Andy Sheppard: Salt Catchers (ECM 2856)

Andy SheppardSalt Catchers Andy Sheppard tenor and soprano saxophonesRita Marcotulli pianoMichel Benita double bassRecorded March 2025, Auditorio Stelio Molo RSI, LuganoEngineer: Stefano AmerioCover photo: Jan KrickeProduced by Manfred EicherRelease date: September 11, 2026 Across six ECM releases, Andy Sheppard has treated ensemble form as an instrument in and of itself, altering the ambient details around his reeds so each setting reveals a different nuance of his breath. The quintet on Movements in Colour surrounded him with shifting densities, Trio Libero pursued more intense conversation, and his quartet with Eivind Aarset opened electronic passageways through acoustic terrain. Most enduringly, the trio with Carla Bley and Steve Swallow placed his lyricism inside a world where wit could hold hands with pathos. Salt Catchers begins another chapter, bringing the English saxophonist together with Italian pianist Rita Marcotulli and French bassist Michel Benita for the first time as…