Steven Bernstein is a known wildcard in the modern jazz game. He's a wily slide trumpeter, and the whip-smart bandleader behind both Millennial Territory Orchestra, a pugnacious little big band, and Sexmob, a go-anywhere four-piece band. So in some respects, Bernstein's latest is striking for its directness.

ResoNation Trio finds him strictly on valve trumpet and flugelhorn, with a lean-and-limber rhythm team of Scott Colley on bass and Nasheet Waits on drums. True to form, Bernstein added a further twist — inviting maverick producer Scotty Hard to reconstitute the trio's recordings for the companion album Ultra Resonance, a kaleidoscopic refraction evoking both dub and electronic collage.

Bernstein dropped by our studio before a recent show to talk about the jazz tradition, his drive for connection, and why this project had to happen now.

Watch the full conversation on our YouTube channel: https://youtu.be/n3IwFJe5AiE

Chapters:
00:00 – Intro: Josh & Nate catch up, remember Steven during the pandemic
03:42 – Introducing the new records: ResoNation Trio & Ultra Resonance
06:08 – Interview begins: welcoming Steven Bernstein
07:02 – Steven as "the ultimate band guy" — why it had to be Colley & Waits
08:30 – Bay Area roots: coming up around Andrew Hill, Rahsaan, the AACM
11:00 – "Spontaneous composition" and the making of ResoNation Trio
14:04 – Why now: readiness, aging, and finding his own voice
20:48 – Sequencing the album & introducing Ultra Resonance
22:33 – Dub roots: Garvey's Ghost, Scotty Hard's remix process
29:41 – Magical realism as the concept linking both albums
31:25 – Live performance: Steven plays flugelhorn ("Rotary") + the horn's history
38:55 – Learning from Levon Helm — melody, blues, and "spiritual jazz"
42:21 – Jazz education, rhythm, and drummers as the root of the music
50:20 – On legacy, influence, and Sex Mob's lasting impact
1:00:07 – Debrief + "This I Dig"

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Mana, the new album by Kalia Vandever, takes its name from a Native Hawaiian term for spiritual energy or sacred power. It’s an intentional gesture from an artist who has long possessed the instinct of a shape-shifter.

In addition to trombone, Vandever works with electronics and synthesizers on the album, as well as vocals — a first, inspired in part by their experiences with Haley Heynderickx, Japanese Breakfast and Harry Styles.

Before a mesmerizing solo performance at Solar Myth, Vandever joined Nate Chinen for a conversation about myth and mystique, collaboration and solitude, and what it means to open up in new ways as an improvising artist.

• 00:00 — Intro: Entering the World of Mana
• 05:11 — Interview Begins: Hawaiian Ancestry, Spirituality & Inspiration
• 13:20 — Touring with Harry Styles and Finding a Performance Voice
• 20:21 — Singing, Songwriting & Emotional Honesty on Mana
• 29:07 — International Anthem, Genre and the Evolution of Kalia's Music
• 35:43 — Interview Wrap-Up
• 37:09 — “This I Dig”: Micah Thomas's Lucid & Emily Wilson's The Odyssey
• 42:20 — Producer's Picks: Henry Solomon, Louis Armstrong & Laurent Benedict
• 49:06 — Credits

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Emmet Cohen makes music for the people. That isn’t to say he panders or dumbs it down. Cohen is simply a pianist who puts connection at the center of his performance ethic, whether he’s burning down the bandstand, lighting up a livestream or laying it down in the studio.

He has also made a point of seeking out his jazz elders and welcoming younger fans into the fold, all with a spirit of upbeat discovery. There’s a reason DownBeat’s July cover story bears the headline “Emmet Cohen: Messenger of Joy.”

Cohen recently came through Philadelphia with his tour Miles and Coltrane at 100 and stopped by WRTI for a lively chat. Along with saxophonist Tivon Pennicott, he also performed the title suite from his new album, Universal Truth.

