Vibraphonist Yuhan Su Explores Cultural Duality with OVER the MOONs

Out October 17, 2025 via Endectomorph Music

2025 DownBeat Rising Star Nominee Presents Her Most Ambitious Work Yet, featuring an Eight-Piece Ensemble and Groundbreaking Electronic Integration.

Pre order here

Endectomorph Music is proud to announce the October 17, 2025 release of OVER the MOONs, the fifth album from New York-based Taiwanese vibraphonist Yuhan Su. This extraordinary recording represents a bold new chapter in Su's artistic evolution, presenting her most ambitious compositional vision to date through an expanded eight-piece ensemble that seamlessly blends acoustic improvisation with cutting-edge electronic processing.

The album emerges from Su's profound exploration of dual consciousness—the experience of navigating two languages, cultures, and identities simultaneously. "I feel there are always two moons inside of my head and each of them draws its tide," Su reflects. "I want to embrace this beautiful, chaotic feeling and explore the use of layers in music." This deeply personal concept, crystallized during her transformative time at the Ucross Foundation Artist Residency in Wyoming in 2024, forms the foundation for her most conceptually resourceful work to date.

Unlike Su's previous albums, which featured a more narrative focus, OVER the MOONs presents a broader creative canvas that plays with layering through soundscapes, counterpoint, color, and rhythmic complexity. The recording showcases Su's distinctive approach to the vibraphone, with a pickup system connected to effects pedals that allow for distortion, pitch shifting, and bending—all of which expand the expressive range of her instrument.

The ensemble features an exceptional cast of musicians: Alex LoRe on alto saxophone and flute, Anna Webber on tenor saxophone and flute, Matt Mitchell on piano, Yingda Chen on guitar, Marty Kenney on acoustic and electric bass, James Paul Nadien on drums, and Shinya Lin on electronics. Lin's self-developed sensor technology with Max/MSP enables real-time gesture control, adding a unique dimension to the group's sound palette.

Su's detailed orchestration creates remarkable textural diversity, with ensemble playing novel timbres where individual instruments often merge in unexpected ways. The music contains interesting juxtapositions of aesthetics, such as events that recall mid-century electroacoustic  musique concrète transforming into open acoustic improvisation. The ensemble manages to adhere to Su's compositional structures even in the densest improvisational moments.

Among the album's most striking compositions is "Two Moons," which opens with Su's solo vibraphone enhanced by delay effects that create an ethereal, contemplative space. As Su describes it, "It's a longer length message which delivers this image of two separate worlds eventually blending together into one." The ensemble gradually emerges through subtle harmonic and melodic entrances, creating lush orchestral textures while maintaining an open, coloristic rhythmic approach. These layered musical events coalesce into a unified chorale, with all instrumentalists blending into a singular timbre that captures the album's exploration of dual consciousness.

The album's compositions also show Su's playful engagement with bilingual wordplay and cultural intersection. "Pieces Peace" draws from a Mandarin idiom spoken during Lunar New Year, while "Genius and Dumb" features Su's voice speaking in Mandarin, processed through electronics that fragment and interact with her vibraphone solos throughout the piece. "Roaring Hours" channels both the emotional intensity of New York life and the raw power of Wyoming's winter storms into heavy rhythms and distorted vibraphone textures.

Collaborators praise Su's artistic evolution on this project. Pianist Matt Mitchell notes the music represents "significant forward movement in her relentless quest for new sounds and approaches, Novel compositional forms, kaleidoscopic textures, high energy improvising, unusual balladry… Triumphantly idiosyncratic, as music should be” while tenor saxophonist Anna Webber describes it as "a super ambitious and cool new book of music" that pushes Su's "compositional voice forward into new areas." Alto saxophonist Alex LoRe, a longtime collaborator spanning eight years, reflects that the music "has made me a better musician in helping to bring her newest musical vision into focus."

