The title irrevocably sets the tone: in Kind Of Spain Wolfgang Haffner turns his attention to the Iberian Peninsula. Surrounded by pianist Jan Lundgren, trumpet player Sebastian Studnitzky, guitarist Daniel Stelter, the vibraphonist Christopher Dell and bass player Lars Danielsson the Bavarian drummer combines jazz and traditional Spanish music with exquisite intelligence and taste, producing mostly original compositions, but also reinterpreting Rodrigo and his legendary Concierto de Aranjuez. Following a delightful parenthesis exploring 50s cool jazz in Kind Of Cool, released in 2015, Haffner opted for an entirely acoustic ensemble, whose improvisations never run wild and perfectly match the refinement of such an approach. A wonderful album that will beautifully complement an already rich discography. © CM/Qobuz

Joaquín Rodrigo's Concierto de Aranjuez is arguably the most popular work in the entire guitar repertory, and one might reasonably ask whether the world needs one more recording. No one, however, who hears this reading by guitarist Thibaut Garcia and the Orchestre national du Capitole de Toulouse, is going to ask again: it is exceptional. Garcia's performance has a remarkable quality of grace, and grace in reserve, with an uncannily smooth guitar tone. Is it a French, rather than a Spanish, Concierto de Aranjuez? Maybe, but Rodrigo was a student of Dukas, and the liveliness of the dialogues between the guitar and the various instruments of the orchestra, often lost in heavily Spanish-regional performances, are wonderful. Part of the credit, of course, goes to the orchestra and conductor Ben Glassberg. Three more works, as uncommon as the Concierto de Aranjuez is common, fill out the program. There are four short works by Regino Sainz de la Maza, a contemporary of Rodrigo (and the dedicatee and first performer of the Concierto de Aranjuez) who wrote music in a similar vein. The only glimmer of a complaint one might raise against this release is that its Aranjuez title (Aranjuez is an iconic Spanish town near Madrid) refers only to the first two works on the program; after Sainz de la Maza, the music is not just from France but quintessentially French. The Musique de cour d'après Robert de Visée of composer Alexandre Tansman, for guitar and orchestra, is a late piece of French neoclassicism, composed in 1960. It is not a transcription of music by lutenist-composer de Visée but a set of short lyrical fantasies on dances by de Visée, and it has a gorgeous dark quality captured expertly by Garcia. His transcriptions of de Visée close out a superb program, strengthened by ideally clear engineering of the guitar. A landmark recording.© TiVo

If the 12" single of Herb Alpert's "Rise" hadn't taken over the charts the way it did back in 1979, one wonders if anyone would have gotten around to checking out the Tijuana Brass, or if Alpert would have gone down in the books as the guy who had a number one with a Burt Bacharach tune ("This Guy's in Love with You"). Instead, the cut energized the entire dance club generation, with DJs looking for new grooves, and it even ended up being used by Sean "Puffy" Combs on the Notorious B.I.G.'s Hypnotise, albeit in a drastically re-morphed form. The single began as a disc track composed by Alpert's nephew Randy and his pal Andy Armer. Alpert suggested they slow the groove way down and turn it into a slow mover. They issued it without an album to go with it, simply as a single on A&M. Club DJs picked up on it and began using duplicate copies either to let the percussion break go on a bit longer before trumpet kicked in, or playing one copy just behind another, creating a call-and-response melody with the trumpet and the rhythm section. After the single stormed the charts and stayed there all summer, eventually hitting the number one spot, Alpert, Armer, and friends went about assembling an album to capitalize on it. They did well: Rise hit number six on the Billboard pop chart. The rest of the tracks are a slew of originals and covers. The set opens with a small pomp and circumstance intro called "1980" that Alpert composed for the Olympics that year, assisted by the late Michel Colombier on keyboards. Alpert also composed the ballad-turned-Latin-dancefloor fire walker "Behind the Rain," (originally composed for Gato Barbieri's Caliente! album) that has its own appeal in the 21st century with chorus-like backing vocals. Other tracks include the Armer and Randy Alpert "Rotation." This cut, introduced by hand percussion, bells, and shakers is another soulful groover with a killer, soft-spoken keyboard line that's hypnotic lite funk. A looped synth line enters in place of a bassline. Handclaps, fingersnaps, and Alpert's distant trumpet play a melody not unlike the one on the "Lonely Bull." Effects, washes, reverb, and mild distortion create a futuristic backdrop to this otherwise beautifully melodic tune. Alpert plays in-the-pocket soul-drenched melody lines over the top and one of the first "chillout" tunes was born. What it all adds up to is an extraordinary recording that stands the test of time as a bona fide classic of the late disco/pre hip-hop era. The pop charts would have none of it these days. But eating this up as folks did, pre-MTV, with simply the radio going nuts trying to introduce the next single from it, Alpert, his nephew, and Armer stumbled onto something that would reinvigorate Alpert's career as a recording artist and as a producer. © Thom Jurek /TiVo

