The collective trio of saxophonist and flutist Henry Threadgill, pianist Vijay Iyer, and drummer Dafnis Prieto have shared "Gently Trapped," a Prieto-penned tune from their upcoming album Fifteen, due August 21. You can watch the video, made during the recording session, here. Fifteen is the Nonesuch debut for all three musicians. 

Flea performed an NPR Tiny Desk Concert of songs from his debut solo album, Honora, with the musicians on the record—album producer saxophonist Josh Johnson, guitarist Jeff Parker, bassist Anna Butterss, and drummer Deantoni Parks: "Traffic Lights," "Morning Cry," and "A Plea." "Working with the musicians that I've worked with has been the most exciting part," Flea told NPR's Kara Frame after the performance, "just jamming, connecting and feeling who they are." You can watch it here.

The 74th DownBeat Critics Poll results are in, and among the winners are cover subject Mary Halvorson for Artist, Guitar, and Group (Amaryllis) of the Year; Ambrose Akinmusire, Trumpet; Cécile McLorin Salvant, Female Vocalist; Darcy James Argue, Arranger; and Rhiannon Giddens, Beyond Artist.

Natalie Merchant’s Cabinet of Wonder—a digital collection of 17 songs and accompanying videos from her collaboration with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra (CSO) and Chicago Children’s Theatre (CCT)—is due August 21 on Nonesuch Records. Cabinet of Wonder reimagines Mother Goose and her rhymes for a new generation of young children through modern interpretations of the classic children’s canon and three originals by Merchant—performed by her, musicians from the CSO and special guests—in orchestral arrangements by Megan Gould. Two songs from the album, “Little Miss Muffet” and “Peter Pumpkin Eater,” along with their videos, are available today. Cabinet of Wonder represents three years of behind-the-scenes work among the project’s collaborators and the culmination of Merchant's four decades of involvement in children’s arts and education. 

Flea, who performs with his Honora band at North Sea Jazz in Rotterdam this Saturday, is on the latest episode of Fashion Neurosis with Bella Freud to talk about his album Honora, his childhood, finding freedom in music, and more. You can watch their conversation on YouTube and listen on Spotify and Apple Podcasts here.

Punch Brothers were on CBS Saturday Morning's Fourth of July episode to perform Woody Guthrie's "This Land Is Your Land" as well as two songs from their upcoming instrumental album, The Unsung Adventures of Punch Brothers, out July 24: "New Bike" and "Song of the Water Kelpie (unsung)." You can watch all three performances, filmed at beautiful Bridal Veil Falls in Telluride, Colorado, here.

Emmylou Harris stopped by for the Nonesuch Selects video series, in which artists visit the Nonesuch office, pick some of their favorite albums from the music library, and share a few words on their choices. She chose recordings by Bulgarian State Television Female Choir, Laurie Anderson, Nonesuch Explorer Series, Ry Cooder, The Low Anthem, and Kate & Anna McGarrigle. 

Cécile McLorin Salvant’s album With Every Breath I Take, her first with orchestra, featuring The Netherlands’ Metropole Orkest conducted by Jules Buckley, is out now. Salvant and the ensemble perform timeless songs—by Coleman, Coward, Ellington, Sondheim, Strayhorn, and Salvant—newly arranged by composer and bandleader Darcy James Argue. “It is a rare opportunity to be able to make an album at this scale, which has been a dream of mine for many years,” she says. “Darcy James Argue wrote stunning arrangements and the Metropole Orkest, conducted by the extraordinary Jules Buckley, gave these stories a cinematic dimension ... I am so incredibly proud to share it."

Composer Dylan Mattingly's Nonesuch debut album, The Wild Heart, is out now. The album, performed by Contemporaneous with conductor David Bloom and vocal soloist Iarla Ó Lionáird, comprises the five-movement work The Transmutation Notebooks, as well as Sunt Lacrimae Rerum (these are the tears of things). (The vinyl edition features the latter piece and two movements from The Transmutation Notebooks: “Ulysses Dances” and “Last Dance.”) The two pieces sprang from Mattingly’s six-hour epic composition History of Life. Sunt Lacrimae Rerum (these are the tears of things) was written during the first year of the pandemic, while wildfires blazed in Mattingly’s native California. Composer John Adams says: “Dylan Mattingly is a true original whose music fills the listener with a sense of overflowing abundance ... He’s a genuine American Maverick in the true sense of the term.”

Rhiannon Giddens's album Hope is the Thing with Feathers was inspired by the beauty of people coming together and drawing strength from each other. It was intentionally recorded live with no frills and few overdubs, just pure and essential music that captures the feeling of community, clarity, as well as the joy and power of creating together. From exploring the lineages that make American music to the community-oriented spirit in which it was conceived and recorded, in many ways the album tells the story of the past 20 years of Giddens’ life. The vinyl edition is made from 100% recycled vinyl and is carbon neutral.

Grammy-winning composer Donnacha Dennehy’s Limina is due August 28. The album features premiere recordings of two pieces: the piano concerto Limina and Violin Concerto, performed by National Symphony Orchestra Ireland, conductor Ryan McAdams, pianist Eliza McCarthy, and violinist Stephen Waarts; it was recorded at the National Concert Hall, Dublin. The first movement from Limina, “Head,” is available today.

Punch Brothers have shared “Found in a Frozen Fog," the third track to be released from their upcoming album, The Unsung Adventures of Punch Brothers, due July 24. You can hear it here and watch a performance video, directed by Josh Goleman, here. The Unsung Adventures of Punch Brothers is the seventh album from the Grammy-winning band—and its first comprising all instrumental tunes. The band is on its most extensive tour since 2019.