Su's career trajectory continues its remarkable ascent. Recent winner of the “Best Instrumental Composer Award” at Taiwan's Golden Melody Awards and recipient of multiple Golden Indie Music Awards, she has been recognized by DownBeat Critics’ Poll as a 2024 and 2025 Rising Star nominee for vibraphone and named among the "Top 25 Best Vibraphonists in History" by U Discover Music. In 2025, she was selected as residency commission artist at The Jazz Gallery and as a member of the M3 (Mutual Mentorship of Musicians) cohort.

Her extensive performance history includes collaborations with Vijay Iyer, Amir ElSaffar's Rivers of Sound, Greg Osby Sextet, Brian Krock's Big Heart Machine, Miho Hazama's M_Unit, and the Webber/Morris Big Band. DownBeat has praised her work as featuring "unpredictable compositions, the originality of her playing and the consistently stimulating interplay", while All About Jazz noted the "sublime balance between the emotional and the cerebral" that "endows the work with its enchanting impressionism”.

OVER the MOONs stands as a rigorous exploration of identity, creativity, and the beautiful chaos of living between worlds. The music is conceived to highlight the ensemble's evolved group playing rather than serving as a showcase for Su's impressive individual skills, resulting in a cohesive artistic statement that captures the vibrant contradictions and conflicts of contemporary multicultural experience.

OVER the MOONs will be available October 17, 2025, via Endectomorph Music

Yuhan Su website click here

Thank you to Lydia Liebman Promotions for sharing with us

Blessed & Bewitched (2025, Origin Records)

Release Date: October 17, 2025

Label: Origin Records (USA)

Recorded at: Bunker Studio, New York

Purchase here

A deeply personal, fully original album exploring the emotional and spiritual dimensions of jazz — raw, poetic, and transcendent.

Blessed & Bewitched blends five original compositions with two reimagined jazz classics, recorded between New York City and Vienna with an international ensemble. The music bridges the intimacy and elegance of golden-era jazz with a modern, deeply personal sensibility.

 Featuring:

 • Johnathan Blake (Blue Note artist, drums)

• Adrian Varady (protégé of Quincy Jones, drums)

• Michael Rodriguez (Grammy-winning trumpeter)

• Alan Bartus (Herbie Hancock Competition semi-finalist, piano)

• Dezron Douglas (bassist for Pharoah Sanders, Ravi Coltrane, etc.)

The album is not just music—it is a declaration of authenticity, vulnerability, and uncompromising artistry.

Maja Jaku is an acclaimed jazz and soul vocalist, composer, and respected university professor whose voice and artistry transcend cultural and musical boundaries. In 1991, she passed the fiercely competitive entrance exam for the University of Music and Performing Arts in Graz, where she studied under jazz legends Sheila Jordan, Mark Murphy, Andy Bey, and Jay Clayton. These formative years shaped her singular style—a sound rooted in emotional honesty, fearless improvisation, and technical brilliance. Since then, Maja has released several acclaimed albums, collaborated with world-class musicians, and performed across Europe and internationally. In addition to her career as a performer, she is a respected educator at Jam Music Lab University in Vienna, where she mentors the next generation of vocalists. Maja’s artistry has been described as courageous, poetic, and transcendent — a singular voice in contemporary jazz.

Maja Jaku website click here

Veteran guitarist and composer Amanda Monaco announces vinyl-only release of new music from long-standing ensemble Deathblow

Due out October 11, 2025, DEATHBLOW is a set of new compositions from one of modern jazz's most tuneful yet exploratory players.

“The name is a red herring: there’s nothing inherently deathly about Deathblow. A project of the guitarist Amanda Monaco, its sound, evasive but hardly confrontational, is a result of Ms. Monaco’s writing.” – Nate Chinen, The New York Times

Album release events:

Saturday, October 11 – Michiko Studios, New York NY / Saturday, October 18 – Lilypad Inman, Cambridge, MA

As the battle between the overly cerebral and doggedly hidebound continues to rage in the jazz landscape, a battle-tested warrior has returned, armed with whimsy and melody, to give succor to a populace starving for memorable sounds: DEATHBLOW, the freebopping alter-ego of guitarist Amanda Monaco. She embodies the anime-style portrait on this limited edition, vinyl-only release: limber, focused, drawing you in before slicing you to ribbons.

