Discography

This is a list of recordings that you may wish to check out. The examples used in this CD-ROM were drawn from these sources. Select an item from the list at left, or simply scroll the list below.

The Muhal Richard Abrams Orchestra: Blu Blu Blu (Black Saint 120117-2): A set of postmodern compositions for large ensemble.
Art Ensemble Of Chicago: Nice Guys (ECM 1126): Restructuralist music from one of the most long-lived ensembles in the music.
Albert Ayler: Witches & Devils (Freedom / FCD 741018): An early expressionistic recording.
Bix Beiderbecke: Singin' The Blues (Columbia / CK 45450): Classic recordings from one of the seminal traditional trumpeter
Anthony Braxton: Willisau (Quartet) 1991 (hat ART 461001/2/3/4): A four-CD set that captures the foremost restructuralist with his best quartet at its peak, both live and in the studio.
Clifford Brown: A Study In Brown (Emarcy 814646-2): A Carnival Of Cuban Music (Rounder 5049)
An anthology of Cuban music, focused mostly on the Latin roots of the salsa music of today.: Betty Carter: Round Midnight (Roulette / CDP 795999-2)
Sophisticated and highly improvised vocal interpretations of jazz standards.: Ornette Coleman: The Shape Of Jazz To Come (Atlantic 1317-2)
Often regarded as Coleman's strongest freebop recording, with some of his best compositions.: Ornette Coleman: In All Languages (Harmolodic/Verve 314 531 915-2)
A single CD that showcases an reunion of the original freebop quartet as well as the free fusion group Prime Time. The two very different groups play many of the same compositions, which gives a fascinating insight into the workings of Coleman's music.: John Coltrane: A Love Supreme (Impulse / MCAD 5660)
The crowning achievement by Coltrane's great quartet with McCoy Tyner, Jimmy Garrison, and Elvin Jones. Intense modal music.: John Coltrane: Meditations (Impulse / MCAD 39139)
The first "expressionistic" recording by this giant of the style.: John Coltrane: The Major Works Of John Coltrane (Impulse / GRD 2-133)
A two-CD set of intense, expressionistic performances with larger ensembles, including the groundbreaking and controversial "Ascension".: Eddie Condon: Dixieland All-Stars (Decca / GRD 637)
A collection of Chicago style performances featuring Bobby Hackett, Pee Wee Russell, Gene Schroeder, and others.: Chick Corea: No Mystery (Polydor 827149-2)
The second incarnation of Corea's fusion band Return To Forever.: Miles Davis: The Birth Of The Cool (Capitol / CDP 792862)
The classic "cool jazz" recordings, recorded with a nine piece ensemble: Miles Davis: Kind Of Blue (Columbia / CK 64935)
Considered by many to be the greatest jazz album ever. Influential for its pioneering approach to modal harmony as well as the reflective mood it sets. Featuring Cannonball Adderly, John Coltrane, Bill Evans.: Miles Davis: Sorcerer (Columbia / CK 52974)
A recording by Davis' second great quintet, with Wayne Shorter and Herbie Hancock, exploring original modal and non-tonal compositions.: Miles Davis: Bitches Brew (Columbia / C2K 65774)
Perhaps the most influential of all fusion recordings; many of the sidemen on this recording became leaders of their own important fusion groups.: Eric Dolphy: Last Date (Fontana 822226-2)
Fantastic recording of freebop with Doplhy on alto saxophone, flute, and bass clarinet, and Misha Mengelberg on piano.: Bill Evans: Portrait In Jazz (Riverside / OJCCD 088-2)
The first recording by Bill Evans' original trio with Scott LaFaro and Paul Motian. This group pioneered an approach in which the three members functioned as equals, rather than soloist plus accompaniment. They were most known for their ballad performances.: Jerry Gonzalez & The Fort Apache Band: The River Is Deep (Enja 4040-2)
One of the key players in modern Latin jazz concentrates here largely on the Afro-Cuban roots of this music.: Kellye Gray: Standards (Justice 0101-2)
A fine set of vocal standards.: Herbie Hancock: Head Hunters (Columbia / CK 32731)
Fusion with a health dose of funk, featuring some of Hancock's best-known compositions.: An Internet Jazz Sampler (Outside Shore Music / OSM 1000)
A compilation of performances by jazz musicians from the newsgroup rec.music.bluenote.: Keith Jarrett: The Köln Concert (ECM 1064/5)
A solo piano recording that involves extended hypnotic vamps. This music is seen as a precursor of New Age music.: Jazz: A History (Norton / Sony A 23288)
The companion CD to the book of the same name by Frank Tirro. An excellent survey of jazz history.: Antonio Carlos Jobim: The Man From Ipanema (Jazz Heritage 534232M)
A three-CD set that showcases Jobim the bossa nova composer, pianist, guitarist, and vocalist, in a variety of different settings.: Lambert, Hendricks & Ross: Everybody's Boppin' (Columbia / CK 45020)
Classic vocalese recordings.: M-BASE Collective: Anatomy Of A Groove (DIW/Columbia / CK 53431)
Postmodern jazz fusion with strong hip hop influences, featuring Steve Coleman.: The Mahavishnu Orchestra: The Inner Mounting Flame (Columbia / CK 31067)
Expressionistic fusion with influences from India. Features John McLaughlin, Jan Hammer, Jerry Goodman, and Bill Cobham.: Wynton Marsalis Septet: Blue Interlude (Columbia / CK 48729)
