Vijay Iyer / Linda May Han Oh / Tyshawn Sorey – Compassion (2024 ECM Germany 2LP, Gatefold)

Released in 2024 on ECM Records (ECM 2760), Compassion reunites pianist Vijay Iyer, bassist Linda May Han Oh and drummer Tyshawn Sorey in a trio that feels as fluid as breath. Recorded under the quiet precision of Manfred Eicher, the album unfolds like a conversation between three minds tuned to the same frequency, exploring the space where composition and improvisation blur.

Iyer’s playing moves from tenderness to abstraction, every phrase alive with tension and release. Linda May Han Oh anchors the music with lyrical bass lines that sing more than they walk, while Tyshawn Sorey turns rhythm into colour, his touch as attuned to silence as it is to pulse. Tracks such as Arch and Tempest build in slow, glowing arcs, while Overjoyed and It Goes reach moments of deep, open beauty. The trio’s reading of Roscoe Mitchell’s Nonaah pays tribute to avant-garde lineage, reframed through ECM’s glassy clarity.

Across its double-vinyl span, Compassion captures the group in full command of space and stillness. It’s a record that rewards patience and close listening, where every detail feels intentional yet alive. Pressed in Germany on 180-gram vinyl and housed in an elegant ECM gatefold sleeve, this edition carries the label’s trademark depth of sound and minimalist design.

For collectors of modern jazz on ECM, Compassion stands among the label’s most striking recent releases — meditative, daring and deeply human.