DEATHBLOW is Monaco's sixth album, released on her revived Genevieve Records label and with her band of many years in Michael Attias (saxophones), Sean Conly (bass) and Satoshi Takeishi (drums): "Sean and I went to college together at William Paterson. We became fast friends and always kept in touch. Satoshi was recommended to me by my friend Adam Levy, and we’ve been playing together since the late '90s. Michael was someone I met through Sean. When I had a deal with LateSet Records in 2008, I asked them to record with me. The band has been together ever since."

While Monaco's influences include Jim Hall, Grant Green, Attila Zoller and John McLaughlin, the seeds of her approach came much earlier. "An early influence was The Muppet Show," she says. "Every episode featured a jazz standard in a wacky way. The music was wild at times and fun and creative." It was that balance of upending tradition that would inform her music going forward. As to where she sees herself in the jazz firmament, she says "I’m not a flashy player, so that often has me 'under the radar' in the jazz guitar world. I’m OK with that, as long as the melody is strong."

The album begins with "Aw Gee, Thanks", an oddly lilting theme whose foundation is constantly shifting. "Submarine Nuke Officer" is a drunken waltz, wah-wah pedal adding extra room spin, while "Post-Toenail Theory" shows how she has absorbed advanced musical concepts into her unique aesthetic. If "Ya!" could be the soundtrack to a merry-go-round flying off its tracks to the terror/delight of its passengers, "Four People" has the complexity of modern drama. The album closes with the post-industrial noir of "J. Walter Hawkes Will Save The Day" and caffeinated jitteriness of "A Nespresso Moment". For those accustomed to albums where each song fits neatly into a premeditated slot and moves in expected directions, DEATHBLOW will provide constant surprise. Monaco's music is evocative: "A lot of times I’ll come up with a song title before I write the tune itself," she observes.

While it took a while for life to get out of the way of Monaco releasing DEATHBLOW—"We recorded the album when I started teaching at Berklee, then I started the non-profit Convergence Arts and another band, my Pirkei Avot Project, made a couple of records, and then I made another record with my quartet Glitter and then with my collective Lioness"—it gave time for her cousin Mia, just born when the album was made, to blossom as an artist: "I knew she was the one to design the cover. I sent her a photograph and she adapted it to a fun drawing."

Just as she focuses on the essentials as a teacher, she brings the same purpose to her playing: "I try to practice what I preach. I really focus on the music and what I’m hearing, being in the moment and allowing what’s there to come out."

AMANDA MONACO – DEATHBLOW (Genevieve 30604)

Release date October 11th, 2025 amandamonaco.com

AFTER LOSING — AND RECLAIMING — HER VOICE, LA TANYA HALL RETURNS WITH TRIUMPHANT NEW ALBUM, IF NOT NOW, WHEN…

OUT OCTOBER 10 VIA BLUE CANOE

THE MICHAEL LEONHART–PRODUCED ALBUM FEATURES GARY BARTZ, EDDIE HENDERSON, CYRUS CHESTNUT, AND MORE

La Tanya Hall — a vocalist, educator, and longtime Steely Dan touring member known for her story-driven approach and stylistic versatility — is honored to announce the upcoming release of If Not Now, When…, her most personal and intentional project to date. Born from a period of vocal silence and artistic reflection, the album offers a thoughtfully curated collection of lesser-known songs chosen for their lyrical power and emotional weight. If Not Now, When… arrives October 10 via Blue Canoe Records.

Produced by Michael Leonhart, the project features an all-star band including saxophonist Gary Bartz, trumpeter Eddie Henderson, pianist Cyrus Chestnut, harmonicist Gregoire Maret, bassist Gerald Cannon, drummer Mark McLean, and guitarist Marvin Sewell. Across its eight tracks, Hall explores material that is often overlooked — songs chosen for their storytelling and emotional resonance. The result is a deeply personal and musically openhearted album shaped by Hall’s renewed artistic purpose following a prolonged loss of her voice during the early months of the COVID-19 pandemic.

