Liza Lim takes the spotlight with an ambitious new cello concerto for Nicolas Altstaedt and a new portrait album with the JACK Quartet. We sample them both, contemplating her evocative titles and uncompromising musical language that seems to be taking a lyrical turn of late. We continue our exploration of Keith Jarrett’s New Vienna album, which showcases his more exploratory side captured live in 2016 at the same venue that hosted Arnold Schoenberg’s notorious Skandalkonzert, and we revisit John Cage’s notorious Radio Music in a new digital-era recording. We celebrate the 50th anniversary of Anthony Braxton's first Montreux Jazz Festival appearance and the 50th birthday of pianist Matt Mitchell with help from Ches Smith and Sara Serpa. Some radical new works from France and Germany, new improvisational recordings by Steve Swell and Evan Parker, and a look at recent Northwest concerts by Thollem and Marc Barreca round out the show.
