Showing 1–80 of 224 results
Aisyah Aziz is a Singaporean singer-songwriter and actress, known for pop, ballad, soul, jazz-influenced and adult-contemporary material. Deezer identifies her as Malay Singaporean and notes that she gained wider attention after appearing on Malaysia’s Akademi Fantasia in 2013. She is especially known for songs such as “Senyum Saja,” “Tanda Tanya,” “Indah Pada Waktunya,” “Won’t You…
The first thing I notice with Alela Diane is the voice. It is clear and immediately recognisable, but she rarely uses it to overpower a song. Instead, she lets the words, acoustic instruments and small shifts in phrasing do the work, which makes her music especially rewarding on a transparent hi-fi system. Born Alela Diane…
What strikes me first about Alexis Cole is the weight and calmness in her voice. She does not need to push a lyric forward or decorate every phrase to make you listen. There is a dark, full quality in the lower part of her range, but also enough clarity in her pronunciation to keep the…
Alison Krauss is an American bluegrass, country and folk singer, also known as a brilliant fiddler and producer. She was born July 23, 1971, in Decatur, Illinois, and became known very young: she signed with Rounder Records at age 14 and released her first solo album as a teenager. She is best known for her…
Allan Taylor is a British folk singer-songwriter and guitarist, born in Brighton, England, in 1945. He is known for poetic, storytelling songs, warm acoustic guitar playing, and a calm, intimate vocal style. His music fits especially well in the folk, singer-songwriter, acoustic and audiophile categories. He started performing in folk clubs as a teenager and…
Alon Lotringer is one of those rare artists whose work quietly demands attention the moment you hear it on a revealing system. In an era dominated by compressed, over-processed streaming production, his music feels almost oppositional: open, dynamic, and carefully constructed with a strong sense of space and emotional restraint. Nothing in his sound is…
Amber Rubarth is an American singer-songwriter and musician. Her music is usually described as folk, singer-songwriter, acoustic, and indie folk. She has toured across Europe, North America, Japan, South Korea, South Africa, and other places. She is known for intimate songwriting, warm vocals, and natural acoustic arrangements. Her albums include Sessions from the 17th Ward,…
Amythyst Kiah caught my attention because she refuses to fit neatly into one musical box. Folk, blues, Appalachian roots, alternative rock and Americana all belong in her music, but none of those labels fully explains what she does. Born in Chattanooga, Tennessee, on December 11, 1986, she later studied Bluegrass, Old-Time and Roots Music at…
Ana Caram, born Ana Lucia Ribeiro Caram on 1 October 1958, is a Brazilian singer, guitarist and flautist. Her music blends bossa nova, samba, jazz and Brazilian popular music. Apple Music lists her as a Brazilian jazz artist, with known songs including “Blue Bossa,” “O Amor Em Paz,” “Leve,” and “Fly Me to the Moon.”…
The first thing I listen for with Andrew Bird is not actually the violin. It is the way several different musical instincts seem to operate at the same time. His voice can sound relaxed and conversational, his violin may move from a simple supporting line into something far more restless, and then that unmistakable whistle…
Anette Askvik is a Norwegian artist, composer, pianist, vocalist and producer from Stavanger, Norway. Her music is usually described as pop, art pop, and atmospheric singer-songwriter music, often combining acoustic instruments, electronic textures and cinematic sound design. Her official website describes her music as “powerful and hypnotic,” and presents her as an artist, composer and…
Angelita Li is appreciated by audiophile jazz listeners because her recordings focus on natural vocal tone, space, phrasing, and acoustic musicianship rather than heavy pop production. Her album Caminhos Cruzados is especially interesting for vocal-jazz fans: it was released on Stunt Records, includes Brazilian/jazz standards such as “Close To You,” “Caminhos Cruzados,” “Good Morning Heartache,”…
In a streaming landscape saturated with algorithmically polished pop, Ann Sally stands apart as something genuinely rare: a voice that sounds as though it was recorded by candlelight. Born and raised in Nagoya, Japan, of Korean ancestry, she trained as a cardiac internist before stumbling upon bossa nova while studying medicine in Tokyo — and…
Anna Kolchina is a Russian-born jazz vocalist, born on March 8, 1984, in Ufa, Republic of Bashkortostan, Russia. She studied jazz vocals in Ufa and later continued her musical education in Saint Petersburg, with additional classical vocal training. Her genre is mainly vocal jazz, with a style rooted in American jazz standards, warm phrasing, and…
Anna Nalick is an American singer-songwriter from California. She became widely known with her hit song “Breathe (2 AM)”, from her debut album Wreck of the Day. Her official biography describes her as a multi-platinum selling singer-songwriter who has written her own music and also written for other artists. Her style is mainly pop rock…
The first thing I notice about Anna St. Louis is her timing. She rarely pushes a song forward when she can let it breathe, and her voice often seems to sit just behind the rhythm. That gives her music an unhurried character that suits both her songwriting and the simple, natural sound of her recordings….