Watch the performance of the “Universal Truth” suite: youtu.be/3O-9LYjxj88

Watch our interview with Emmet Cohen: youtu.be/N-Cps3TDKvI

• 00:00 — Intro
• 02:05 — Miles & Coltrane at 100
• 05:12 — The Rise of Emmet's Place
• 12:10 — Building a Worldwide Jazz Community
• 16:25 — Reaching New Audiences
• 22:08 — Emmet Cohen on AI
• 24:22 — Why Young People Are Finding Jazz
• 29:50 — The Meaning of Universal Truth
• 33:00 — Live Piano Performance: “Eternal Glimpse”
• 34:10 — Writing Music Inspired by Miles & Coltrane
• 37:40 — Legacy, Mentorship and What Lasts
• 40:35 — Becoming the “Vibe Provider”
• 42:42 — Josh & Nate React
• 44:44 — “This I Dig”
• 50:47 — Credits

Want to support The Late Set? Become a WRTI member: wrti.org/donate

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When Chris Speed formed Yeah No in the late 1990s, there was no lane for its hybrid style, which drew from both post-punk and post-bop, with shoegaze and Balkan klezmer folded into the mix. Speed, a multi-reedist, had intrepid partners in trumpeter Cuong Vu, bassist Skúli Sverrisson and drummer Jim Black — each a sonic visionary, and all committed to a shared band ideal.

Since then, the musicians have pursued other projects in far-flung locales. So it felt momentous this spring when Yeah No kicked off a reunion tour at Solar Myth under the auspices of Ars Nova Workshop, whose inaugural show the band played more than 25 years ago.

Before the performance, Speed and Black sat down for an onstage interview with Nate Chinen, whose history with the band stretches back to that era.

• 00:00 — Intro
• 07:00 — Interview with Chris Speed and Jim Black
• 42:30 — “This I Dig”

Special thanks to Beau Gordon, Mark Christman and the folks at Ars Nova Workshop and Solar Myth.

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We’ve rarely seen a centennial celebration like the one that coalesced around Miles Davis: cover stories, deluxe reissues, luxury brand partnerships and tributes of every imaginable form.

Then again, we’ve rarely seen an artist like Miles — who once credibly claimed to have “changed music four or five times.”

His body of work remains a source of endless fascination. In this episode, Josh Jackson and Nate Chinen sit down to compare notes and highlights, including some of the less celebrated turns and pivots in a famously forward-thinking career.

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For more than 25 years, bassist Carlos Henriquez has been the beating heart of the rhythm section in the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra, as well as other bands led by Wynton Marsalis. He’s done more than his share of swinging in those settings. But as a product of the Nuyorican community, Henriquez has also remained deeply rooted in clave — the pulse at the center of folkloric Afro-Latin music.

In this episode, he joins Josh Jackson to discuss Monk con Clave, his dynamite new album with the JALC Orchestra, featuring special guests including pianist Gonzalo Rubalcaba and percussionist Pedrito Martínez.

Henriquez also reflects on his formative path through jazz education, and weighs in on a timely question of succession.

• 00:00 — Intro
• 03:05 — Interview with Carlos Henriquez
• 40:36 — Carlos Henriquez performs “I Mean You” (solo bass) and discusses his bass inspirations
• 1:00:28 — “This I Dig”

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When we declare music a “universal language,” what space do we leave for regional dialects and local customs? How has jazz evolved from a uniquely American export into a music that truly knows no borders? These and other questions hang in the air as we prepare to celebrate International Jazz Day at a moment of roiling global tensions.

It feels like the right time to connect with Kresten Osgood — a Danish drummer, composer and commentator, and host of the podcast Dangerous Sounds. He joins Josh Jackson for a far-ranging conversation, sharing his perspective on the music and the mission.

Following the interview, Osgood performed a solo drum improvisation. Watch here: youtu.be/arjCn6U4QRU

• 00:00 — Intro
• 04:30 — Interview with Kresten Osgood
• 43:22 — “This I Dig”

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Irreversible Entanglements can always be trusted to push revolutionary concerns to the fore. But the band puts just as much stock in community, as we’ll hear in this provocative and lively episode.

Four of the group’s five members — vocalist Camae Ayewa (aka Moor Mother), trumpeter Aquiles Navarro, saxophonist Keir Neuringer, and bassist Luke Stewart — joined Josh Jackson at The Fabric Workshop and Museum for a listening session and public discussion of Don Cherry’s 1972 album Organic Music Society, as a tie-in to the exhibition The Living Temple: The World of Moki Cherry, presented by Ars Nova Workshop.

The band also talked about Future Present Past, its knockout fifth release, and the imperative of speaking truth to power, now as ever.

The band also discusses Future Present Past, its knockout fifth release, along with the enduring imperative of speaking truth to power — now as ever.

• 00:00 — Intro
• 04:30 — Interview with Irreversible Entanglements
• 46:47 — “This I Dig”

Want to support The Late Set? Become a WRTI member: wrti.org/donate

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