ELEPHANT by Adam O'Farrill

Acclaimed trumpeter and composer Adam O’Farrill introduces ELEPHANT, his first quartet as the sole horn voice, with a self-titled debut to be released March 20, 2026 via Out of Your Head Records on CD, LP, hi-res download, and streaming. Widely regarded as one of the most vital musicians of his generation, O’Farrill has been hailed by The New York Times as “among the leading trumpeters in jazz” and “perhaps the music’s next major improviser.” At just 31, he has earned deep respect across the jazz community for his staggering technique, emotional insight, and cultural breadth. His name on a record signifies integrity, surprise, and excellence—qualities reinforced by a remarkable run of recent projects. In 2025 alone, O’Farrill appeared on acclaimed recordings including Mary Halvorson’s About Ghosts, Hiromi’s Out There, Tarun Balani’s Kadahin Milandaasin, and his own OOYH octet release For These Streets. His résumé includes collaborations with Rudresh Mahanthappa, Vijay Iyer, Tyshawn Sorey, Anna Webber, Mulatu Astatke, Mali Obomsawin, Micah Thomas, and many others, placing him firmly among the most critically lauded artists shaping 21st-century improvised music.

Despite this visibility, O’Farrill waited deliberately before leading a quartet without a second horn, having built his reputation in bands defined by frontline interplay and collective chemistry. That changed through years of touring and recording experience—most notably as the lone horn in Hiromi’s quartet Sonicwonder—and through the discovery of collaborators who could support a broader, more expansive vision. ELEPHANT brings together three rising New York–based musicians: pianist Yvonne Rogers, bassist Walter Stinson, and drummer Russell Holzman. Rogers combines deep study with fearless spontaneity; Stinson balances consummate fundamentals with elastic, expressive musicianship; and Holzman—an old friend from LaGuardia High School—melds natural swing with high-precision, electronic-rooted rhythms and a finely tuned sense of dynamics. Together, the quartet achieves a controlled intensity that feels both muscular and intimate, equally grounded in jazz tradition and contemporary sound worlds.

Musically, ELEPHANT draws from a wide constellation of influences—post-bop, electronic music, classical minimalism, Radiohead, Jonny Greenwood’s film scores, Ryuichi Sakamoto, and more—absorbed organically rather than as overt crossover gestures. The album’s centerpiece, The Sea Triptych, reflects water’s comfort and mystery across three pieces, from the crashing textures of “Along the Malecon” to the ambient meditation “The Three of Us, Floating,” and the percussive, groove-driven “Iris Murdoch.” Elsewhere, “Herkimer Diamond” exemplifies O’Farrill’s pursuit of balance between density and clarity, while the quartet’s striking reinvention of Sakamoto’s “Bibo No Aozora” replaces strings with trumpet, delay, and electronic harmony without sacrificing the instrument’s essential voice. Throughout, ELEPHANT captures an artist fully inhabiting his moment—confident, curious, and unafraid to let contemporary influences reshape the language of modern jazz on his own terms.

Trumpeter and composer, [proudly] born and raised in Brooklyn, NY.

"Adam O'Farrill likes to mix his music, as befits a New Yorker of Cuban, Mexican, Jewish, African-American, German, Irish heritage. His music affirms that a diverse population feeds a robust culture." (NPR)

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