Milos Karadaglic's 2014 release on Decca is devoted to the music of Spanish composers Joaquín Rodrigo and Manuel de Falla, offering their most representative pieces for guitar and orchestra and solo guitar. Rodrigo's evocative Concierto de Aranjuez is the most celebrated guitar concerto in 20th century music, followed only slightly in popularity by his Baroque-styled Fantasía para un gentilhombre. Karadaglic frames the program with these essential masterworks, and his performances with Yannick Nézet-Séguin and the London Philharmonic Orchestra are assured and elegant, while the sound of the recordings is as satisfying as any on the market. The middle portion of the album presents three pieces for solo guitar, Falla's Homenaje pour le Tombeau de Claude Debussy and his Danza del Molinero, arranged for guitar from the ballet El Sombrero de tres picos, along with Rodrigo's Invocacion y Danza (Homenaje a Manuel de Falla). These character pieces reveal Karadaglic introspective and searching side, which listeners will enjoy as a contrast to his more extroverted style in the larger works.© Blair Sanderson /TiVo

Guitarist Jim Hall is the sort of musician who displays such technical expertise, imaginative conception, and elegance of line and phrase that almost any recording of his is worth hearing. Still, Concierto ranks among the best albums of his superb catalog. For starters, the personnel here is a jazz lover's dream come true. Paul Desmond (saxophone), Chet Baker (trumpet), Roland Hanna (piano), Ron Carter (bass), and Steve Gadd (drums) are on board, creating -- along with Hall -- one of the highest profile lineups ever put to tape. Yet Concierto is not about star power and showboating. As subtle, nuanced, and considered as any of Hall's output, the ensemble playing here demonstrates great group sensitivity and interplay, giving precedence to mood and atmosphere over powerhouse soloing. Conductor and arranger Don Sebesky evinces a chamber ambience from the sextet on "You'd Be So Nice to Come Home To," the smoky "The Answer Is Yes," and the Hall centerpiece "Concierto de Aranjuez."© Anthony Tognazzini /TiVo

On April 25 and 26, 1991, Paco de Lucía performed for the first time in Spain Joaquín Rodrigo's Concerto d'Aranjuez at the Bulevar de Torrelodones Theater in Madrid, with the Cadaquès Orchestra under the conducting of its founder Edmon Colomer — an ensemble created in 1988 and composed of 40 musicians from Europe, the United States and Australia. It was during these two invitational concerts, organized by the Sociedad Estatal V Centenario and Polygram Iberica (the artist's record company), that this concerto was recorded and filmed live to be marketed on disc and videotape under the Philips label. « I don't want to play classical music. I am me. I try to play the Aranjuez Concerto according to my vision. Many versions exist and almost all of them sound the same. From flamenco you can play more rhythmic, especially the first and third movements. It is more alive. I would like Maestro Rodrigo to listen to my version », then declared Paco de Lucía. The concert continued with a recital by the trio Paco de Lucía, Juan Manuel Cañizares and José María Banderas. 

Isao Tomita is a brilliant interpreter. He has transcribed several classical and orchestral works for the synthesizer. Kosmos is a slick album of those works that translate well to Tomita's spacescapes and his visionary style. These pieces had acoustic atmospheric resonance in their original formats. Tomita's synthesized versions have all of the original bravado and essence and he has added ambient atmospheres to give each piece new meaning and depth. The modernized pieces are genuine spacescapes. The disc opens, somewhat predictably, with John Williams' "Star Wars Theme." Tomita's lighthearted version adds humor to the piece. Track two, "Space Fantasy," just might be Tomita's best work. He combines elements from "Thus Spake Zoroaster" by Richard Strauss and "Ride of the Valkyries" and "Tannhauser Overture," both by Richard Wagner. The depth of this performance on this is amazing. Arthur Honegger's "Pacific 231" is an excellent transitional piece. Experimental sounds give it an avant-garde feel. "The Unanswered Question" by Charles Ives is pure atmospheric minimalism in both its original and electronic form. Ives was a risk-taker and one of the foremost avant-garde composers of his time; he would like this treatment. Rodrigo's "Aranjuez" takes on new beauty and character in Tomita's translation. Teamed with Ives' piece and the next piece, this is the travel and exploration leg of the journey. Edvard Grieg's "Solveig's Song" from "The Peer Gynt Suite" has tremendous atmospheric qualities also. While the journey continues, so does the beauty. "Hora Staccato" represents an end or a milestone of the journey. This Grigoras Dinicu/Jascha Heifetz piece is brisk and energetic. "The Sea Named Solaris" is based on Johann Sebastian Bach's "Three Part Invention, No. 2" and"Ich Ruf zu Dir, Jesu Christ." Tomita also wrote some of the music for this piece. It is a beautiful finish to a wondrous journey. This is one of the strongest albums in Tomita's discography. Only the work of Wendy Carlos can compare to Tomita's work.© TiVo