Anne Bisson is a Canadian jazz singer, pianist, producer, actress, and speaker from Montreal. Her music is mainly vocal jazz, smooth jazz, and audiophile jazz-pop, often combining intimate vocals, piano-led arrangements, and high-quality acoustic production. Qobuz describes her as a classically trained pianist, singer, and actress with decades of experience in radio, television, and music….
The first thing I notice with Archie Shepp is the grain of his tenor saxophone. It can sound rough, breathy and almost confrontational, but then he can turn a phrase and suddenly reveal an unexpected tenderness. That contrast is central to the way I hear him. Shepp was born Archie Vernon Shepp on May 24,…
Avishai Cohen is an Israeli jazz bassist, singer, composer and bandleader, born in Kabri, Israel, on April 20, 1970. His music blends modern jazz with Middle Eastern, Mediterranean, Latin, classical and world-music influences. His official biography says he helped bring the bass into the spotlight and pushed the boundaries of jazz, and notes that he…
Babatunde Olatunji, also known as Baba Olatunji, was a Nigerian drummer, percussionist, recording artist, educator and social activist. He is best known for helping introduce traditional West African drumming and chants to Western audiences. His official website describes him as a Grammy Award-winning virtuoso drummer, producer, educator and recording artist who rose to prominence in…
Badi Assad is a Brazilian singer, composer, guitarist, percussionist, and vocal performer. Her music blends Brazilian folk, MPB, jazz, classical guitar, world music, and experimental vocal techniques. Apple Music describes her as a Brazilian fingerstyle guitarist and vocalist whose work crosses Brazilian folk, MPB, classical, jazz, and world traditions. She became internationally known with albums…
There is something immediately recognisable about Barb Jungr’s voice. It has warmth, a slightly trembling quality and an extraordinary ability to make familiar lyrics sound like a personal conversation. She can take a Bob Dylan song I have heard countless times, change its rhythm, introduce an unexpected musical arrangement and suddenly make me pay attention…
Beoga are an Irish folk band from Northern Ireland, formed in 2002. Their music is rooted in traditional Irish folk, but they also mix in modern influences such as jazz, pop, R&B, and contemporary production. Apple Music describes them as a Northern Irish folk outfit who became known internationally through albums like Mischief and The…
The first thing I notice with Bert Jansch is that the guitar never sounds like decoration behind a singer. It carries the rhythm, answers the voice, changes direction between phrases and sometimes seems to pull the song forward by itself. Jansch, whose full name was Herbert Jansch, was born on 3 November 1943 in Springburn,…
Big Thief can sound almost fragile for a few seconds and then suddenly become one of the most physical guitar bands I know. That contrast is one of the reasons I find them so interesting. At the centre is singer, guitarist and principal songwriter Adrianne Elizabeth Lenker, born on July 9, 1991, in Indianapolis, Indiana,…
The first thing I notice with Bill Charlap is how little he needs to do to make a familiar song feel alive. His piano playing is clear, controlled and deeply connected to melody, but never stiff. William Morrison Charlap was born on October 15, 1966, in New York City, into a home where music was…
Bill Evans was an American jazz pianist and composer, born in Plainfield, New Jersey, in 1929 and active mainly from the 1950s until his death in 1980. He is best known for modern jazz, modal jazz, cool jazz, and post-bop piano. Britannica describes him as a pianist known for lush harmonies and lyrical improvisation, and…
The first thing I notice about Billie Marten is how little she needs to do with her voice to hold my attention. She does not push for drama, and she rarely treats volume as a substitute for expression. Instead, small changes in phrasing, breath and timing do most of the work. Marten was born Isabella…
