• Ragamala Paintings Alive!

    Catalog #: BR8983

    Release Date: October 13, 2023

    21st Century
    Jazz
    World
    Bass
    Percussion
    Saxophone
    Tabla
    Violin

    Composed by Phil Scarff and performed by world-jazz ensemble Natraj, RAGAMALA PAINTINGS ALIVE! shines a contemporary light on historic artwork from India. The members of Natraj individually and collectively bring a wealth of experience exploring the intersection of jazz and global musical traditions. Their stunning performance showcased in this release is wide ranging, deep, and accessible, while firmly rooted in the rich tapestry of Indian classical music. RAGAMALA PAINTINGS ALIVE! is part of a larger multimedia work created in collaboration with Indian classical dancer Jayshree Bala Rajamani, incorporating dance, music, spoken word, and projected images. It brings to life historic ragamala paintings, with each painting representing one Indian classical raga or melodic framework. Inspired by Modest Mussorgsky and his iconic work, Pictures at an Exhibition, Scarff threads the suite together with musical “promenades” that represent the viewer entering and moving about an art gallery, with each theme anticipating a painting or set of paintings to come. Whether heard on its own or experienced as a full multimedia performance, RAGAMALA PAINTINGS ALIVE! takes listeners on a compelling contemporary journey that celebrates classic ragamala paintings from India.

  • The Oxtet Does Hindemith

    Catalog #: BR8977

    Release Date: May 12, 2023

    21st Century
    Jazz
    Guitar
    Percussion
    Trumpet

    THE OXTET DOES HINDEMITH from Josh Oxford is a bold reimagining of classical music in a jazz fusion context. In this album, Oxford revisits some of Paul Hindemith’s greatest works. Hindemith, a late Romantic German composer, lived during the first half of the 20th century and was among the most significant composers of his time. The album contains sonatas for trumpet, tuba, trombone, and more, in which tonically complex horn lines weave above a jazz band. Recorded at Pyramid Sound in Ithaca and at Ithaca College, the timbres of the various horns along with marimba, Fender Rhodes, drums, electric guitar and bass, and more, are rendered in high fidelity. THE OXTET DOES HINDEMITH features the music of this legendary composer as you’ve never heard it before.

  • Standing On Chairs

    Standing on Chairs

    Catalog #: BR8901

    Release Date: December 1, 2009

    21st Century
    Jazz
    Organ
    Percussion
    Piano

    Allen Savedoff composer

  • Mika Marimba Madness

    Catalog #: BR8920

    Release Date: November 15, 2011

    21st Century
    Jazz
    Percussion
    Piano

    Big Round Records is proud to present MIKA MARIMBA MADNESS: LIVE IN CONCERT 2009, featuring a breathtaking performance from Japan's virtuoso marimbist Mika (Yoshida) Stoltzman alongside drummer Steve Gadd, bassist Eddie Gomez, and pianist Peter Stoltzman.

  • Peggo In Love

    Peggo In Love

    Catalog #: BR8902

    Release Date: September 1, 2009

    21st Century
    Jazz
    Vocal Music
    Percussion
    Piano
    Voice

    Peggo Hodes soprano

  • Sound Tapestries

    Sound Tapestries

    Catalog #: BR8910

    Release Date: August 31, 2010

    21st Century
    Jazz
    Percussion
    Piano

    SOUND TAPESTRIES features performances of Jazz classics by Bunny Beck and the Bunny Beck Trio. Each song is unique with its appeal and mood, and Beck brings them together comfortably, both with the trio and on the solo piano. Join Beck as she weaves the sounds of each track to create tapestries of music.

  • Marika Groove

    Marika Groove

    Catalog #: BR8923

    Release Date: April 1, 2012

    21st Century
    Jazz
    Clarinet
    Percussion

    In February 2012, three of today's greatest jazz musicians and arguably the world's top classical clarinetist entered Avatar Studios in New York to record a twelve-minute epic by the legendary Chick Corea. The resulting track, Marika Groove with marimbist Mika (Yoshida) Stoltzman, drummer Steve Gadd, bassist Eddie Gomez, and clarinetist Richard Stoltzman, captures the brilliance of both the composer and performers in a sprawling cut with constant interplay between the instruments and melodic marimba lines, which (Yoshida) Stoltzman navigates with ease.

