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The first European jazz festival I ever attended was in 2006. It was the Umbria Jazz Festival in Perugia, Italy, one of the biggest. Tens of thousands of people overran the cobblestone streets and piazzas of Perugia's old town. The music began before noon and ended long after midnight. At the end of 10 days, I was delirious from joy and sleep deprivation.

I was also hooked. I had to go back. I have now been to more than 50 European festivals in 13 countries. They are all different, but they have one thing in common…

Kris Davis: Diatom Ribbons (Pyroclastic). Available in 24/96 (Qobuz), 16/44.1 (Tidal).

Ingrid Laubrock: Dreamt Twice, Twice Dreamt (Intakt). 16/44.1 (Tidal and Qobuz).

Elias Stemeseder: Piano Solo (Intakt). 16/44.1 (Tidal and Qobuz).

Francesco Diodati: Yellow Squeeds Never the Same (Jazz Engine). Stereophile's May 2019 Recording of the Month. 16/44.1 (Qobuz and Tidal).

Reinier Baas/Jonas Burgwinkel/Kit Downes: Deadeye (Dox Records). 24/96 (Qobuz), 16/44.1 (Tidal).

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Having quit his day job as a construction manager, Gill has not only had more time to listen to his hi-fi, which includes components from Fern and Roby (turntable), Tru-Glider (tonearm), DS Audio (phono stage), MicroZOTL (preamp), David Berning and Bryston (amps), AER BD3…

Difficult times can be fertile ground for great music, and at present, the UK music scene appears to be in a healthier state than its economy. Big Joanie is one of the strongest signs of the fineness of its fettle.

Back Home is the second album from the three young Black women—Stephanie Phillips (lead vocals/guitar), Estelle Adeyeri (vocals/bass), and Chardine Taylor-Stone (vocals/drums)—who call themselves Big Jonie. They have been steadily…

At first, to hear this record is to be overwhelmed with sadness. Keith Jarrett suffered two strokes in 2018. It is unlikely that he will ever perform again. Bordeaux Concert reminds us of what we have lost. It comes from a European tour in 2016. ECM has previously released two other concerts from that tour, Munich 2016 in 2019 and Budapest Concert in 2020.

The improvised solo piano concert is an…

Joy unbounded—just what many of us need right now. In a reprise of her first recording of this sort, Sarah Willis, Berlin Philharmonic French horn player and internet star, teams up with the Havana Lyceum Orchestra to complement Mozart's first two horn concertos with a new work, "Cuban Dances for Solo Horn, Strings,…

This big rig included a Kronos Pro turntable with Black Beauty tonearm and Ultra Cap power supply ($51,000) running a Hana Umami Red cartridge (3900). An Esoteric K1 Grandioso CD/SACD player ($31,…

The "by commission only" Tribute recalls the design of the original IRS model with its wide "wings," servo-controlled subwoofer, dipole line-source, 48" planar-magnetic midrange unit, and nine proprietary 1" ring…

Based in Brooklyn, Belman and Choren are of Russian origin, and their thick accents are oddly comforting. They brought the biggest box of vinyl I'd yet seen at CAF, and the goodies they played on their natural, sweetly detailed system included Pee Wee Russell's Portrait of Pee…