A neoclassical masterpiece featuring an extended suite that touches on blues, traditional jazz, hard bop, and post bop styles.: Medeski, Martin & Wood: Friday Afternoon In The Universe (Gramavision / GCD 79503)
Acid jazz from a trio of talented musicians.: Pat Metheny Group: Still Life (Talking) (Geffen 924145-2)
Contemporary jazz fusion with appeal to both "smooth jazz" and mainstream jazz audiences.: Charles Mingus: Charles Mingus Presents Charles Mingus (Candid 9005)
Groundbreaking performances by the "Jazz Workshop" group that featured Eric Dolphy. Post bop music with freebop and other "avant-garde" edges.: Charles Mingus: The Black Saint And The Sinner Lady (Impulse / IMPD 174)
A large scale work in several movements, showing strong third stream influences combined with Mingus gospel roots, with a decidedly "avant-garde" sound.: Thelonious Monk: The Best of Thelonious Monk (Blue Note / CDP 795636-2)
The original recordings of many of Monk's greatest compositions.: Butch Morris: Dust To Dust (New World 80408-2)
A series of conductions with a thirteen piece ensemble (including the leader).: David Murray: Shakill's Warrior (DIW/Columbia / CK 48963)
A quartet featuring Don Pullen on organ. The music is a synthesis of mainstream jazz, R&B, expressionism, and other sources.: Oregon: 45^th Parallel (Portrait / RK 44465)
Meditative music with world influences, this group is considered a forerunner of New Age music. The band features Paul McCandless and Ralph Towner.: The Original Mambo Kings (Verve 314 513 876-2)
An anthology of recordings from the early days of Latin jazz, mostly focused on Machito.: Ralph Peterson: Volition (Blue Note / CDP 793894-2)
A representative modern mainstream session.: The Poudre River Irregulars: Play New Orleans & Dixieland Jazz! (PRI 001)
Traditional jazz played by a modern Dixieland group.: Sun Ra: Visits Planet Earth / Interstellar Low Ways (Evidence / ECD 22039-2)
A CD that combines the contents of two postmodern LP's from early in the Arkestra's career. Some swing, some more psychedelic music.: Hugh Ragin & Marc Sabatella: Gallery (CIMP 177)
Impressionistic duo improvisations.: Sonny Rollins: Saxophone Colossus (Prestige / OJCCD 291-2)
A classic album of hard bop.: The Russian Dragon Band: When Kentucky Was Indiana (Synergy Music / SMCD 80005-2)
Impressionistic and restructuralist quartet with Art Lande.: Marc Sabatella: The Spanish Inquisition (Golden Horn Productions / GHP 002-2)
The debut recording by the author of this program. A mixture of post bop, freebop, and other modern jazz styles.: Marc Sabatella: Second Course (Cadence Jazz Records / CJR 1095)
An eclectic program of post bop, free bop, postmodern compositions, and impressionistic free improvisation.: Schlippenbach Trio: Elf Bagatellen (FMP 27)
Top notch European free improvisation with Schlippenbach, Evan Parker, and Paul Lovens.: Mark Sloniker: Perfectly Human (Music West / MW-222)
New Age and contemporary/smooth jazz: Jimmy Smith: Back At The Chicken Shack (Blue Note / CDP 746402-2)
Soul jazz from the master organist, featuring Stanley Turrentine and Kenny Burrell.: The Smithsonian Collection of Classic Jazz (Smithsonian Institution / RD 033-1/2/3/4/5)
A five-CD set that traces the history of jazz throughout the twentieth century, with an emphasis on Classic and Mainstream styles. Many of the examples from those chapters of the unit on Jazz Styles were drawn from this set.: Sousa Marches: The Band Of The Grenadier Guards (London 430211-1)
A collection of Sousa marches.: Southern Journey (Rounder 1701/3)
A collection of thirteen CD's (sold individually) documenting the folk music recorded by Alan Lomax during a series of field trips through the American South. These recordings contain many examples of work songs, blues, and gospel music. Examples in this program were drawn from volumes 1 & 3.: Cecil Taylor: Jazz Advance (Blue Note / CDP 784462-2)
Arguably the first complete album of "free" jazz (mostly freebop).: Cecil Taylor: Unit Structures (Blue Note / CDP 784237-2)
One of the early and important documents of restructuralist techniques.: Tribal Tech: Reality Check (Bluemoon 292549)
Hard-edged fusion featuring Scott Henderson and Gary Willis.: Lennie Tristano: Trio, Quartet, Quintet & Sextet (Giants Of Jazz 53149)
A collection of classic performances from 1946-1949, which was his most prolific period. Featuring Lee Konitz, Warne Marsh, Billy Bauer, and others. The music is mostly based on bebop or cool jazz conventions, with a couple of notable forays into impressionistic "free jazz".: Weather Report: Heavy Weather (Columbia / CK 34418)
Fusion with an emphasis on composition and impressionistic improvisation, featuring some of the band's best known tunes. Wayne Shorter, Joe Zawinul, Jaco Pastorius.: Tony Williams: Spring (Blue Note / CDP 746135-2)
Classic impressionistic and freebop recording with Wayne Shorter, Sam Rivers, and Herbie Hancock.: Windham Hill Sampler (Windham Hill / WD 1024)
A series of compilations of New Age recordings from other Windham Hill releases. The examples in this program were drawn from volume 2.: Zimbabwe: The Soul Of Mbira (Nonesuch Exlorer Series 972054-2)
Recordings of traditional African music featuring the mbira, or "thumb piano".: John Zorn: Naked City (Elektra/Nonesuch 979238-2)
A dizzying postmodern set that makes heavy use of hard rock influences.