DAVID WEISS: Endangered Species: The Music of Wayne Shorter

Trumpeter and arranger David Weiss's little big band is studded with stars, including pianist Geri Allen, trumpeter Jeremy Pelt and saxophonists Ravi Coltrane and Marcus Strickland. But the real star of this live recording was not on the stage at all. Wayne Shorter, who turns 80 this month, is perhaps the most influential jazz composer of the post-bop era, but he has dabbled very little in the deep waters of big band arranging. Weiss imagines what might have been, with deft arrangements for his 12-piece ensemble of Shorter tunes such as Fall, Mr Jin and Prometheus Unbound. He wisely lets the original tunes speak for themselves, adding layers of contrapuntal writing that draw out Shorter's unique harmonies, and providing settings for the soloists who each display their own debt to the great saxophonist. motema.com