For Release: September 9, 2012
Review by Malvin Massey Jr., 9/9/2012

The Feature CD this week is titled American Jazz Institute presents Ellington Saxophone Encounters. The album is by the Mark Masters Ensemble featuring Gary Smulyan.

The jazz group also features Gary Foster, Pete Christleib, Bill Cunliffe, and more. The music is a tribute to the Ellington saxophone section in the Ellington Big Band.

Some of the musicians in the sax section were more than side-men even then, and their legacy is heard in the sound of hundreds of modern saxophonists. If anyone likes an "almost" big band sound, then the listener is in for a treat.