Episode #50 - Vijay Iyer & Wadada Leo Smith: Defiant Life

In the 54th episode of the ECM podcast we're joined by the great reedsman and composer Bennie Maupin, whose iconic leader-debut "The Jewel In The Lotus" was just reissued as part of ECM's Luminessence vinyl series. Bennie talks about spirituality, arts, Miles Davis and much more.

In the 53rd episode of the ECM podcast the great saxophonist and composer Joe Lovano joins us to discuss his second recording alongside the Marcin Wasilewski trio “Homage”, which was produced by Manfred Eicher. Joe talks about the evolution of his work with the trio, about the heritage that this new album falls in line with. He also talks about ballads – how to not play something the way it looks – and much more.

In the 52nd episode of the ECM podcast we're joined by Greek singer Savina Yannatou, who talks about her new album "Watersong", produced by Manfred Eicher. She talks about languages, nature, emotion through art and much more.

In the 51st episode of the ECM podcast we're joined by Yuval Cohen and discuss his ECM debut album "Winter Poems", which features his new quartet with Tom Oren on piano, Alon Near on double bass and drummer Alon Benjamini. Yuval talks about his inspirations from classical music, about how a single word or melody can fix a broken heart and much more.

In the 50th episode of the ECM podcast we're joined by Vijay Iyer and Wadada Leo Smith to speak about their second offering as a duo "Defiant Life", which follows their almost a decade old collaboration for ECM, 2016's "A Cosmic Rhythm With Each Stroke". Vijay and Wadada talk about the album's main themes: resistance, defiance, the art of the present and much more.

In the 49th episode of the ECM podcast Norwegian trumpet player Mathias Eick speaks about his new record "Lullaby", recorded in Oslo and produced by Manfred Eicher. We talked about musical education, lyrics, the magic of the studio and so much more.

In the 48th episode of the ECM podcast we're joined by the German-American pianist Benjamin Lackner, to discuss his new record "Spindrift", recorded with Mathias Eick, Mark Turner, Linda May Han Oh and Matthieu Chazarenc - produced by Manfred Eicher. Benjamin talks about dynamics in the band, creative process and routine, the healing properties of music and more.

In the 47th episode of the ECM podcast the Norwegian percussionst Thomas Strønen joins us to discuss his latest album "Relations" - a collaborative project with Craig Taborn, Chris Potter, Sinikka Langeland and Jorge Rossy - produced by Manfred Eicher. Strønen talks about promises, distance, sounds and much more.

In the 46th episode of the ECM podcast we're joined by the German violoncellist Anja Lechner to discuss her frist solo album after years of collaboration with ECM: "Bach/Abel/Hume", produced by Manfred Eicher. Anja talks about freedom, composer's dynamics, the art of playing solo and much more.

In the 45th episode of the ECM podcast we're joined by the Swiss pianist Colin Vallon, who talks about his new trio record "Samares", on which he is joined by his longstanding trio with Patrice Moret on bass and Julian Satorius on drums. Colin talks about his family tree, botanical inspirations, how he collects objects on travels which he uses to make music, and much more.