  • Morning Moon

    Morning Moon

    Catalog #: BR8924

    Release Date: May 29, 2012

    21st Century
    Chamber
    Jazz
    Flute
    Percussion
    Piano

    Big Round Records is proud to present MORNING MOON, the debut commercial release from the eclectic and varied Ecco La Musica. The group's seamless blending of jazz, world, chamber, and experimental music-all of which is composed by the group members themselves-highlights their ability to remain ahead of the curve of their competition, both independent and mainstream. As most artists struggle to blur the lines of genre, Ecco La Musica has them nearly erased.

    Ecco La Musica seeks to connect to its audience not through an ability to be pegged into a single category, but through the spiritual and cultural aspects of their music. Firm believers in the unifying power of music and the coexistence promoted by its very craft, the group strives to expose listeners to the idea that originality and cross-cultural influences in music can lead to a global awareness of artistic integrity, the necessity for peace, and the unity of culture.

  • Manhattan Projections

    Manhattan Projections

    Catalog #: BR8922

    Release Date: April 24, 2012

    20th Century
    Jazz
    Percussion
    Piano
    Saxophone

    Big Round Records is proud to announce its reissue of Andy Jaffe's MANHATTAN PROJECTIONS, an album of the jazz composer/pianist's works for small band repertoire. This rerelease of the jazz classic includes the original seven works from the 1984 debut, the McDaniels session tracks from the 2001 Playscape reissue, plus three bonus tracks from the Tom McClung-Andy Jaffe piano trio exclusive to this release.

  • Marimjazzia

    Marimjazzia

    Catalog #: BR8933

    Release Date: April 29, 2014

    21st Century
    Jazz
    Percussion

    With a variety of musical flavors pulled from composers spanning Keiko Abe to Bach to Bill Evans, MARIMJAZZIA, composer and marimbist Juan Álamo's debut album on Big Round Records delivers a satisfying plate of music for the soul. Along with arrangements of two jazz standards, Waltz for Debby and Afro Blues, the album features original compositions for marimba and percussion ensemble by the composer. As to the concept behind the album, Álamo says, "It is a reflection of who I am as a human being and a synthesis of all the different musical influences and experiences I have had throughout my career." With accompaniments by the UNC Percussion Ensemble, MARIMJAZZIA brings together the warm airs of Álamo's native Puerto Rico and the influences that have kept his passion flourishing.

  • Sounds From The Delta

    Sounds From The Delta

    Catalog #: BR8935

    Release Date: June 1, 2014

    21st Century
    Jazz
    Guitar
    Percussion
    Saxophone

    From Django Reinhardt and the Hot Club de France to the American jazz players who immigrated to immerse themselves in its vibrant musical scene, Paris has been an epicenter of haute jazz culture. Jean-Philippe Grégoire has been a staple of the Paris jazz scene for many years and on his debut Big Round Records release SOUNDS FROM THE DELTA the guitarist/composer presents a refined and inspired hybrid of French and American jazz styles.

  • Detours

    Detours

    Catalog #: BR8938

    Release Date: May 12, 2015

    20th Century
    21st Century
    Jazz
    Percussion
    Piano

    DETOURS, the debut Big Round Records release from percussionist Joe Porter and pianist Joel Goodfellow, showcases the jazz duo's capacity for collaboration and improvisation, with animated and dynamic versions of well-known film and literary compositions.

  • A Sinister Endeavor

    A Sinister Endeavor

    Catalog #: BR8941

    Release Date: July 10, 2015

    21st Century
    Jazz
    Cello
    Percussion
    Piano

    On her debut Big Round Records release, A SINISTER ENDEAVOR, composer and pianist Gay Pearson presents a collection of works that highlight her eclectic quintet - consisting of piano, bass, drums, flute, and cello - and their colorful, introspective, and energetic performances. Recorded live in Newburyport MA, this album presents original works by Pearson, including Zonal and Meridional Flow, with its classical counterpoint and 4-part polyphony; the energetic solo piano piece Cirrus High; and An Ionian Emitter, which uses complex rhythms and syncopation.