Bassist Buster Williams and his quartet perform six of his originals plus two standards on Griot Libertè. Williams' songs range from the modal "Nomads" and the medium-tempo blues "Related to One" (which includes some complex transitions) to the lyrical ballad "The Triumphant Dance of the Butterfly" and the swinging "Joined at the Hip," which has George Colligan's best solo of the set. Williams takes plenty of solos but is also generous in featuring vibraphonist Stefon Harris and pianist Colligan with drummer Lenny White being stimulating in support. There are times (particularly during "Related to One") when the group sounds a bit like the Modern Jazz Quartet, but other selections find the musicians showing more individuality. They are very much in tune with each other and, although not a touring group, sound as if they play together very regularly. Excellent modern mainstream jazz. © Scott Yanow /TiVo

Part of PBS' long-running Great Performances program, Concerto: One Night in Central Park features legendary Italian tenor Andrea Bocelli's 2011 free concert on Central Park's Great Lawn. With Bocelli backed by the New York Philharmonic conducted by longtime musical director Alan Gilbert, the 17-track collection is also being made available in a deluxe edition that includes a DVD of the evening.© James Christopher Monger /TiVo

The Modern Jazz Quartet broke up after the concert documented on this double CD. It would be nearly seven years before the group got back together again but it certainly went out on top. Mostly revisiting their greatest hits, the MJQ is heard on this two-fer playing inspired versions of such songs as "Softly, As in a Morning Sunrise," "Bags' Groove," "Skating in Central Park," "Confirmation," "The Golden Striker," and, of course, "Django." This set is a real gem (the music is essential for all serious jazz collections), featuring vibraphonist Milt Jackson, pianist John Lewis, bassist Percy Heath, and drummer Connie Kay at their very best.© Scott Yanow /TiVo

Along with Kind of Blue, In a Silent Way, and Round About Midnight, Sketches of Spain is one of Miles Davis' most enduring and innovative achievements. Recorded between November 1959 and March 1960 -- after Coltrane and Cannonball Adderley had left the band -- Davis teamed with Canadian arranger Gil Evans for the third time. Davis brought Evans the album's signature piece, "Concierto de Aranjuez," after hearing a classical version of it at bassist Joe Mondragon's house. Evans was as taken with it as Davis was, and set about to create an entire album of material around it. The result is a masterpiece of modern art. On the "Concierto," Evans' arrangement provided an orchestra and jazz band -- Paul Chambers, Jimmy Cobb, and Elvin Jones -- the opportunity to record a classical work as it was. The piece, with its stunning colors and intricate yet transcendent adagio, played by Davis on a flügelhorn with a Harmon mute, is one of the most memorable works to come from popular culture in the 20th century. Davis' control over his instrument is singular, and Evans' conducting is flawless. Also notable are "Saeta," with one of the most amazing technical solos of Davis' career, and the album's closer, "Solea," which is conceptually a narrative piece, based on an Andalusian folk song, about a woman who encounters the procession taking Christ to Calvary. She sings the narrative of his passion and the procession -- or parade -- with full brass accompaniment moving along. Cobb and Jones, with flamenco-flavored percussion, are particularly wonderful here, as they allow the orchestra to indulge in the lushly passionate arrangement Evans provided to accompany Davis, who was clearly at his most challenged here, though he delivers with grace and verve. Sketches of Spain is the most luxuriant and stridently romantic recording Davis ever made. To listen to it in the 21st century is still a spine-tingling experience, as one encounters a multitude of timbres, tonalities, and harmonic structures seldom found in the music called jazz.© Thom Jurek /TiVo

Trumpeter Alison Balsom neatly weaves together several objectives on this program of mostly American music. One is to introduce jazz influences at several levels without turning this into a jazz album. Here, Balsom succeeds, including not only an ambitious arrangement of Gershwin's Rhapsody in Blue but also Leonard Bernstein and a trumpet version of a Kurt Weill song in a Gil Evans arrangement. The Gershwin, arranged by Simon Wright, reassigns much of the melodic material (including the famous glissando) to the trumpet while not disregarding the piano part; it is an intricate balance with sensitive work on the piano from Tom Poster. Another idea of Balsom's here is to broaden perhaps British conceptions of American classical music, which is more than an offshoot of jazz. The showcase is the title work, Aaron Copland's underplayed Quiet City, and Balsom offers a tour de force of quiet playing, not overwhelming the English horn. The Rodrigo Concierto de Aranjuez has connections to both these tendencies through its association with Miles Davis' Sketches of Spain LP. Balsom fans will be perfectly satisfied by the fact that the star sounds as creamy as ever, but others will be pleased to hear that her ideas about programming have taken a new and adventurous turn.© James Manheim /TiVo