A Colorado native, Hall began performing at age 13 with her father, a jazz pianist. Her solo debut, It’s About Time (Bridge Records, 2008), earned praise from JazzTimes for “the keen interpretative smarts of Maxine Sullivan underscored by the elegant sophistication of Nancy Wilson,” calling her “marvelously dexterous.” Her 2019 follow-up, Say Yes (Blue Canoe), was hailed by ClevelandClassical.com for its “full, alluring color-palette, impeccable diction, and an expansive vocal range,” while JazzTimes highlighted the album’s “alternating glimpses of Hall’s various musical personas.”

In addition to her solo work, Hall has built a multifaceted career as a touring and session vocalist with Diana Ross, Bobby McFerrin, Seal, Harry Belafonte, Rob Thomas and Steely Dan; and as a jazz educator, building the vocal jazz program at Oberlin Conservatory, where she teaches today.

Hall contracted COVID-19 in the early days of the pandemic and spent over five months recovering—much of it unable to speak, let alone sing. “I lost my voice completely,” she recalls. “It was terrifying. Singing has always been part of how I connect with the world, and suddenly that was gone.” As her voice slowly returned, self-doubt began to creep in. “I started to question everything — was I ready to record again? Would it be good enough? Would people want to hear it?” It was her husband, pianist Andy Milne, who broke through the hesitation: If not now, when? “It was kind of a lightning bolt,” Hall says. “I’ve been making music for a long time, and I realized I still have things to say.”

She immersed herself in seldom-recorded repertoire, seeking out songs with lyrical substance and emotional weight. “I’ve always been drawn to the rare gem,” she says. “Songs that haven’t been overly done — that tell a story.” From there, she assembled not just a band of master musicians, but a circle of collaborators she trusted on a deeper level. “I wanted to be surrounded by people who would allow me to be vulnerable,” she explains. “People who play with heart and create space for a vocalist.”

At Teaneck Sound in Teaneck, New Jersey, this trusted circle of musicians brought Hall’s vision to life with warmth and precision. The first track, Horace Silver’s “Pretty Eyes,” sets the tone—a lilting, harmonically rich ballad featuring saxophonist Gary Bartz and trumpeter Eddie Henderson. Both longtime collaborators and fellow faculty members at Oberlin Conservatory, the two bring a fluid, intuitive rapport to the tune. “They already have a musical history and bond that comes alive when they play together,” Hall says. “I was nervous to ask them — but neither one of them hesitated to say yes.”

Hall was inspired to put her own stamp on “Cornfield” (Randy Newman’s “Let’s Burn Down the Cornfield,” originally from his 1970 album 12 Songs) after hearing Lou Rawls’ seminal interpretation. Staying true to her mission of championing overlooked songs, Hall and her band deliver a stripped-down arrangement that emphasizes the track’s haunting quality and nuanced storytelling.

The vocalist then turns her attention to another underappreciated gem, Abbey Lincoln’s seldom-covered “A Turtle’s Dream.” Drawn to Lincoln’s insightful lyricism and unique compositional voice, Hall presents the tune with sensitivity and grace. Pianist Cyrus Chestnut sets the tone with what Hall describes as “one of the most beautiful solo openings,” providing a gentle, reflective foundation for her vocal storytelling.

Hall emphasizes the modern day relevance of Oscar Brown Jr.’s “Long As You’re Living,” a joyful meditation on gratitude and the preciousness of life. In a nod to the broader cultural moment, she highlights the song’s central message: “No matter what side of the fence you fall on, we have to lead with love.”

Returning to Abbey Lincoln’s rich songbook, Hall puts her stamp on “Tender as a Rose,” another rarely covered tune. Guitarist Marvin Sewell’s intuitive playing particularly shines here—Hall notes their immediate, deep musical connection, describing the recorded performance as their very first take. Reflecting on their nearly 30-year friendship, Hall calls Sewell “a wonder” and highlights the unspoken understanding that permeates their collaboration.

On If Not Now, When…, Hall makes a deliberate effort to spotlight female composers, and her selection of Bernice Petkere’s “Lullabye of the Leaves” speaks directly to that intent. Acknowledging that Petkere’s contributions have often been overlooked, Hall uses this performance as an opportunity to honor her legacy and artistry.