The first thing I notice with Bright Eyes is Conor Oberst’s voice. It is not polished, smooth or designed to disappear neatly into a beautiful recording. It shakes, tightens, breaks open and sometimes sounds as if the words are arriving a fraction faster than he can comfortably sing them. That quality has always divided listeners,…
Brooke Miller is a Canadian singer-songwriter, guitarist, and composer from Prince Edward Island. Her music is usually described as acoustic rock, folk, singer-songwriter, and roots-influenced pop, with strong emphasis on guitar playing and intimate vocals. Her Apple Music and Deezer pages list key recordings such as You Can See Everything, Shake It Off, Familiar, and…
Bucky Pizzarelli, born John Paul Pizzarelli in Paterson, New Jersey, was an American jazz guitarist known especially for swing, traditional jazz, and seven-string guitar playing. Deezer describes him as a jazz guitarist born in 1926 who began his professional career at 17 with Vaughn Monroe’s dance band. He recorded and performed with many major artists,…
Buena Vista Social Club is a Cuban music collective/project associated with traditional Cuban styles such as son cubano, bolero, danzón, guajira, and Afro-Cuban music. The original project was organized around recordings in Havana in the 1990s, involving producer Nick Gold and guitarist Ry Cooder, and brought together legendary Cuban musicians including Ibrahim Ferrer, Rubén González,…
Camille Thurman is an American jazz saxophonist, vocalist, flutist, composer, and educator from New York. Her music is mainly jazz, especially vocal jazz, hard bop, and modern acoustic jazz. Her official bio describes her as an accomplished composer, saxophonist, vocalist, and interpreter of the jazz tradition, known for blending tradition and innovation. Her important albums…
Cansu Tanrıkulu is one of those rare contemporary vocal artists whose work refuses to sit comfortably inside a single genre box. She operates at the edge of contemporary jazz, free improvisation, experimental vocal music, and avant-garde composition, and that alone already sets the tone for why her recordings matter in a high-fidelity context. This is…
There are voices that test equipment, and then there are voices that make you forget you are listening to equipment at all. Carmen Cuesta-Loeb belongs emphatically in the second category. In audiophile circles, her name appears reliably on “reference recording” lists — the short and sacred list of albums you reach for when breaking in…
Casey Abrams is an American singer, bassist, multi-instrumentalist, songwriter, and jazz-pop performer from Idyllwild, California. He became widely known after finishing sixth on season 10 of American Idol. Concord describes him as a singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and American Idol season 10 finalist who studied classical bass, piano, improvisation, and jazz ensembles. His important albums and…
Cassandra Wilson is an American jazz vocalist, songwriter, musician, and producer from Jackson, Mississippi. Her official biography describes her as a jazz artist who expanded her sound by incorporating blues, country, and folk into her work. Blue Note also describes her as one of the top jazz singers of the 1990s, known for a distinctive,…
A Cat Power song rarely needs much before it has my full attention. Chan Marshall can sing quietly, leave unexpected gaps between words and hold back where another singer might push harder, yet the result often feels more intense because of that restraint. Cat Power is the stage name of Charlyn Marie Marshall, born on…
Cesária Évora was a Cape Verdean singer from Mindelo, São Vicente, widely known as the “Barefoot Diva” and the “Queen of Morna.” Her music is mainly morna, a melancholic Cape Verdean genre, along with coladeira and other Cape Verdean folk styles. Apple Music describes her as Cape Verde’s foremost practitioner of morna, a style blending…
