The 73rd DownBeat Critics Poll results are in, and among the winners are Ambrose Akinmusire, Darcy James Argue, Mary Halvorson, and Cécile McLorin Salvant, all repeat winners in their categories.

Ambrose Akinmusire has once again been named Trumpeter of the Year. He followed his 2023 Nonesuch debut, Owl Song, with this year's honey from a winter stone, which he calls a “self-portrait" and features improvisational vocalist Kokayi, pianist Sam Harris, Chiquitamagic on synthesizer, drummer Justin Brown, and the Mivos Quartet. "As a trumpet player, Akinmusire is special," Alexa Peters writes in DownBeat. "Over time, Akinmusire’s gifts for collaging texture, timbre, pulse, style and emotion have only sweetened, and the critics have noticed. His latest project, honey from a winter stone ... [is] one of his very best. It spotlights Akinmusire at the height of his ability as a composer, arranger and musician, propelling jazz ever-forward."

Darcy James Argue has once again been named Arranger of the Year. Argue and his Secret Society ensemble made their Nonesuch debut with the 2023 album Dynamic Maximum Tension. The album pays homage to some of Argue’s key influences with original songs dedicated to R. Buckminster Fuller, Alan Turing, and Mae West. Darcy James Argue's Secret Society continues its 20th anniversary celebration, joined by pianist Aaron Diehl at 92NY on July 26.

Mary Halvorson has once again been named Guitarist of the Year and her sextet Amaryllis—Patricia Brennan (vibraphone), Nick Dunston (bass), Tomas Fujiwara (drums), Jacob Garchik (trombone), and Adam O’Farrill (trumpet)—has been named Group of the Year. Their new album, About Ghosts, features eight new compositions by Halvorson and was produced and mixed by Deerhoof's John Dieterich, "conjures such vibrant, picturesque riffs, capricious melodic excursions, and suspenseful rhythmic undertows," DownBeat says in its four-star review, "a marvelous document for Halvorson’s compositionalacumen and conceptual ingenuity." The ensemble is joined on five tunes by saxophonists Immanuel Wilkins, whom DownBeat named Alto Saxophonist of the Year and Rising Star Artist of the Year, and Brian Settles. Congratulations as well to sextet member Patricia Brennan, whom the magazine named Vibraphonist of the Year and awarded Album of the Year for her album Breaking Stretch.

Cécile McLorin Salvant has once again been named Female Vocalist of the Year. It was announced this week that her 2023 album, Mélusine, will be followed by a Oh Snap out this September 19. The new album comprises 12 very personal songs by the singer/composer (plus a cover of a verse from the Commodores’ 1977 hit “Brick House”) mostly recorded outside of a traditional studio environment. The songs showcase her genre-spanning tastes and influences from her 1990s childhood in Miami—from boy bands to grunge to classical to folk—and include party tracks with beats, samba grooves, and quiet folk songs. The album features longtime collaborators Sullivan Fortner, Yasushi Nakamura, and Kyle Poole, plus cameos from singers June McDoom and Kate Davis.

Another familiar face on the list is Sam Gendel, whom DownBeat named Rising Star Soprano Saxophonist of the Year. Gendel has released three albums on Nonesuch: COOKUP (2023), Satin Doll (2020), and DRM (2020).

You can find the complete results of the 73rd DownBeat Critics Poll in the August issue of the magazine via downbeat.com.