Ghost Song (2022)

Artist: Cécile McLorin Salvant

Personnel: Cécile McLorin Salvant, vocals, piano; Paul Sikivie, electric bass, bass, synthesizer, production; Sullivan Fortner, piano, vocals, Fender Rhodes; Alexa Tarantino, flute; James Chirillo, banjo; Keita Ogawa, percussion; Burniss Travis, bass; Marvin Sewell, guitars; Kyle Poole, drums; Aaron Diehl, piano, pipe organ; Daniel Swenberg, lute, Theorbo; Violette and Iris McLorin Picot, vocals

Description: As it begins, so does it end. Cécile McLorin Salvant's newest jazz release and debut on Nonesuch Records is influenced by themes of ghosts, nostalgia and yearning, packaged into 7 original and 5 reimagined songs. It opens with a sean-nós (a traditional Irish unaccompanied vocal style) and ends with one, creating the reflections needed to convey the themes.

“All the songs on the album kind of mirror each other. I tried to create this strange symmetry. So as you go in from both ends, the songs are sort of matched together,” Salvant shares.

“It’s unlike anything I’ve done before—it’s getting closer to reflecting my personality as an eclectic curator. I’m embracing my weirdness!” Salvant adds.

Alexa's Role: Flute (2, 5, 9)
Label: Nonesuch Records