The name on this page reads Champian Fultonó, but the artist behind it is American jazz pianist and vocalist Champian Fulton, and one of the first things I notice when listening to her is how naturally the piano and the voice belong together. She does not sound like a singer who happens to play piano,…
Charlie McGettigan is an Irish singer, songwriter, guitarist, and broadcaster from Ireland. His music is mainly Irish folk, singer-songwriter, and acoustic pop/folk. His official Bandcamp profile describes him as an Irish singer-songwriter, while Apple Music lists his genre as Singer/Songwriter and shows key releases such as The Man from 20, Some Old Someone…, Family Matters,…
Chet Baker was an American jazz trumpeter and vocalist, strongly associated with cool jazz, West Coast jazz, and vocal jazz. Tidal describes him as a major figure in the West Coast cool jazz school, while YouTube Music identifies him as the “Prince of Cool.” His most important albums include Chet Baker Sings, Chet Baker Sings…
There is something wonderfully direct about the way Chie Ayado sings. She has a powerful, slightly rough voice, a natural sense of rhythm and a habit of making familiar songs sound surprisingly personal. She can move from a quiet jazz ballad to an energetic gospel performance without losing her identity. What I particularly enjoy is…
Chris Jones was an American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and studio musician strongly associated with folk, blues, country-rock, acoustic rock, and audiophile singer-songwriter recordings. Stockfisch Records describes him as a gifted guitarist and songwriter whose collaboration with the label began in the early 1980s and lasted more than two decades. His most important albums include No Looking…
Christian Willisohn is a German blues and jazz pianist, singer, and composer from Munich. Deezer describes him as a German pianist born on January 22, 1962, known for contributions to blues and jazz; Apple Music also lists him under jazz. His important albums include Boogie Woogie and Some Blues, Blues News, Blues on the World,…
Christy Baron is an American jazz and pop singer and actress from the Pittsburgh area. She studied music at Carnegie Mellon University, began as a cabaret singer and pianist, and has been active in New York since the 1980s. Her Chesky Records profile describes her as a dynamic performer with an entrancing voice, and notes…
Chuck Mangione was an American jazz flugelhorn player, trumpeter, composer, and bandleader from Rochester, New York. His music is mainly jazz, jazz fusion, smooth jazz, and jazz-pop. His official website describes him as an internationally acclaimed recording artist, flugelhorn player, and composer best known for the 1977 hit “Feels So Good.” His most important albums…
City of the Sun is an American instrumental acoustic band from New York City. Their music blends indie rock, acoustic post-rock, flamenco, gypsy jazz, American folk, and blues. Their official website describes the group as an NYC instrumental act formed in 2011, featuring guitarist John Pita and percussionist Zach Para. They became known through busking…
Clark Terry was an American jazz trumpeter, flugelhornist, composer, educator, and bandleader. His music covered swing, bebop, hard bop, big band jazz, and vocal/scat jazz. His official biography describes his career as spanning more than seventy years and identifies him as a world-class trumpeter, flugelhornist, educator, composer, writer, and NEA Jazz Master. He played with…
Claude Williamson could make a bebop piano line move at serious speed without ever letting it sound hurried. That is the first thing I notice when I listen to him. His right hand can fire off long, agile phrases, but underneath all that movement there is control, balance and a very clear sense of swing….
