In a year that saw the deaths of two leading drummers, Jack DeJohnette and Al Foster, other drummers both young and old — including Billy Hart, Kassa Overall, Joe Farnsworth and Marcus Gilmore, the M.V.P. of 2025 — shone as elite bandleaders. The trend was just one indicator of the way jazz is constantly renewing via an ongoing intergenerational conversation.
1. Marcus Gilmore, ‘Journey to the New: Live at the Village Vanguard’
Despite appearing on dozens of recordings with major bandleaders throughout a two-decade career, Marcus Gilmore had never released an album under his own name until this one. The drumming is typically breathtaking; even more impressive is the sturdiness and freshness of the collective vision. Striking voices like Morgan Guerin’s swooping EWI (electronic wind instrument) and Emmanuel Michael’s stealthily mind-melting guitar combine to set a new benchmark for stylish, listener-friendly virtuosity.