Peter Xifaras’s new album, “Adagio Grooves”, treats musical history less like a timeline and more like a room where everyone is invited to the same party. Initially, The Budapest Symphony lays out the fine china and polishes the silver, establishing a world of symphonic grace. It’s a sound full of discipline and grand, beautiful spaces—the kind of music that makes you feel you should...

Olivier Laurent’s new concept album, “Solin Anj”, doesn't so much play for you as it does around you. Listening feels like an act of accidental espionage on a life in progress. We are placed in the sonic womb, hearing the muffled arguments, ambitions, and affections of a world getting ready for our arrival. It’s an album that unfolds with the unhurried, jazzy cadence of...