Wilson is a bandleader dedicated to the infinite possibilities of jazz. Hear a 2006 session.

Assisted by members of the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra and Vince Giordano’s Nighthawks, the trumpeter and bandleader offers a celebratory double helping of the early pioneers — and adds an “Auld Lang Syne” for good measure.

The late jazz multi-instrumentalist, a bluesy experimentalist, was known for his soulful, internationally flavored music. He died Monday at 93. For one struggling photographer, he was also close counsel for more than a decade.

The hot and historic band from New Orleans brings us a tuba-wielding Santa and some original holiday cheer and praise — what its members call a Cajun Christmas from the French Quarter. The goal here is simple: to bring you joy.

The Big Phat Band makes its Monterey Jazz Festival debut with “Rhapsody in Blue” and “Hunting Wabbits,” inspired by Carl Stalling’s 1940s scores for Warner Brothers cartoons. The music tumbles all over itself.

American Routes host Nick Spitzer calls in to chat with NPR’s David Greene about a few noteworthy Christmas contributions from some of jazz music’s most revered and beloved artists.

In a year where pop culture looked back at the 1960s, it makes sense that jazz critics lauded the 80-year-old Shorter, who made his first recording in 1959. His latest album displays him as enigmatic as ever — and as committed to finding new sounds.

We asked 136 jazz journalists to pick their favorite albums that came out this year. Out of over 700 nominees, here are their collective top 50 picks, along with top finishers in the Latin jazz, vocal, debut and reissue categories.

You could look at Michele Rosewoman’s New Yor-uba band as reuniting cousins who’ve drifted apart: jazz, and folkloric Cuban music with its own family ties to the slave coast of West Africa.

Cline expertly shifts from one genre to another, with an emphasis on melodic improv and minimalism. Hear the guitarist and composer perform songs from 2009′s Coward in this archived session from the same year.

With a career derailed due to severe hand problems, Amadie found a way to play the music he loved.

Baum’s latest music is inspired by the late Pakistani vocalist Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan, one of the most celebrated voices in the world. While Khan died more than 15 years ago, Baum talks about his influence on her new album, In This Life.

NPR’s Melissa Block talks with music critic Tom Moon about three recently released live recordings, all from around 1970, that each capture an artist at a distinct point of change in his career.

Italian pianist Stefano Bollani stretches the limits of imagination with improvisations ranging from quirky to transcendent. Virtuoso technique and a keen harmonic sense bolster Bollani’s improvisations, which are influenced as much by Charlie Parker as Prokofiev and Zappa.

Every year, NPR Music invites some of the world’s best jazz keyboard players to Washington, D.C., for a special performance of holiday tunes. Hear Stanley Cowell, Sullivan Fortner, Michele Rosewoman and Andy Bey play live.

The guitarist, composer and arranger died in his sleep Tuesday at 83. Hall was known for a subtle, lyrical playing style, a gift for innovation and collaborations with a host of talented musicians in a career that stretched more than seven decades. Hear an interview from 1989.

The vocalist mixes funk with electric soul in a live tribute to Jimi Hendrix and James Brown in Chicago. When Dee Alexander launches into the James Brown half of the show, she yells to the crowd, “Everybody down here on the floor. I don’t want to dance by myself!”

Hear public radio stations’ favorite songs of the year — from jazz to indie rock to cutting-edge classical. A wide range of programmers sent NPR Music their Top 10 lists, and we gathered all the tracks into one mighty stream.

“This is it,” Webb said of Fitzgerald. “I have a real singer now. That’s what the public wants.”

The guitarist said he didn’t “really have all that much technique anyway,” but it was clearly enough to influence half a century of jazz musicians. Peers and proteges like Sonny Rollins, Julian Lage and John Scofield reflect on one of the finest ever on his instrument.

One’s seen the world with countless jazz, country and other artists. He’ll be releasing his new album on a new label owned by his big brother and fellow percussionist. The Shreveport, La. siblings talk growing up together and the lessons of gospel master Brady Blade Sr.

Saxophonist Jean Fineberg and drummer Allison Miller join the trumpeter in a 2006 session.

The songs were a byproduct of slavery in the U.S. But after being passed along by generations of African-American musicians, they were later embraced by a variety of improvisers, including Sister Rosetta Tharpe, Grant Green and John Coltrane.

With six concerts spread over eight discs, Wood Flute Songs documents the bassist’s exhaustive and creative live output.

