The perfect case of a pianist who sounds completely relaxed in the studio and, because of that, manages to balance assertiveness and poetry in ideal proportions. Gerhard Oppitz is a penetrating Brahmsian, bracing in the youthful works, quietly confiding in the later ones.

Trance has turned into a global phenomenon. Like no other genre in EDM, it puts its listeners in a frenzy, hypnotizing with every beat. And that’s a lot, with a bpm that high…

For sometime Criss Cross Jazz producer Gerry Teekens had wanted to tape pianist Cedar Walton in a trio context, and the only problem with that was Cedar's being fairly heavily booked for gigs over Christmas, '92. So it had to be an afternoon session the day after Christmas (Boxing Day, as it is called in Britain). Hence our title - Manhattan Afternoon. And a very swinging post meridian it turned out to be as the inimitable Cedar and his two cooking companions of longstanding (David Williams - bass, Billy Higgins - drums) sailed through a terrific programme of ballads, blues and jazz originals.

"Hope Amid Tears," the new album by Yo-Yo Ma together with his friend and pianist Emanuel Ax, presents Beethoven’s five sonatas for cello and piano in the order in which they were composed, tracing an important arc in Beethoven’s development and approach as a composer. Joining them are Beethoven’s three sets of variations for cello and piano.

Since Three Dog Night's albums were typically short, single-disc compilations that pair two of them together are not only logical but a good value, too. Case in point: this one, with 19 tracks from two of the band's releases from 1970, it clocks at just over 68 minutes. The sequencing of It Ain't Easy has been changed from the American edition that led off with the disc's biggest hit, "Mama Told Me Not to Come." That song appears here buried in the programming at cut seven, which changes the feel of the finished product. The easy rolling version of Paul Williams' "Out in the Country" was the only other charting nugget, although the first appearance of Elton John's "Your Song," which predated John's own version on his debut by a few months, proves how sharp the group's knack for finding great tunes was…

This 1954 studio date, a self-titled album recorded for Emarcy, was later reissued as Sarah Vaughan with Clifford Brown to denote the involvement of one of the top trumpeters of the day. Vaughan sings nine intimate standards with a band including Brown on trumpet, Herbie Mann on flute, and Paul Quinichette on tenor, each of which have plenty of space for solos (most of the songs are close to the five-minute mark). Vaughan is arguably in the best voice of her career here, pausing and lingering over notes on the standards "April in Paris," "Jim," and "Lullaby of Birdland." As touching as Vaughan is, however, Brown almost equals her with his solos on "Lullaby of Birdland," "Jim," and "September Song," displaying his incredible bop virtuosity in a restrained setting without sacrificing either the simple feeling of his notes or the extraordinary flair of his choices…

Ten years of Revue Blanche. That’s ten years of making music together. Of exploring, brainstorming and challenging themselves, finding other soulmates and meeting audiences across the world. Ten years, too, of sharing laughter and tears, having each other’s back, looking for balance, defining – and redefining – who they are. But most of all, it’s ten years of friendship.