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In Philip Glass' music, the pianist shifts between delicate oscillation and stormy arpeggios.

Florent Ghys' An Open Cage springs from a recording of the maverick composer reading an excerpt from his Diary: How to Improve the World (You Will Only Make Matters Worse).

The world-famous cellist and his longtime pianist colleague attempt to capture the emotional signposts of a lifetime in this collection of intimate music.

Salvant explores the quaint art of jazz singing, but with her own aesthetic idiosyncrasies intact. Her toolbox contains anywhere from a rich, husky voice to one that tiptoes theatrically, girlishly.

Accordionist William Schimmel creates a daring yet touching six-minute distillation of Mahler's mighty Ninth, with detours for tango and trumpet solos by Wynton Marsalis.

With flashes of lyricism, a young composer excels at weaving sound textures together to create distinct atmospheres. Hear the album, performed by the International Contemporary Ensemble.

Since 1979, the tenor saxophonist has hosted a weekly jam session at a colorful South Side Chicago bar. Rarely is the house group captured on his recordings, but Vonski Speaks features the brawny, bluesy jazzman — and his band — in Berlin.

In the bitter old blues song "Some Cold Rainy Day," the dumpee declares to the dumper: You will come back someday -- when it's cold and rainy and you're old and sick and your stomach "hangs like an empty sack." Bertha "Chippie" Hill made the tune a hit in the 1920s, but now it's been reinvented as a 2010 stunner with vocals by folk-rock singer Cory Chisel.

Jazz drummers leading their own bands often feature intricate rhythms and brisk, driving momentum. Paul Motian, with his slow tempos, loose timing and tunes that go with rainy days, is so self-effacing, he's almost an anti-drummer. A little rustle of brushes and the faint boom of a bass drum may be all he'll use to nudge the music on.

On his new CD, Luminosity, the English composer James Whitbourn doesn't stitch his disparate styles together in some artificial attempt at multiculturalism. Critic Tom Manoff says the music flows naturally and sounds authentic and honest.