After releasing his fourth album earlier this year, the alto saxophonist premieres a new set of compositions: a suite for jazz octet inspired by A.A. Milne’s poetry for children. He visits his alma mater on Dec. 11 to introduce the music in a live broadcast.

One of the world’s great percussionists leads a band driven by decades-long friendships, emotionally resonant anthems and flying drumsticks. With a new album on the way, the Fellowship reunites in New York for a week. Watch a live webcast on Dec. 10.

In 1986, the iconic jazz pianist experimented with drums, bass and electric guitar in his home studio. Decades later, he’s finally released the tapes. Reviewer Banning Eyre says that on No End, Jarrett seems to cherish rediscovering a side of his younger self.

Jazz bassist and composer Ben Allison looks back on an era when sci-fi sounds began infiltrating popular music, and discusses his new album, The Stars Look Very Different Today.

Host Rachel Martin is joined by pianist Batiste and his band, who hope to make jazz transcend genres and generations, as they play live at NPR’s headquarters.

Hear the former Bill Evans Trio bassist play “Stella by Starlight” with host Marian McPartland.

At the KC Jazz Club, Moran sets up two tunes with pre-produced field recordings and sound montages, including a unique take on Fats Waller’s “Honeysuckle Rose.” Hear Moran’s long-running trio The Bandwagon in a set recorded in Washington, D.C.

A linchpin of “cool” jazz in the 1950s and ’60s, he assembled bands that came to be described as chamber jazz, full of unusual textures and future star talent. Hamilton, who continued performing into his ninth decade, was 92.

Grammy-winning musician Esperanza Spalding is pushing for the closure of the Guantánamo Bay detention center in a new protest music video called “We Are America.” She tells guest host Celeste Headlee why she feels it’s an important cause.

The pianist is a musician for whom creativity is a credo and improvisation a way of life. Transforming brilliant technique into unbridled creativity is not only Werner’s musical mission; it’s also the subject of his popular book, Effortless Mastery. Hear an interview and performance.

The pianist’s first visit to France and the 3,000-seat Salle Pleyel concert hall ended in disaster. Fifteen years later, after he became an international star, Monk returned to the same stage with his own band, planning a surprise.

Singer-songwriter and pianist Anthony Strong, 29, waited until he could create something “authentic” before launching his solo career. Now, he’s mining the classic jazz-pop tradition on his new album, Steppin’ Out.

The jazz multi-instrumentalist and composer embarked on a spiritual journey that spanned years before he was able to complete his new record. In a discussion with NPR’s Arun Rath, Nash talks about starting from square one in educating himself about Hindu philosophy.

Glasper jams with host Marian McPartland on Herbie Hancock’s “Dolphin Dance” in a 2006 session.

The trumpeter composes with jazz and Arabic materials, and mixes instruments from both sides of the world. Marvel at the musical flow — even in non-Western modes and odd, long meters at breakneck speeds — in this set, recorded live at the Newport Jazz Festival.

It’ll take at least three guys to move Larry Goldings’ instrument of choice into a basement jazz club. But it also lets the keyboardist explore all his control freak tendencies. He explains the appeal of the legendary electric organ, a staple of gospel and soul music.

Down-home and majestic, the tenor saxophonist’s sound was like a cane stalk shooting up out of rich earth. His 1960 album The Book Cooks features fellow sax-man Zoot Sims in a friendly square-off.

As a bandleader in the 1960s and ’70s, Smith wrote timeless music — and secured that label during the ’80s and ’90s, when hip-hop producers sampled his work left and right. NPR’s Arun Rath speaks with Smith on the occasion of a new album that revives the out-of-print gems of a six-decade career.

The jazz vibraphone pioneer played with Stan Getz and Chick Corea, was an early adopter of jazz fusion, and became the Dean of Berklee College of Music. He’s now past retirement age, but in a session with guitarist Julian Lage, his flying four-mallet technique hasn’t slowed a bit.

An in-demand singer and pianist, Walesch has earned fans across the Midwest, one jazz club and piano bar at a time. Hear him perform three songs live on stage in Grand Marais, Minn.

Anderson shares his “musical memoir” of growing up in 1960s Chicago with a live version of his Sweet Chicago Suite at the Newport Jazz Festival. His scaled-down Pocket Brass Band aims to sound like a full-sized jazz marching band.

