Todd Marcus - Trio+ (2019)

On Trio+, Marcus’ new album for Stricker Street Records, his craft is as incisive and passionate as ever, but in a freer and less directly conceptual way.

Trio+ is instead Marcus’ effort to pare down his writing and arranging—a chance for him to dig into contained and concise tunes and forms with a stellar small group. “I wanted to do something that could offer a contrast to my previous material,” Marcus says.

What’s more, he aims to create an open, no-frills context in which to further elevate his unlikely primary instrument, the bass clarinet. “Part of my mission has always been to show what I’ve been able to do with this instrument in a modern straight-ahead jazz context,” he says. “I want to show that the horn can be more than just an avant-garde, fringe instrument.”