Cowboy Junkies are a Canadian alternative country and folk-rock band from Toronto, formed in the mid-1980s by Margo Timmins, Michael Timmins, Peter Timmins, and Alan Anton. Their sound blends folk, blues, country, rock, and slow, atmospheric alternative music, often centered on Margo Timmins’ quiet, intimate vocal style. Their most important albums include The Trinity Session,…
Daisy Chute has quietly become a favorite among folk and acoustic audiophile listeners because her recordings focus on clarity, intimacy, and organic instrumentation rather than heavy compression or modern pop loudness. Her music is built around delicate vocal harmonies, natural acoustic guitar textures, subtle string arrangements, and spacious production that translates exceptionally well on high-end…
In a streaming landscape saturated with over-produced pop and algorithmically polished sound, Daisy Chute is the kind of artist that audiophiles quietly pass around like a secret. Her music rewards high-fidelity playback precisely because it was never designed to be compressed into background noise. Recorded with intimacy and care — often featuring real acoustic instruments…
Dave Brubeck was an American jazz pianist, composer, and bandleader, best known for cool jazz, West Coast jazz, and rhythmically adventurous modern jazz. His official website describes him as one of the most active and popular musicians in both jazz and classical music, with a career spanning more than six decades. His most important albums…
David Chesky is an American pianist, composer, producer, arranger, and audiophile recording innovator. His music covers jazz, classical, contemporary classical, Afro-Cuban, Brazilian, Latin, and world-fusion influences. His official website describes him as a composer of orchestral works, operas and ballets, a children’s-book author, jazz pianist, and audio-technology innovator. He is also known as the co-founder…
Put on David Hazeltine’s 2018 version of “The Odd Couple” and you quickly understand what I like about him. He takes music that many listeners already know, changes the perspective completely, yet never makes the arrangement sound clever just for the sake of being clever. Hazeltine turns the familiar theme into a relaxed jazz waltz,…
David Munyon is an American singer-songwriter and guitarist, born in the United States and associated with folk, Americana, blues, country-rock, and acoustic singer-songwriter music. His official German website calls him a “Songwriterpoet” and includes news, discography, live videos, paintings, lyrics, and Mobile Home Records releases. He is especially known among audiophile listeners through releases on…
David Qualey was an American guitarist and composer, born on December 30, 1947, in Salem, Oregon. He became known for classical guitar, fingerstyle guitar, and new age/acoustic instrumental music. His official website describes him as an accomplished American guitarist and composer known for his contribution to the classical guitar repertoire. His important albums include Only…
David Rawlings has one of those guitar sounds I recognise within seconds. It is lean, woody and slightly wiry, with notes that seem to arrive from somewhere between old-time country, folk and bluegrass without becoming trapped in any of them. Rawlings, born David Todd Rawlings on December 30, 1969, in North Smithfield, Rhode Island, is…
David Roth is an American singer-songwriter, recording artist, performer, workshop leader, and speaker. His music is usually described as folk, singer-songwriter, and acoustic music, with reflective lyrics and a strong focus on storytelling. His official website describes him as a “singer, songwriter, recording artist, keynote speaker, workshop leader, and instructor,” and notes that he has…
Dennis Kolen is a Dutch singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer from the Netherlands. His music is mainly acoustic pop, folk-pop, Americana, and singer-songwriter rock. His official YouTube channel describes him as a Dutch singer/songwriter who released his first record in 2001 with the rock band Wyatt. Kolen’s solo career began strongly in 2005 with his debut…
Dhafer Youssef is a Tunisian oud player, vocalist, and composer, born on November 19, 1967, in Teboulba, Tunisia. His music blends contemporary jazz, Arabic and North African musical modes, Sufi-inspired vocal traditions, electronics, and world music influences. His official website describes him as a “Tunisian Oud master, vocalist and composer,” and Apple Music describes his…
Diana Krall is a Canadian jazz pianist and singer from Nanaimo, British Columbia, known for her warm contralto voice, elegant piano playing, and sophisticated interpretations of jazz standards, bossa nova, and traditional pop. Her official website lists her current tour activity, while YouTube Music describes her as a Canadian jazz pianist and singer known for…
Dire Straits were a British rock band formed in London in 1977. Their classic line-up began with Mark Knopfler on vocals and lead guitar, David Knopfler on rhythm guitar, John Illsley on bass, and Pick Withers on drums. Their music blends rock, blues rock, roots rock, pub rock, and elements of country and folk, with…
Dominic Miller is loved by audiophiles because his music is centered on tone, space, touch, and acoustic detail rather than loud production. His guitar recordings are excellent for testing midrange purity, string attack, decay, stereo imaging, and the natural warmth of nylon-string and steel-string guitar. His ECM albums Silent Light, Absinthe, and Vagabond are especially…
Dominique Fils-Aimé is a Canadian singer-songwriter and composer from Montreal, Quebec. Her music blends vocal jazz, soul, blues, R&B, and African diasporic musical influences. Her official website describes her as a two-time JUNO Award-winning Montreal singer-songwriter and one of today’s leading voices in vocal jazz. Her important albums include Nameless (2018), Stay Tuned! (2019), Three…
Give Dom Flemons a banjo, a guitar, a pair of rhythm bones or simply a strong song, and one thing becomes clear very quickly: he understands rhythm at a level that makes old American music feel completely alive. The WordPress title says Don Flemons, but the artist is Dom Flemons, born Dominique Flemons on August…
Donald Fagen is an American singer-songwriter, keyboardist, and vocalist best known as the co-founder, lead singer, and main songwriter of Steely Dan with Walter Becker. His music blends jazz rock, sophisticated pop, R&B, funk, and rock, with polished studio production, complex harmonies, and dry, literary lyrics. The official Steely Dan biography says Donald had taught…
Ask any serious audiophile to name a blues artist who genuinely rewards a high-end listening setup, and Doug MacLeod will almost certainly come up. The reason is simple and somewhat rare: his recordings are made the way audiophiles dream about — minimal processing, live-in-the-room performances, no overdubs, and an uncompromising commitment to natural acoustic sound….
