Promises by Floating Points (aka Sam Shepherd), Pharaoh Sanders and The London Symphony Orchestra is a nine-movement jazz piece released on David Byrne’s Luaka Bop record label. Shepherd composed the work, tapped 80-year-old saxophonist Sanders for his parts and then passed it to The London Symphony Orchestra, who eventually recorded the album audiences are enjoying now. American visual artist Julie Mehretu contributed the album’s cover …
Seraphina Simone: Skin One of two new tracks from London-based musical artist Seraphina Simone, “Skin” tantalizes with soulful vocals and supportive synths. In a statement, Simone says the track is “about sex and desire,” adding that “I think as women we’re often taught to tame our desires, to make them fit into something that is palatable and acceptable for the male gaze or an outdated …
Commissioned by the San Francisco Symphony, Nico Muhly’s 19-minute “Throughline” dazzles throughout its 13 movements. Muhly composed the masterful work to comply with COVID-19 health restrictions—meaning that no more than six orchestral players could be on stage at once during recording, and breath-based instrument were recorded separately. The San Francisco Symphony, Esa-Pekka Salonen and eight collaborative partners—including Bryce Dessner on electric guitar and Esperanza Spalding …
