,” adds Jazzwise contributor Kevin Le Gendre, “the group dynamic is as impassioned as a Brötzmann juggernaut yet as delicate as sashimi.”

Learn more about Farmers By Nature and its members’ other AUM Fidelity releases at http://www.aumfidelity.com

Photo by Steven Laschever

Veteran bassist/composer Mario Pavone will hit the road in July to perform music from his latest release, Arc Suite T/Pi T/Po (Playscape Recordings).

Pavone and his band Nu Unit will play at The Rivers School Conservatory in Weston, Massachusetts on Friday, July 15th at 6:00 p.m. (a master class precedes the show at 3:00 p.m.), followed by a two-set performance at New York’s Cornelia Street Café on Saturday, July 16th starting at 9:00 p.m.

The group, a touring version of his acclaimed Orange Double Tenor ensemble, features saxophonists Tony Malaby and Philippe Cretien (7/15 only), cornetist Dave Ballou, pianist Craig Taborn, guitarist Michael Pavone and drummer Matt Wilson.

“At 70,” writes Philadelphia Weekly‘s David R. Adler, “Mario Pavone continues to blaze the path he embarked on in the late ’60s, bridging the dissonant, structurally open world of the avant-garde and the swinging accessibility of jazz tradition. Like Dave Holland, he’s a prolific leader and composer and a monster bassist, with a raft of recent standouts on the Playscape Recordings label to his credit.”

Critics called Arc Suite T/Pi T/Po “vivid from start to finish” (Jeff Stockton, Jazziz), “rich and adventurously probing” (Josef Woodard, DownBeat), “emotionally charged and intellectually stimulating” (Glen Hall, Exclaim!) and “a superb demonstration of Pavone’s authoritative writing and leadership skills” (Troy Collins, Point of Departure).

AllAboutJazz.com’s Nic Jones adds, “In view of how far jazz/improvised music has come, carving out fresh territory in the small group area is a feat in itself, but Pavone and his group do it with aplomb. The result is fresh, invigorated, compelling music-making.”

A 45-year veteran of the creative music scene, Pavone began his career as a sideman to such legendary figures as Paul Bley, Thomas Chapin and Bill Dixon, and has since become a highly regarded composer and bandleader in his own right.

Arc Suite T/Pi T/Po is his 20th release as a leader/co-leader and features a new book of original music commissioned by Chamber Music America’s 2009 New Jazz Works: Commissioning and Ensemble Development program. He has since performed these pieces at venues all around the Northeast as well as on NPR’s Jazz Set with Dee Dee Bridgewater.

When not leading or composing for his own groups, or collaborating with members of the latest generation of creative improvisers, such as saxophonist Pete Robbins and drummer Tyshawn Sorey, Pavone is an avid photographer and President of Litchfield Performing Arts, presenter of the annual Litchfield Jazz Festival and Litchfield Jazz Camp.

Learn more at Mario Pavone in this recent 70th birthday interview on The Jazz Session with Jason Crane and on his Web site at http://www.mariopavone.com

Today is the official street date for AUM Fidelity‘s two June releases, Farmers By Nature’s Out Of This World’s Distortions (AUM067) and David S. Ware/Cooper-Moore/William Parker/Muhammad Ali’s Planetary Unknown (AUM068).

Out Of This World’s Distortions is the second recording by the improvising trio of Gerald Cleaver (drums), William Parker (bass) and Craig Taborn (piano), which takes its name from its acclaimed 2009 debut, Farmers By Nature (AUM053). This latest effort further demonstrates the highly fruitful level of interaction its members have cultivated over the past four years.

“This isn’t a piano trio with rhythm and the keyboard out front,” explains AllAboutJazz.com’s John Sharpe. “The three parts are wholly equal…an almost telepathic understanding, promoting exciting seat of the pants navigation and unfettered expression, safe in the knowledge that any unexpected turns will be spiritedly pursued. Their egalitarian outlook ensures ample space for each, arising in unforced natural progressions.”

