Modernjazz.gr

It seems it was only fitting to celebrate “10 Years of Modernjazz.gr” with a mostly lighter program, as dictated by the late-summer releases. Featuring high-caliber contemporary jazz songwriting from Somi, Gretchen Parlato, Suzanne Pittson, and

Final happy listens before our new summer collection goes live, packed with outstanding tracks from June and July. And as always, right on cue, comes the mandatory last-minute intro. So, a quick reminder that, for

Goal achieved once more! We’ve curated 18 tracks from Q1 2026, woven into a unified set with all the background info needed for a total acoustic experience. From world music to avant-garde and rap/hip-hop, the

From the productions of the last three months of 2025 and with quite a bit of effort, admittedly, just 13 tracks were selected to complete the picture of the year gone by. From British jazz-hop

As per tradition, this year we examine the opinions of critics and authoritative media outlets pointing us toward the “Best Jazz Albums of 2025”. Here are the aggregate results where, it is worth noting, AI

In the glory days of vinyl, the ritual of home listening was akin to attending a live concert.Now, with streaming platforms, social media, and an ever-expanding pluralism, listening has become more hurried and casual for

A quiet and relaxed mood, a touch of sophistication, variety — and, of course, some lively surprises — define the soundtrack of this year’s dystopian summer. Let’s exorcise its demons with good music: still out

The Spirit of Jazz  keeps up with the Seasons, so this collection captures the colors and diversity of Spring. It doesn’t hesitate to flirt with the charm of symphonic sound, to uncover digital reissues, to

The classic era of jazz has, of course, passed. Lucky are those who still haven’t had their fill of it—blessed, too, those who are just now discovering it. As for the rest of us, let’s

We’re wrapping up 2024 with a few more pleasant, high-quality discoveries, as always. It wasn’t a remarkable year, and it’s quite likely this may become the norm. Still, let’s thank the jazz musicians who have the

Modernjazz.gr is once again reviewing 58 different Year-End Charts published online, to find the most objective, reliable, and democratic answer to the crucial question occupying jazz enthusiasts these days: Which albums were ultimately considered “The

If this collection can be said to have a particularity, it’s the increased female participation, not only in vocals but also in saxophone performances. Jazzmeia Horn, Samara Joy, Caroline Davis, Ayumi Koketsu, Phoebe Johnson, and

It wasn’t an ordinary summer, and that applies to our case as well. If, of course, we accept the “law of the interdependence of all things”. Fortunately, good things come even when you least expect

Personal and distinctive style is the Holy Grail of Jazz! According to this, we have highlighted for several years everything that makes a difference nowadays, without many tedious words, betting on the beauty and value

Contemporary Jazz Beats take the lead in this inaugural collection of 2024. It’s no coincidence that they are rising in popularity, since they are a comprehensible genre of jazz that, among other things, addresses the

Small but charming, this collection ranges from this year’s Grammy nominations to rare discoveries. It is all about how many times the tracks taking part in our unified music program can be listened to with

Gathering the critics’ choices for the “Best Jazz Albums of 2023” as they appear in 45 publications so far across the web, results in 399 albums, which you’ll find ranked in order of success in

As musicians themselves say, from a creative perspective, the lockdown had a positive impact in many cases. Therefore, in the post-covid era, we have several high-quality releases worthy of our attention. Samples of them will

To be honest, a large amount of today’s countless jazz recordings are not particularly interesting, nor do they have any artistic value. This does not only concern self-released albums, but also releases coming from well

While the cover-art of this collection is a creation of artificial intelligence and a careful look can provoke thoughts, the following playlist is entirely handmade, subject to personal taste and experience, aiming once again, through

Twenty-three beautiful tracks from this year’s harvest, chosen once again to have something that can both speak to the heart of the discerning jazzophile, and pique the casual listener’s interest. It is a journey that

Eighteen tracks that stood out from the harvest of the somewhat unfairly screened last months of 2022 make up our established, diverse music program. And so, life goes on with undiminished interest, at its normal,

In the age of music streaming, the use of music reviews as a byers’ guide is waning, nevertheless the opinion of critics continues to contribute to the success of a musical production and most certainly

All signs were pointing at this playlist being short and relatively hot-tempered! Big bands, dynamic playing and lively beats stood out from the output of the last two months. However, this is half the truth

Our summer program is light and pleasant, with no lack of jazz character. In this contribute new releases that align with the seasonal needs of the music audience. Aiming also for balance between simplicity and

With an emphasis on the main body of jazz, this collection will alleviate our concern for the uncertain future of humanity and the planet! Because, judging by jazz, everything will be alright; young people study

Since nineteen new tunes are in heavy rotation, that means a decent, handmade playlist is ready to be published. Although few people nowadays care for such details, here you will find, as always, all available

