Episode 36 introduces two skilled and passionate composers, Kris Davis and Sumi Tonooka. Both women have made artistic homes for themselves in the jazz tradition, and both often venture into other realms and genres with great assurance. Although they’ve never met each other, their recent works are complementary, and this episode presents them side by side.
Composer and pianist Kris Davis encountered a new word, “solastalgia,” coined by philosopher Glenn Albrecht. It means “the homesickness you have when you are still at home, and your home environment is changing in distressing ways,” and it inspired the “Solastalgia Suite,” featuring a virtuoso performance by Poland’s Lutoslawski Quartet, and released earlier this year on Pyroclastic Records, Davis’ own record label. Warren Senders interviews Davis about the piece
and its complex emotional layers.
Sumi Tonooka grew up in Philadelphia, and came up in the city’s intensely creative jazz community. Her recent recording is also a suite, titled “Under The Surface.” With her group, Alchemy Sound Project, she created a set of pieces built around the idea that trees and arboreal ecosystems communicate with one another, sharing nourishment, support, and protection. She talks with Warren Senders about her work in music and activism.
Music and Video
Kris Davis interview
February 5, 2026
“The Known End”
from the Solastalgia Suite
(Pyroclastic PR-44)
“Ghost Reefs”
from the Solastalgia Suite
(Pyroclastic PR-44)
“Softly, As You Wake”
from “Run The Gauntlet”
Kris Davis — prepared piano,
Robert Hurst — bass,
Johnathan Blake — drums
“Pressure and Yield”
from the Solastalgia Suite
Dizzy’s, New York
June 13, 2024
“Interlude”
from the Solastalgia Suite
Dizzy’s, New York
June 13, 2024
“An Invitation to Disappear”
from the Solastalgia Suite
(Pyroclastic PR-44)
“Degrees of Separation”
from the Solastalgia Suite
Dizzy’s, New York
June 13, 2024
“Towards No Earthly Pole”
from the Solastalgia Suite
(Pyroclastic PR-44)
Sumi Tonooka Interview
January 29, 2026
“Under The Surface”
Alchemy Sound Project
(ARC-6770)
“Saveur”
From “Under The Surface”
Alchemy Sound Project:
Sumi Tonooka – piano;
Erica Lindsay – tenor saxophone;
Samantha Boshnack – trumpet;
Michael Ventoso – trombone;
Gregg August – bass;
Salim Washington – reeds & winds;
Johnathan Blake -drums
Exuberance, Philadelphia,
December 17, 2025
“For Stanley”
From “Under The Surface”
Alchemy Sound Project
(ARC-6770)
“Only The Midnight Sky
and Silent Stars”
San Francisco Conservatory
of Music Orchestra
Conductor: Edwin Outwater,
February 2023
“Interval Haiku”
From “Under The Surface”
Alchemy Sound Project,
Exuberance, Philadelphia,
December 17, 2025
“Mother Tongue”
From “Under The Surface”
Alchemy Sound Project
(ARC-6770)
“Heavy-Footed”
from “Run The Gauntlet”
Kris Davis — piano,
Robert Hurst — bass,
Johnathan Blake — drums
Learn more about Kris Davis at: krisdavis.net
Learn more about Sumi Tonooka at: sumitonooka.com
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