Welcome to a new edition of the Neon Jazz interview series. We talk with jazz trumpeter and composer Dave Douglas during a historic blizzard in New York about his powerful 2026 album Transcend, out April 24, 2026 via Greenleaf Music.
This new release continues Douglas’ deep exploration of legacy, spirituality, and ensemble innovation. The album features his all-star GIFTS Quintet, including DownBeat Artist of the Year tenor saxophonist James Brandon Lewis, members of the Oscar-nominated post-rock trio Son Lux — guitarist Rafiq Bhatia and drummer Ian Chang — along with cellist and MacArthur “Genius” Fellow Tomeka Reid.
Blending electronics, lyricism, chamber textures, and high-energy interplay, Transcend stands as a spiritual and contemporary response to the landmark Sacred Concerts of Duke Ellington, performed between 1965–1973 and widely regarded as the spiritual culmination of Ellington’s career.
In this conversation, we explore:
The making of Transcend
Spiritual jazz in modern America
Ensemble innovation & cross-genre collaboration
The influence of Duke Ellington’s Sacred Concerts
The GIFTS Quintet’s sonic architecture
Jazz legacy in 2026
This is modern jazz at its most urgent and transcendent — needed now more than ever.
🎺 Get the album: https://davedouglas.bandcamp.com/album/transcend
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