Giordano has been obsessed with 1920s jazz since he first heard it on his grandparents’ Victrola. His band the Nighthawks performs the music heard on the HBO series Boardwalk Empire.

When their busy schedules align, the three jazz sidemen come together as a trio. Their format isn’t earth-shatteringly new — it’s built on classic sonorities in which Hammond B3 organ meets electric guitar — but after nearly 25 years as a band, their rapport is. Watch a live concert.

Alchemy is a step forward in defining and refining the trumpeter’s mix of jazz and Iraqi rhythms.

The pianist and club owner plays Cole Porter’s “So in Love” with host Marian McPartland in 2006.

He had gigs before and enjoyed prominent freelance work afterward. But the mellow saxophone and flute player’s career was kickstarted by spending more than a decade in the front row of Count Basie’s “New Testament” band.

In Nicole Mitchell’s words, “The flute and vibes coming together gives us the visual for Ice Crystal.” Hear the adventurous musician and composer play the Mary Lou Williams Women in Jazz Festival with her quartet.

On this 2007 program, recorded before a live audience at the John F. Kennedy Center, Taylor performs his tunes “In Loving Memory” and “If You Really Are Concerned.”

The pianist loves water and music. Inspired by a trip along the Pacific Northwest, The Coastal Suite spins out as one uninterrupted arc. JazzSet captures the broadcast premiere at the Ibeam in New York.

The trumpeter and bandleader premiered his gospel-jazz Abyssinian Mass back in 2008. But now, accompanied by a 70-voice choir, he’s taking the sprawling work on the road and into African-American churches — whose services were the inspiration for the piece.

Chicago bassist Matt Ulery writes beautiful music in an unpretentious way. It’s intricate stuff, with interlocking parts and multiple sections, but it comes out sounding folky and simple. His small group, featuring bass clarinet and accordion, has it down pat.

The Broadway and screen actress known for her Tony-winning role in Cats, among many other major productions, has recorded 15 solo albums with another on the way. Along with musical director Kenny Werner, she joined Marian McPartland in 2007 for a session of standards.

Professing love for Bob James’ music can yield a side-eye in some circles, as his 1970s work is seen as a progenitor to smooth jazz. But he certainly knew his way around a catchy melody and an infectious riff — as legions of rap and house producers have discovered through sampling.

Costello joins host Marian McPartland and bassist Gary Mazzaroppi to perform “At Last” and more.

The saxophonist, 24, came to the U.S. from Chile with little money and less command of English. But she did have some serious ability at the saxophone, which has now found footing in the New York scene. She visits her alma mater to perform with her international band.

The jazz pianist uses his new record to recall works of yesteryear and simultaneously illustrate his new sense of direction.

Growing up in Chile, Melissa Aldana insisted on playing in clubs and transcribed solos like mad — as her father did before her. Now, at 24, she’s won the Thelonious Monk International Jazz Competition for young musicians, and her youthful dedication is beginning to pay off.

Talent, dedication, a skill at adapting classical dances to jazz formats — these are some of Sung’s musical and personal qualities that make her one to watch and listen to. Hear a set from the Mary Lou Williams Women in Jazz Festival.

It’s vanilla, but that’s not really the point. In a short interview, the saxophonist explains why his band returns to a certain palate-cleansing, dairy-titled tune so often — and discusses his connection to its composer, trumpeter and long-time collaborator Ralph Alessi.

At the age of 78, jazz drummer Albert “Tootie” Heath is still displaying his aptitude for making songs swing while keeping them firmly in time. Critic Tom Moon reviews Tootie’s Tempo, Heath’s collaboration with two younger jazz players.

Prism features one of the loudest bands of the bassist’s career. The pleasures of the groove here are complex and deep — it’s not just about moving feet.

A cosmopolitan entertainer and authentic folklorist, the singing Cuban percussionist has lined up a program where timba, four-part harmony and The Jackson 5 butt heads. The result is a dance party as accomplished as it is hard to resist.

For three years, the jazz musician and his collaborator Mike Ladd have been working with war veterans-turned-poets to bring their words to light. NPR’s Arun Rath speaks with Iyer and Iraq veteran Maurice Decaul about the album that resulted, Holding It Down: The Veterans’ Dreams Project.

When Brandon Bain started singing in New York jazz clubs, he knew he wanted to capture the scene on video. Against 10,000-to-1 odds, he found the means to do it. His web series Capsulocity now features impromptu performances of top young talent generating a bit of unscripted fun.