  • Goin Home A Retrospective

    Goin’ Home: A Retrospective

    Catalog #: BR8946

    Release Date: June 10, 2016

    21st Century
    Jazz
    Cello
    Percussion
    Piano

    GOIN’ HOME… A RETROSPECTIVE is pianist and composer Gay Pearson’s second release on Big Round Records. The album is a live recording of her most recent annual chamber-jazz concert, featuring an eclectic ensemble with Gay Pearson on piano, John Lockwood on bass, Phil McGowan on drums, Tracy McMullen on saxophone, Lea Pearson on flute, and Shannon Allen on cello. This varied ensemble performs a wide variety of music with different instrumental combinations, from Astor Piazzolla to classic tunes of Chick Corea, Harold Arlen and Jerome Kern, to more contemporary original compositions by Pearson herself.

  • Sweet Spontaneous

    Sweet Spontaneous

    Catalog #: BR8952

    Release Date: July 13, 2018

    21st Century
    Jazz
    Percussion
    Piano
    Saxophone

    Concert pianist and composer Michael Arnowitt, assisted by ImproVisions Jazz, makes his Big Round Records debut with SWEET SPONTANEOUS, the title drawn from a poem by e.e.cummings. This two-disc jazz album features 14 of Arnowitt’s own compositions with the composer himself at the piano, joined by a dozen jazz notables including Yosvany Terry on alto sax, Lucas Pino on tenor sax, Dave Smith on trumpet, and Colin Stranahan on drums.

  • Paul Green A Bissel Rhythm

    A Bissell Rhythm

    Catalog #: BR8955

    Release Date: February 8, 2019

    21st Century
    Jazz
    Clarinet
    Percussion
    Piano

    A BISSEL RHYTHM is composer and clarinetist Paul Green’s PARMA Recordings debut, although it marks his second recorded exploration into the fusion between jazz and Jewish music. A performance at Merkin Concert Hall resulted in the New York Times extolling his talents: “Like a cobra intent on doing some charming of its own, the clarinetist Paul Green weaved, darted and hovered over his instrument…conjuring gorgeous sounds.”

  • Haney David Birth Of A City

    Birth of a City

    Catalog #: BR8956

    Release Date: July 26, 2019

    21st Century
    Jazz
    Percussion
    Piano
    String Quartet

    Even though the tracks on BIRTH OF A CITY are loosely grouped by their titles, the recording is very much a concept album. Haney, himself an accomplished pianist who also studied composition, scored the pieces for a kind of string quartet (violin – viola – cello – double bass), interspersed by varying quantities of brass instruments and percussion. Naturally, as one would expect from this kind of music, all works are scored with exactitude – for the most part, that is. Remarkably, Haney grants the performers a great amount of improvisatory freedom – indubitably owing to his own background in jazz, the genre which definitely and definitively shines through in all his compositions.

  • Girl In Green

    Girl in Green

    Catalog #: BR8960

    Release Date: January 10, 2020

    20th Century
    Jazz
    Percussion
    Saxophone
    Trumpet

    New from Big Round Records comes jazz composer and pianist Paul English’s GIRL IN GREEN. The album features never-before-heard renditions of immortal classics as well as English’s original works. Listen as English and his cadre of masterful soloists carve a place for themselves in jazz history.

  • TAPEREBA

    Taperebá

    Catalog #: BR8959

    Release Date: October 30, 2019

    21st Century
    Jazz
    Clarinet
    Percussion

    Described by critics as “beyond category, to use Duke Ellington’s signature compliment” (All About Jazz), Japanese marimba extraordinaire Mika Stoltzman brings her wealth of experience to her latest “Mikarimba” album, Big Round Records’ TAPEREBÁ. Vibrant and bursting with flavor (just like the Brazilian fruit which the album derives its title from), the jazzy TAPEREBÁ features performances by Stoltzman and a circle of legendary fellow artists. With over 25 Grammy Awards shared between the members on this record, a memorable listening experience is practically guaranteed.

  • Kaplowitz Lela TO ONE

    To One

    Catalog #: BR8958

    Release Date: September 13, 2019

    21st Century
    Jazz
    Guitar
    Percussion
    Voice

    On TO ONE, Croatian-born Lela Kaplowitz delivers a collection of songs that expressively hearken back to the singer/songwriter era of the 1970s, reviving the spirit of such ground-breaking artists as Carole King, Laura Nyro, and Roberta Flack. Kaplowitz, who has been lauded by jazz vocal legend Sheila Jordan as “an extremely talented vocalist” and Bobby McFerrin as having a “wonderful voice,” presents a nuanced mélange of pop, soul, jazz, and even folk music on TO ONE.