ECM to launch new audiophile vinyl reissue imprint, Luminessence

Renowned German imprint, ECM Records, has become the latest record company to launch an audiophile-focussed vinyl reissue imprint with the announcement today (8 March) of the Luminessence series.

ECM says that Luminessence aims to “shed light on the jewels of the label’s deep catalogue in elegant, high-quality editions”. Some albums will be offered in exclusive facsimile editions, others “framed in high-grade gatefolds that include new liner notes offering historical context and fresh perspectives, while again others have been long out of print or even never before released on vinyl”. Most will be cut from the original analogue master tapes.  

Launching the series on 28 April are Kenny Wheeler’s Gnu High and Naná Vasconcelos’ Saudades, which were recorded in 1975 and 1979 respectively. Gnu High was Wheeler’s ECM debut, featuring a stunning quartet with Keith Jarrett on piano, Dave Holland on bass, and Jack DeJohnette on drums. The album put Wheeler on the map, as both lyrical improviser and jazz composer, and laid the foundation for the Canadian trumpeter’s influential and highly regarded work to come. Saudades, meanwhile, was the culmination of Brazilian percussionist Naná Vasconcelos’ dream of hearing the berimbau in an orchestral context. It was made possible through the creative input of arranger Egberto Gismonti.

Among the many other significant ECM recordings appearing on Luminessence will be Keith Jarrett’s Bremen Lausanne 3-LP box-set, Jan Garbarek’s Afric Pepperbird as well as Madar, by Garbarek and Anouar Brahem, which appears on vinyl for the first time. Also, Zakir Hussain’s Making Music, Gary Burton’s New Quartet, and the self-titled album by Old And New Dreams with Don Cherry, Dewey Redman, Charlie Haden and Ed Blackwell will be issued in July. Luminessence, the 1975 album that gives the series its name and sees Jan Garbarek improvising over string arrangements written for him by Keith Jarrett, will also be part of the edition and released soon. All records were produced by Manfred Eicher.

For more info visit www.ecmrecords.com