Point of Departure‘s Troy Collins adds, “This studio session pristinely conveys a continuous exchange of ideas that expand through a wide range of dynamics, veering from understated pointillism to raucous expressionism. Their conversational interplay espouses the hushed tones of pellucid key strokes, bowed string harmonics and shimmering cymbal washes as readily as the dense note clusters, thrumming bass drones and roiling trap set palpitations of their more aggressive excursions—often segueing seamlessly between approaches in the same tune…a novel variation on an enduring format that transcends customary expectations through considered interplay and empathetic unanimity.”

Farmers By Nature will celebrate its new release with a performance at Montreal’s Suoni Per Il Popolo Festival on June 21st followed by a six-city tour of France, Slovenia and The Netherlands beginning June 24th.

Planetary Unknown documents the birth of the new improvising supergroup of the same name, while also marking the first collaboration by Ware and Cooper-Moore (né Gene Ashton) in 30 years and the first appearance on record by Ali since the early 1980′s. The all-star quartet just made its live debut at Vision Festival 16 on Friday night, an event Time Out New York named one of its 25 must-see NYC summer jazz shows.

“Almost immediately,” writes The Wire‘s Julian Cowley, “the collective force of this stellar group kicks in, evolving dynamic forms that revitalize yet again the blazing language of free jazz. Cecil Taylor once observed that John Coltrane’s tone was beautiful because it was functional, meaning that it was always involved in actually saying something, never an empty display of his formidable technique. Such functional beauty is the business of this quartet.”

“Every moment is breathtaking,” declares The New York City Jazz Record‘s Marc Medwin. “The level of invention is staggering, Cooper-Moore matching Ware in every trill, arpeggio and overtone-laden growl with swoops, chordal passages and inter-registral showers of crystal…expanding on every implication in Ware’s vast vocabulary. The team of William Parker and Muhammad Ali is no less engaging.”

Point of Departure‘s Ed Hazell adds, “David S. Ware plays with such solemn power and majesty that his soloing begs comparisons to mountains or waterfalls. In fact, it’s hard to avoid ecological metaphors when discussing his latest album, Planetary Unknown, so completely do Ware, pianist Cooper-Moore, bassist William Parker, and drummer Muhammad Ali create their own world of sound, a landscape in which one can sense the presence of the divine in much the same way that Walden inspired Thoreau or Yosemite John Muir. Listening to this quartet makes Transcendentalists of us all.”

Planetary Unknown is currently planning future performances, but Ware is celebrating the record, as well as his other recent titles on the label, with a series of solo shows in Toronto (this past Sunday night), Montreal (tonight at the Suoni Per Il Popolo Festival) and New York (June 24th at The Stone and June 25th at Undead Jazzfest).

Learn more about AUM Fidelity, which will present two weeks of music at The Stone starting on Thursday night, at http://aumfidelity.com

Nic Jones’ review of Farmers By Nature’s latest AUM Fidelity release, Out Of This World’s Distortions, was posted today at AllAboutJazz.com

“Pianist Craig Taborn, bassist William Parker and drummer Gerald Cleaver have the ability to produce work that’s never stale,” Jones writes. “But saying that they always come to play doesn’t do them justice: individually and collectively, they have a knack for carving out their own space, and this program makes that point in no uncertain terms…all three players work with the kind of unassuming reverence which is easily talked about but nowhere near as easily struck.”

He adds, “Parker is at a stage in his life where two notes from his bass can carry authority, while Taborn’s shading is the work of a man alert to worlds of possibility. Cleaver’s also a musician capable of extraordinary subtlety, and the result of this collective effort is a three-way discussion of a highly cerebral but earthy order.”

Out Of This World’s Distortions officially hits the streets June 14th.

Farmers By Nature is celebrating its release with a performance at Montreal’s Suoni Per Il Popolo Festival on June 21st followed by a six-city tour of France, Slovenia and The Netherlands beginning June 24th.

Learn more about AUM Fidelity and its releases at http://www.aumfidelity.com