The album concludes with two songs from different sides of the musical realm. The first, “Azure,” is from Duke Ellington’s expansive repertoire, co-written by Ellington and Irving Mills. Hall chose the rarely performed composition specifically to highlight its sophisticated melodic contours and emotional subtlety. The second, “Day Dreaming,” is an Aretha Franklin classic that has been stripped down to an intimate acoustic conversation between Hall,  guitarist Sewell and Maret on harmonica. This bare-bones approach lets each phrase land with quiet assurance, ending the album on a note of spacious resolve.

“I just want to keep spreading light and music,” Hall concludes, her voice and confidence restored. “That’s my main goal in this existence.”

La Tanya Hall website click here

Thank you to Lydia Liebman Promotions for sharing with us

Celebrated Montréal-based jazz pianist and composer Kate Wyatt returns with her electrifying new album Murmurations, a shimmering testament to group empathy and musical dialogue. Joined by Montréal jazz heavyweights Adrian Vedady on bass and Louis-Vincent Hamel on drums, the Kate Wyatt Trio delivers a collection of original compositions by each member, weaving together sensitivity, spontaneity, and a nearly telepathic interplay.

The concept of Murmurations – inspired by nature’s spectacle of birds moving in unison – perfectly captures the essence of this album. Just as flocks of starlings shift and turn as one, the trio moves and breathes as a single organism: responsive, trusting, and deeply attuned to the moment.

Renowned for her creative imagination and finesse, Paul de Hueck and Norman Walford Career Achievement Award nominee Kate Wyatt has earned a reputation as one of Canada’s most compelling jazz voices. Her debut album Artifact received glowing reviews and was featured on a number of Best Jazz of 2022 lists internationally. On Murmurations, Wyatt’s dynamic compositions are joined by those of Vedady and Hamel, each bringing unique textures and perspectives to the trio’s collective sound. The album also features a fresh, surprising take on the Kurt Weill standard Mack the Knife, highlighting the group’s playful side and inventive spirit.

Murmurations will be released on October 10, 2025 on all major streaming platforms and in physical formats. The trio will be touring across Canada in support of the album, bringing their uniquely interactive and sensitive sound to audiences nationwide.

VOCALIST-COMPOSER SARAH ELIZABETH CHARLES TO RELEASE DAWN ON OCTOBER 3, 2025 via STRETCH MUSIC x ROPEADOPE. A NEW ENSEMBLE AND INTIMATE EXPLORATION OF LIFE, LOSS & MOTHERHOOD MARK HER LATEST WORK.

Purchase here

“Ms. Charles has a soulfully articulate vocal style, a mix of strong projection, and subtle detail . . . she connects deeply with her band.” Nate Chinen (New York Times)

“. . . Genre of one . . . Charles is fully in control, and figures to be for a very long time.” Joe Tangari (DownBeat)

“Impeccable technical prowess providing the base for boldly uninhibited expression, all driving sharply shaped political and cultural views: It’s a combination as rare as it is thrilling, bringing to mind Betty Carter and Abbey Lincoln, and, over the past half-decade, the neo-soul-meets-jazz fervor of Sarah Elizabeth Charles.” Christopher Loudon (JazzTimes)

“I’ve been an open book through my music for years and . . . I don’t really see any reason to stop that now. It’s what I’m choosing to share.”

Brooklyn-based vocalist, composer, and educator Sarah Elizabeth Charles has been steadily rising as a singular voice in contemporary jazz since her 2012 album debut. From that time to now, her approach to the genre — both sonically and as a source of scholarship, community building, and social consciousness — has rendered Charles a dynamic force as a performer, collaborator, and changemaker.

In addition to leading her ensemble, SCOPE, for over a decade (a notable achievement in an ever-changing industry), she has also emerged as a powerful advocate for gender justice, incarcerated individuals, and early childhood music education, developing original courses and co-leading programs that center each through organizations and institutions including The New School, Rise2Shine, and Carnegie Hall. Her musicianship, identified by her powerful songwriting, evocative and rich lyrics, and exceptional vocal execution, has been inextricably linked to meaningful themes that hold personal significance. With her fifth album, Dawn, Charles is at her most vulnerable yet — and also her most empowered.