Saxophonist Gabe Baltazar is one of the last living links to an era when Asian-Americans began to make a name for themselves in jazz. Now, at the age of 83, he’s sharing his story in an autobiography.

The singer performs “On Such a Night As This” and “You’ll Never Know” with host Michael Feinstein.

Widely recognized as one of the preeminent interpreters of Antonio Carlos Jobim, Eliane Elias has lately begun exploring the works of Bill Evans. She plays and sings a previously unreleased Evans tune, “Here Is Something for You,” for which she has written a lyric, and host Marian McPartland gives her own Evans tribute on “B Minor Waltz.”

The composer imagined his music more than 40 years ago. Known as the father of “Ethio-jazz”, Astatke has been credited with creating a new genre that blends Ethiopian music and jazz. His new album, Sketches of Ethiopia, is as complex as it is easily enjoyable — the mark of a master.

After releasing his latest album, last year’s Spirit Fiction, the saxophonist put his decade-old quartet on hiatus. He now takes a new group into a venue haunted by the ghosts of his parents, who also presented a new band there nearly 50 years ago. Watch a live concert.

Two of this year’s roster of grant winners are pianists who exemplify creative thinking and wide-ranging intellectual and artistic pursuits. And as it happens, NPR has a long history with each of them. See and hear excerpts of their distinctive work.

In the 1980s, pianist Michele Rosewoman and drummer Francisco Mora-Catlett started independently pursuing a mixture of Afro-Caribbean mysticism and avant-garde jazz. Thirty years later, they’ve finally recorded their otherworldly large ensembles.

Watch a Galician bagpiper and her trio take the traditionally Celtic sound of her bagpipes in an entirely new, wild and wonderful direction.

As a fledgling classical soprano in New York, Norman went to hear singers like Mabel Mercer perform. She tells WBGO’s Rhonda Hamilton that her study of jazz vocalists influenced the way she interprets songs — including operatic arias.

The 24-year-old tenor sax player is the first female instrumentalist to take home the annual prize for young musicians. Raised in Chile and based in New York, Aldana beat out friends Tivon Pennicott and Godwin Louis for first-place honors, worth a $25,000 scholarship and a recording contract.

The annual jazz competition for young musicians, which featured saxophonists in 2013, was a bit predictable — at least in the semifinal round. But given the particular displays of talent on stage, is that necessarily a bad thing?

The jazz pianist’s powerful 1976 album I Remember Bessie conveys a profound sense of loss.

Latin jazz works best when the musicians involved are as fluent in Afro-Cuban rhythms as they are in the deep grooves and advanced harmonics of bebop. A man with a powerful interest in both the past and the future, Arturo O’Farrill has that pedigree in his DNA.

Creative director Ben Jaffe discusses the band’s new album — titled That’s It! — and spotlights four live songs, recorded live at City Winery in New York City.

On this archival program from 1992, Clooney reminisces about her singing career with her sister Betty in Tony Pastor’s band. Her rich, smooth voice and skillful phrasing add to the deep feeling in “Our Love Is Here to Stay” and the challenging “Lush Life.”

The singer and songwriter grew up with Celtic and pop music in her home, and after discovering Keith Jarrett and Bill Evans, she became known as a folksy jazz vocalist. She visits the program along with keyboardist Gary Versace.

These acid jazz veterans visit with David Dye and perform three songs from their new album, Inland Emperor.

The jazz artist, who turned to singing when an injury ended his football career, claims three people as his main influences: his minister mother, his absentee father, and Nat King Cole. He discusses his musical life and the new album Liquid Spirit with NPR’s Audie Cornish.

Before he was the drummer for The Bad Plus, King developed a strong work ethic — or maybe not — doing various forms of menial labor in the Midwest. He speaks on telemarketing, Orange Julius, and how it applies (or doesn’t) to his own bands.

Duke Ellington’s piece for Queen Elizabeth II is included in a new collection of late-period suites.

There’s an element of Porter’s singing that feels like a welcome throwback, though he doesn’t spell it out precisely. On his third album, he only seeks the soulful spirit of griots gone by. And all he asks you to do is clap your hands now.

Mangione and bassist Gary Mazzaroppi team up with host Marian McPartland to perform dynamic trio work in a session from 1999. The set includes Mangione’s famous tune “Feels So Good,” as well as a few beloved standards.