| Jazz |
An Expansive Musical Journey: Peter Lin’s Identity Bridges Continents and Traditions.
From the very first notes of Emperor’s Stride, the opening track of Identity, it becomes immediately clear that this is one of the most captivating albums to cross our path in recent memory. With the adventurous spirit reminiscent of Vietnamese-French guitarist Nguyên Lê, trombonist and composer Peter Lin embarks on a rich, genre-defying exploration. He weaves together the threads of his Taiwanese heritage with the vast and varied textures of American jazz, creating not just a cross-cultural dialogue but a profound artistic statement on belonging, lineage, and musical expression.
The album’s title, Identity, is no mere aesthetic flourish, it is the philosophical core around which these compositions orbit. Founded in 2019, Lin’s ensemble offers bold, jazz-inflected arrangements of traditional and classical Asian songs, alongside original compositions that speak with clarity and urgency. The core quintet features Lin on trombone, Erena Terakubo on alto saxophone and flute, Michael Bond at the piano, Daseul Kim on bass, and Wen-Ting Wu on drums. They are joined by vocalist Mỹ Tâm Huynh and trumpeter Brandon Choi—each lending nuance and depth to this already kaleidoscopic sonic palette.
Lin’s story is, in many ways, emblematic of the modern American musician. Born in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, and raised in northern New Jersey, Lin began his musical life studying violin and piano before discovering the trombone at age ten. That spark of passion led him through some of the nation’s most respected jazz programs, earning a bachelor’s degree from William Paterson University and a master’s from Rutgers. Along the way, he studied under legendary trombonists including Slide Hampton, Steve Turre, Conrad Herwig, Robin Eubanks, Steve Davis, and Frank Lacy, absorbing both their technique and their reverence for the expressive possibilities of the horn.
Lin has since built a reputation as a dynamic force on the jazz scene, performing with heavyweights such as Ron Carter, Winard Harper, Charli Persip, George Cables, and JD Allen. Whether gracing the stage at Carnegie Hall or lighting up more intimate venues like Smalls or the Zinc Bar, Lin brings a fluidity and finesse that speak to his early training on string instruments—an elegance that permeates his compositions and playing alike.
And therein lies the heart of Identity: not a collision of cultures, but a confluence, an artistic vision that refuses to sacrifice one tradition at the altar of another. Instead, Lin invites us into a deeply personal narrative, a kind of musical novel in eleven chapters, tracing a journey from Taiwan to the banks of the Mississippi. The result is a listening experience that is intellectually rich, emotionally resonant, and rhythmically alive.
There are moments of exuberant joy, to be sure, but also threads of nostalgia woven throughout—as if Lin is reaching back to the sensory fragments of childhood, echoing the colors and sounds that first stirred his imagination. It is perhaps this lyrical engagement with memory that gives the album its most poetic dimension. Identity doesn’t simply explore what it means to belong, it embodies the act of remembering, reinterpreting, and celebrating one’s cultural inheritance.
As summer unfolds, one might wonder: is 2025 shaping up to be the season of the trombone? A flurry of new releases by trombonists seems to suggest so. But few, if any, approach the instrument, and the notion of musical storytelling, with the depth, vision, and integrity that Peter Lin offers here.
Identity is not just an album, it is a vibrant, multidimensional experience, and a bold declaration from an artist finding, and claiming, his voice.
Thierry De Clemensat
Member at Jazz Journalists Association
USA correspondent for Paris-Move and ABS magazine
Editor in chief – Bayou Blue Radio, Bayou Blue News
PARIS-MOVE, June 9th 2025
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Musicians :
AAPI JAZZ COLLECTIVE is:
Peter Lin – trombone
Erena Terakubo – alto sax, flute
Mike Bond – piano
Daseul Kim – bass
Wen-Ting Wu – drums
Special Guests:
Mỹ Tâm Huynh – vocals (5,9,11)
Brandon Choi – trumpet (3,5,9,10,11)
Tracklist :
1 Emperor’s Stride 4:37
2 Alishan Girl 6:06
3 A Town With an Ocean View 4:58
4 City of Sadness 7:58
5 Anh Đâu Em Đó 4:14
6 Dahil Sa Iyo 6:28
7 Magpie’s New Year’s Day 3:03
8 Ringo Oiwake 4:37
9 Moonlight Densetsu 3:27
10 Tank! 6:41
11 Bèo Dạt Mây Trôi 5:17
Produced by Peter Lin
Recorded February 21, 2024 by Chris Sulit at Trading 8s Studio, Paramus, NJ
Mixed by David Kowalski at The Singularity, Hackensack, NJ
Mastered by Gene Paul at G&J Audio, Jersey City, NJ
Peter Lin photo by Chris Drukker
Band photo by Ivania Moreira
Cover design & layout by John Bishop