The recipe for a delicious, digestible, and healthy playlist is as follows: As a basis, we put fresh jazz-hop with handmade beats from small producers. This will give us the required modern groove. For the

Forty-nine lists entitled “Best Jazz Albums of 2021” have been published so far on the internet, by music websites, jazz magazines, radio stations and newspapers. Without engaging in futile concerns on the meaning of comparisons

This year modernjazz.gr had no significant relation to the recently announced Grammy nominations in the categories of jazz and related genres. Only four of them took part in our playlists, but the rest of them

Five years have already passed since the launch of modernjazz.gr! 400.000 views and counting, I must thank all of you, especially those softbots that regularly visit our online music library to check the new jazz

It’s widely known that jazz is an insufferable music genre that persists, mostly because those who play it are having a really good time! As an old friend used to say, “Those guys aren’t playing

This is a cool and balanced collection that came out of the harvest done from the middle of April to the end of May. It is an overview of what happens today in the international

A spring collection should be light and festive! Some new talents, blooming incessantly in the jazz gardens, have taken care of this! And it is guaranteed that, with such abundant knowledge, love and devotion, jazz’s

Modern jazz-fusion can offer a very attractive package to the demanding listener. In its full version, it incorporates harmonies and sounds from contemporary classical music and progressive rock, it complicates them with its polyrhythms and

Winter aids us in concentration; and, in a sense, lockdown does so even more. So, now is the time to follow and enjoy more demanding and abstract forms of Musical Art, which, quite incidentally, are

A colorful collection, full of pleasant surprises, comes as the outro of a hard year, mainly characterized by lots of small/independent productions, reissues and previously unreleased historical recordings, something that will probably continue this year

Recording Academy has already announced the 63rd Grammy Awards Nominees and, as the year is coming to its end, playlists and collections like “Ten Best Albums Of 2020” will soon be published everywhere. Here you

Modernjazz.gr celebrates its four years of presence on the web, and a question arises regarding the reason why we need another playlist of “New Jazz Releases” since it is predicted to be as despairingly amazing

When the final value of a set exceeds the sum of the values of its elements, then we are talking about an oasis of negative entropy. Of course, this does not mean that no energy

From shallow waters to deep ones… This is the subtitle of our summer collection, which seems like a dive into the alluring cool sea, that of the contemporary jazz discography, in this case. At first,

Digging deep in the recent jazz discography brings to light today’s sounds, where smart themes, modern harmonies and elaborate arrangements are woven together with inventive polyrhythms from the pantheon of modern beats, offering fertile ground

Nowadays, music production has become much easier. Besides, conservatories and music colleges produce a large amount of qualified musicians who want their work to be recognized. As a result, in the field of jazz and

Cool vibes, jazz hip-hop, some decent trumpeters, some pianists with personality, the rest of 2019, a bit of mainstream to tune in, a bit of avand-garde to keep us alert, and so discreetly, without anything

Βesides Deezer and Spotify, this last playlist of the year also plays on Tidal, which offers CD quality, hi-fi sound. (Blame it on Black Friday and on other Christmas offers from music streaming services 🙂

Μodernjazz.gr has just completed three years of web activity and, deep down, it aligns with Thelonious Monk who allegedly stated that “writing about music is like dancing about architecture”. What a guy and what an

Our summer playlist sorts all the nice “Beats & Grooves” of 2019, that have already been heard here over the past six months! It is contemporary, easy stuff, chosen from this year’s global music production

June proved to be a serious month, but not necessarily difficult. It has brought to light several interesting and creative works, by musicians striving to develop their personal style, and if it is possible, to

“The Best is the enemy of the Good” and this was the deep meaning of the season, also confirmed by the releases of the month. So, we ought to be content with what we have,

Pretty voices, sophisticated saxophones and the necessary dose of “grooves & beats” complete the program of this month of fasting. Thus, we’ ll be able to remember April, whenever we need to go back to

Battling for a place on our monthly playlist, the following 24 albums emerged as unbeaten winners; we did well! Wait a minute, just a few words about the jury, which consisted of 1) Imitonios, in

Banality is a big foe of jazz. Although it is not easily recognizable by the general audience, it degrades  its artistic value, unless if dexterity predominates, as in classical music, or the rise of emotions,

“From Maximum Enjoyment to Rare Beauty” –  That’s how an overabundant month has passed, when the Jazz Spirit argued in favor of “Maximun Enjoyment,” according to the title of the first album of an exuberant and

The end of the year brought to light several albums without any special promotion, or recognition, and this playlist, perforce made from rare materials, is yet another opportunity to ascertain the high level of today’s

