Xavier Omär Moments Spent Loving You (2019)

It takes a special artist to snatch triumph from the jaws of disaster. Rewind to 2016 and everything was going right for Ina Forsman. The 24-year-old singer had gone from Finland's best-kept secret to Ruf's hottest new signing. Her self-titled debut had wowed the music press, while she'd blazed her reputation on that year's Blues Caravan tour, and couldn't slow the torrent of new songs that flowed from her.

She's full of surprises. 'Try Every Single Beat', with it's Latin rhythms and a lyric that Ina hopes will let you "feel the moment and stop being so goddamn concerned what other people are thinking". Try 'Chains', with it's throbbing percussion and gang-chant vocals. Even when she writes a love song, Ina twists the template, with 'Whatcha Gonna Do' and 'Why You Gotta Be That Way' giving two perspectives on sexual harassment. "The first song tells the situation from a man's point of view," she explains. "He sees a beautiful girl, tries to get her attention and ends up making some fucked-up decisions. The second song tells the story from the girl's point of view: she just wants to carry on with her stuff but this dude won't leave her alone." It all ends with the stunning 'Sunny' - a smoky acapella masterclass, written entirely by Ina, that sends you off into the world with goosebumps, ready to spread the word about this extraordinary artist. Been Meaning To Tell You is the second album that you hoped Ina Forsman was capable of - and then some.

Iconic Drummer Jimmy Cobb, at 90 Years Old and as Vital as Ever, Releases His New Album This I Dig of You, Featuring his Rich, Classic Swing Longtime Miles Davis Collaborator is Last Surviving Player from Momentous 1959 Album, Kind of Blue Available August 16 on Smoke Sessions Records. Name a canonical jazz artist, and chances are Jimmy Cobb has shared a stage or recording studio with them. Starting with his first recordings with Earl Bostic at the tender age of 21 all the way up to his new album This I Dig of You, due out August 16 via Smoke Sessions Records, Cobb has been not just ajazz drummer but the jazz drummer — a musician unmatched in technique and experience.

The line-up led by Grant Stewart and Fabio Miano counts as Austrian drummer Bernd Reiter and the young French double bassist Clément Daldosso. Combo formed by precocious musicians and with a journey to reach the highest levels of excellence. The quartet, with a solid background, rolls with ease through the mainstream but without being accommodated. Stewart, brilliant tenor saxophone with powerful incisive swing that seeks more and better expressiveness, is a featured figure in the international scene. With 18 recordings as leader and praised by Lou Donaldson, George Coleman, Clark Terry and Jimmy Cobb, with whom he has played and recorded. Nothing more to add …

Accomplished piano vocalist, Katrina Harris has extensive experience performing around the world at five star venues for weddings, special events, and sophisticated gatherings. A Master of Music graduate from Sydney University, Katrina is in demand as a piano and vocal teacher, having taught privately and within schools for over 20 years. When she's not performing or teaching, you will find Katrina in her home studio, composing, arranging and recording original music.

The debut album from Rio de Janeiro born vocalist Daniela Soledade, "A Moment Of You" is a Bossa Nova journey straight back to Ipanema beach. The 10 song collection features love songs from Antonio Carlos Jobim, Marcos Valle, George Gershwin and Charles Trenet, as well as compositions from 3 generations of the Soledade family, including the rarely heard 1956 samba "Sonho Desfeito" composed together by Daniela's grandfather Paulo Soledade with Antonio Carlos Jobim.

German Jazz has brought forth only a few international stars. Vibraphonist Wolfgang Schlüter even managed to make it into the Downbeat Critics Poll. A rock of ages in the history of German Jazz, a gem “in which nearly all of the vibraphonists glimmer and shine” (M.Naura) Among his major influences you can hear Lionel Hampton and Milt Jackson but to dismiss him as a King of Swing would only throw light on a partial aspect of his artistic repertoire, because there’s no doubt that he is among the key talents on his instrument in Europe and that he contributed substantially to how playing the vibes has developed over the years.

Known to Americans most for her belting rendition of the theme to Goldfinger, the 1964 edition in the James Bond series (as well as 1971's Diamonds Are Forever and 1979's Moonraker), Shirley Bassey was one of the most popular female vocalists in Britain during the last half of the 20th century. Known as "Bassey the Belter" and also the "Tigress of Tiger Bay," her early career in touring shows and cabaret brought her a recording contract with Philips by the late '50s.

Born in Dublin and based in New York City, Gregory Harrington raises the bar for violinists in the 21st century. With his broad musical range, he has the unique ability to translate popular jazz, rock and pop music to classical violin virtuosity, juxtaposing Bach and Bob Dylan, Beethoven and Leonard Cohen, Astor Piazzolla and Philip Glass with Radiohead and Johnny Cash. Harrington’s cross-cultural and wide-reaching appeal has brought him to perform for Presidents and Vice Presidents, celebrities, heads of state, the United Nations and millions of classical, pop and jazz music fans around the globe.

“Quietly transfixing” composer / producer Emily Wells is known for her varied use of classical and modern instrumentation, deft approach to live sampling, and “dramatic, meticulous and gothic songs” (New York Times) that blend “traditionalism with electronic ambiance” (NPR). On stage Wells’ builds a “new instrument” out of acoustic and electronic drums, synth, violin, and her evocative solo performances leave audiences equal parts dancing and grieving. Her latest work, This World is Too _____ For You, arranged for chamber ensemble by composer Michi Wiancko, was commissioned by Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra’s Liquid Music Series premiered in November 2017 and further commissioned by Metropolis Ensemble. It will be released as a studio album in 2019 with performances by Metropolis Ensemble.