Dawn, is both an expansive and intimate reflection on birthing, loss, joy, grief, hope, and transformation. Written over the course of four years and recorded in 2024 while six months pregnant with her second child, Charles crafted the album in real time, processing the miscarriages she experienced before carrying each of her sons to term, mourning the loss of loved ones, and celebrating the births of her two sons. Across ten exquisite tracks, Dawn reveals the complexities of these experiences with stunning transparency and beauty.

Charles debuts an exciting new ensemble including pianist Maya Keren, bassist Linda May Han Oh, drummer Savannah Harris, violinist Skye Steele, and cellist Marika Hughes — with her husband, pianist and composer Jarrett Cherner, contributing string arrangements. “I’ve released four albums with my longtime band and I’m so grateful for their commitment to my music over the years. In this moment though, I felt ready to work and collaborate with new people. I wanted to challenge myself to do this while moving through a new life experience.”

Beginning with the title, Dawn explores the themes of loss and renewal that have helped shape Charles’s personal and creative journey. Just a month after experiencing her first miscarriage, she lost her older brother, Luke, in 2020. In the years that followed, she also celebrated the births of her two sons. “Luke is derived from the name Lucius, which means ‘the bringer of light,’ or ‘the one born at dawn,’” she explains. “Our first son Tyler’s middle name, Dawn, is in honor of my brother and felt right as the title of this album, symbolizing the light that both of our children have brought into our lives.”

An aural synthesis of raw beauty and honesty, Dawn invites listeners to move through these difficult yet universal themes. The album’s depth leaves no room to hide — from neither the artist nor oneself as the listener. With poignant, suite-like textures and exquisite musicianship, Charles navigates these truths as producer, lyricist, songwriter, and vocalist, with a full spectrum of clarity, courage, and emotional resonance.

“Each song is its own universe,” says Charles.

In that spirit, Dawn brilliantly unfolds, opening with “Rainbow J,” (the first of two celestial interludes), that instantly immerses the listener. Charles’s inspirations for this work are at the heart of this song cycle from the outset: the heartbeat of her son Jaden and the voice of her son Tyler are woven into a tapestry of improvisation and original lullaby. These precious elements, sampled and looped; the distant reverberation of Charles’s layered vocals; and Harris’s soft mallets rising gently beneath, all establishing a spacious, ethereal soundscape.

“Ground” is a gorgeous two-minute bowed bass solo from Oh that brings us gently back to earth, yet it remains suspended in something mystical. It draws on classical traditions without fully belonging to them, as Oh singularly builds a harmonically rich, texturally layered, and emotionally resonant passage. Her bass seems to weep — not out of sorrow, but with a transcendent hope.

Oh’s solo closes by quoting the poignant melody of what becomes “Discovery.” In a seamless transition, subtle layers of instrumentation — including an almost cinematic arrival of a full string section — gradually emerge, expanding the musical vista. By the time Charles delivers the opening line, there is an irresistible submission to the journey the album is embarking on. Harris and Keren enter, and the complete ensemble builds powerfully, ultimately culminating in a breathtaking, multi-layered vamp. On its meaning, Charles says, “It’s both about fearing and welcoming. About how my life was changing — and would change — with the birth of our first son. I knew that I couldn’t control the shifts that were happening in me or who he was going to be. So that ending section, ‘I can’t hold you / time to be true / time to be who you are’ That’s both me speaking to myself and speaking to him.”

“Miracle” blossoms within a fixed sonic, tonal, and harmonic space, compositionally meditative, allowing its atmosphere to “just be,” as Charles describes it. Composed during her pregnancy with her son, Tyler, it embodies the wonder and curiosity that accompanies the anticipation of new life.

Up to this point in the album, Cherner’s affecting string arrangements largely establish both mood and tone. “I’ve loved my partner’s writing and arranging, specifically for strings, for a very long time,” says Charles. “I feel like there’s this clarity in his arrangements that epitomize who he is individually. His quiet, steady support and the grounding that he offers for our family feels musically present here.