Following the style of this website, here comes contemporary jazz of artistic and aesthetic aclaim, combined with a more commercial and entertaining side of this genre of music and its interaction with the current pop

This 46-piece festive October’s playlist was put together specifically for the party organized by modernjazz.gr, on the occasion of its two-year presence on the internet. It was a successful test of how well, even “tough”,

Vibrant, as always, with lots of new names and a considerable amount of piano works, the demanding playlist of the month thoroughly guides us through the rich world of modern jazz discography. A serious listening

As an old jazz proverb explains,  “It don’t mean a thing, if It ain’t got that.. new beat” 🙂 So, this late summer playlist of modernjazz.gr easily adapts  to the demands of the season, highlighting related, 

After checking hundreds of new albums, constantly seeking for fresh sound, bold groove, remarkable compositions, original arrangements, nice playing, outstanding soli, or any pretty voice, I can assure that these 22 tunes of the new

Rich is this May’s harvest and our playlist calls attention to 31 selected albums, some of them should had deserved a stand-alone presentation. Needless to say that it is impossible to listen to a piece

Do you want to listen to the recent Joe Lovano’s playing on Wayne Shorter’s compositions, or perhaps, dig the new Robert Glasper’s remixes? What about some imaginative renditions of jazz standards, by vibraphonist Christos Rafalides or

Nowadays, Jazz can be defined as “the creative way of playing any kind of music stuff, either coming from heritage, or outside, or it is just a pure invention”.. It’s like life; it’s “how” you

Following  the well known, successful recipe, the spicy playlist of the month is made exclusively with fresh, 2018’s jazz tunes 🙂 It was a “lucky so and so” February! But, before playlist, check out this “Kosmima”! (means

The other day, as I was anxiously going through all the decent lists with the “Best Jazz Albums of 2017”, in case something important has eluded me, the Spirit of Jazz appears and says to

O Κομφούκιος έλεγε ότι δεν είναι δύσκολο ν΄ανοίξεις ένα μαγαζί, δύσκολο είναι να το κρατήσεις ανοικτό, ιδίως δε αν δεν πουλάει και τίποτα, συμπληρώνει ο Υμηττόνιος. Γι αυτό, η τελευταία και εορταστική λίστα του χρόνου

Το δοχείο γέμισε νωρίς, γυρίζει ανάποδα κι αδειάζει φρέσκους ήχους που χοροπηδούν στο πάτωμα. Η νέα έκφραση συγκεράζει και αναδημιουργεί τα σύγχρονα μουσικά ιδιώματα με κύριους άξονες το beat, τα electronics και το λόγο, για τον οποίο,

Αυτά τα 17 άλμπουμ επιλέχτηκαν, επειδή μήνας μπαίνει, μήνας βγαίνει, η τζαζ πάντα έχει κάτι καινούργιο κι ενδιαφέρον να πει. Και 21 κομμάτια, προς άμεση χρήση και συμμόρφωση, για να ακούμε το τώρα, αγαπώντας το

Με τέτοιο ωραίο “εξώφυλλο” από τη φίλη μας Silena Lena, φανταστείτε τι καταπληκτικά πράγματα έχει μέσα της η playlist αυτού του μήνα! Μόνο με νέες κυκλοφορίες, με διάφορα στυλ, δεμένη και κουρδισμένη όπως πάντα, η λίστα,

Μα καλά, θα πείτε, βγαίνει κι από τη μύγα ξύγκι;  Βεβαίως, αφού οι μύγες ήταν παχιές τον Αύγουστο!  Ή αλλιώς, “everybody plays the fool, no exception to the rule”, όπως θα μας πουν και οι

Από την κάψα του Ιούλη και με την προσδοκία ενός ήσυχου κι αισθαντικού Αυγούστου, μια λίστα με 15 επιλογές από την πρόσφατη διεθνή δισκογραφία της μοντέρνας τζαζ. Για την παραλία, τη βεράντα, το αυτοκίνητο, ενδελεχή ακρόαση και

Με επιτακτική την ανάγκη για δροσιά και χαλάρωση, η καλοκαιρινή κι ανάλαφρη playlist του μήνα δεν νομίζω ότι απαιτεί σχόλια για να επιφέρει το ποθητό αποτέλεσμα.. Άψογα groove, πάντα από νέες και αξιόλογες κυκλοφορίες! Την ακούτε

Μια γλαφυρή εικόνα της σύγχρονης τζαζ η παρακαταθήκη του Μαΐου· από swing έως avant-garde, οι 16 επιλογές από τη διεθνή δισκογραφία του 2017 αποτυπώνoυν τις τάσεις και προσφέρουν υλικό για μια πανοραμική playlist, ενημερωτικού και ψυχαγωγικού χαρακτήρα Kenneth