Eagles are an American rock band formed in Los Angeles in 1971. Their music mixes rock, country rock, soft rock, folk-rock, and classic rock, with polished harmonies and melodic songwriting. The classic early members included Glenn Frey, Don Henley, Bernie Leadon, and Randy Meisner; later key members included Don Felder, Joe Walsh, and Timothy B….
Earl Wild was an American classical pianist and composer, born on November 26, 1915, and widely associated with the grand Romantic piano tradition. His official website describes him as “the last of the great Romantic pianists” and a virtuoso pianist-composer who performed internationally for more than eight decades. His most important recordings include Earl Wild…
The first thing I notice with Eddie Higgins is how little he seems interested in proving anything. His piano playing is technically assured, but the technique is always serving the song rather than calling attention to itself. Edward Haydn Higgins was born on February 21, 1932, in Cambridge, Massachusetts, and learned piano from his mother…
Edin Karamazov is the kind of musician every serious hi-fi listener should experience at least once, because his playing brings the listener frighteningly close to the physical reality of plucked strings, resonating wood, room air and silence. He is not simply a lute player or classical guitarist; he is a sound sculptor with historical depth,…
The first thing I notice with Eddie Higgins is how little he seems interested in proving anything. His piano playing is technically assured, but the technique is always serving the song rather than calling attention to itself. Edward Haydn Higgins was born on February 21, 1932, in Cambridge, Massachusetts, and learned piano from his mother…
Eric Bibb is an American roots/blues singer-songwriter and guitarist. His music sits at the crossroads of Delta blues, American folk, gospel, roots music, soul, and Americana. Apple Music and Qobuz describe him as an American roots artist whose sound combines Delta blues, folk, pre-war gospel, and retro-soul. His important albums include Ain’t It Grand, Rainbow…
Esbjörn Svensson Trio, often abbreviated e.s.t., was a Swedish jazz piano trio formed by Esbjörn Svensson on piano, Dan Berglund on bass, and Magnus Öström on drums. Apple Music lists the trio as formed in 1990 in Västerås, Sweden, with jazz as its main genre. The trio became known for a modern European jazz sound…
For audiophiles, Etta Cameron remains one of those rare vocalists whose recordings feel emotionally physical. Her voice carried the warmth of gospel, the intimacy of jazz clubs, and the controlled dynamics of classic vocal recordings from the golden era of analog production. Audiophile listeners are especially drawn to the natural timbre of her singing: deep,…
Eugene Ruffolo is a New York City-based singer-songwriter, guitarist, and vocalist. His music is mainly folk-pop, acoustic singer-songwriter, Americana, and adult contemporary. His official biography describes him as a deeply personal songwriter whose newer album Ten Good Sermons explores forgiveness, friendship, and existential truth. His important albums include Fool For Every Season, When We Were…
Eva Cassidy was an American singer and musician from the Washington, D.C. area, known for her deeply emotional interpretations of jazz, folk, blues, gospel, soul, and pop standards. Her official Eva Cassidy website says she died in 1996 from melanoma and that her music became widely known only after her lifetime. Her most important albums…
Feist has one of those voices that can sound close and conversational without ever becoming small. Leslie Feist, born February 13, 1976, in Amherst, Nova Scotia, can sing almost at speaking level and still make every change in pressure, breath and phrasing matter. What interests me most is the contrast in her music: softness beside…
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