“Kick” celebrates the first sensation of Tyler’s in utero movements. Anchored by Harris’s steady mid-tempo groove and Charles’s repeating vocal phrasing, the rhythm section locks into a delicious synchronicity, as Charles’s vocalizations effortlessly shift between ethereal echoes, bellowing scats, and everything in-between. Keren’s addition of Rhodes adds the perfect texture as the band splendidly opens up over the changes. “Kick” joyfully yet reverently channels the otherworldly experience, at once deeply physical and spiritually ancestral, as Charles sings, “Generations move through me.”

“Plans” reckons with the unpredictability of birthing. Written after a STAT C-section, it honors an experience that unfolded far differently than Charles had hoped for — including being unconscious for her son’s first moments and not meeting him until hours after his birth. “At one point, I thought that I had finished the music for this song cycle, but the more I reflected, the more I realized that it felt like there was an experiential piece missing. I hadn’t musically processed my grief for what I hoped the birth would be. “Plans” is my musical exploration of this moment in time.” Beyond the personal, “Plans” also echoes the broader realities of maternal health inequities, as Black and POC women/birthing people in the U.S. face disproportionately high rates of complications and preterm births. With “Plans,” Charles surrenders to what is, offering gratitude for the care she and her baby received.

“Rainbow T,” the counterpart interlude of “Rainbow J,” is embedded in the same in utero heartbeat, toddler vocalization, and improvisation. The interludes each build upon a singular 20-minute improvisation, creating a lo-fi, dreamlike space that draws the listener back to Charles’s most intimate intentions and the emotional center that roots the album.

In contrast to the album’s more intimate tone, “Mother” is described compositionally as “Classic Sarah,” and boldly demands visibility and recognition for birthing people. “I feel like ‘Mother’ is an assertion,” she says. “We don’t actually ‘recognize the sacrifice, we don’t see the contribution, we don’t understand the body, mind, and spirit execution’,” she adds, quoting the powerful lyrics of the chorus. “The actual energy that it takes to move through the experiences of pregnancy, birthing, and mothering. People do not, in my experience, take the time to fathom what that actually is because it’s so common and taken for granted. This song is a call to honor the complexity of the work that often goes unseen and undervalued.” Sparkling solos from Keren, Oh, and Harris underscore Charles’s commanding performance on this anthemic, celebratory piece.

 “Angel Spark” addresses miscarriage, a subject rarely explored in music. Originally recorded on her previous album with SCOPE, Charles revisits the piece on Dawn, with her new ensemble and an expanded arrangement that includes gorgeous string arrangements, written by Cherner and beautifully played by Steele and Hughes. Charles softly repeats echoes of “go,” in an intimate moment representing the release of the two beings she miscarried, who she deeply felt to be her daughters. “Who knows who they were or would have been?” she reflects, “but that’s not really what matters — only what feels true and what I felt moved to express.” Charles’s lyrics give language to the grief singular of this maternal experience. Can you love a thing that never was? / Can you mourn anticipation lost? / Can you hold that love so close and let it go? / Oh, let it go.

If “Angel Spark” gives language to the grief, “Questions” steps deeper into the emotional terrain, musing on both the imaginings that often follow loss, and the wonder of the new life before her eyes. A duet between Charles and Oh, the lyrics pose tender queries on the unknowns of life — where we come from, who we become, and the spirits we may have encountered before coming earthside. There’s a hope in the message: that love continues to resonate beyond ourselves and endures in both presence and absence.

With Dawn, Charles triumphantly exhibits the metamorphic power of music. And she maintains what has always been at the heart of her artistry — music as witness, as an offering for transformation, and as testament. “I hesitate to share who I fully am less than I used to,” Charles reflects. “For me, this has been a direct result of motherhood. The experience of having my two sons has given me the permission, the courage, and the power to be my full self, unapologetically.”

Thank you to Lydia Liebman for sharing with us

Sarah Elizabeth Charles website click here