| Jazz moderne |
Big Dipper: The Jazz Philosopher’s Last Conversation.
Few albums arrive with a story as moving as this one. Big Dipper is the work of a conversation begun in 2020 between a pianist in America and two musicians in Belgrade, but its three participants did not all live to hear the result. The arranger Ljubomir “Buba” Stojanović died at 65, Stephen Braude died on January 3, 2026, aged 80, leaving behind his piano performances, his compositions and a large body of unfinished music.
What could have remained in a drawer became a record. Braude’s widow and executive producer, Gina Ruk, was determined that the music should not disappear. She set the project in motion, and it was completed by the producer and mixer David Rodriguez, a twenty-time Emmy Award recipient (!!), together with Miodrag “Miško” Jovanović, the other half of Yamara Band, and a group of guest musicians. The result is not a tribute record in the usual sense, with a few reverent covers and a sad photograph. Braude’s own piano playing, with all its timing and character, stays at the heart of every track and the musicians around him answer it, colour it and push it into new places. “Alternative jazz” is the label on the leaflet, but the music slips out of every box.
The name Stephen Braude may be unfamiliar to most European jazz listeners, so here is who he was. Braude was known to friends and collaborators as “The Jazz Philosopher”, and the nickname was meant literally. And to demonstrate this to you, here are a few key points from Stephen Baude’s life:
- Born: April 17, 1945. Died: January 3, 2026.
- Studies: philosophy and English at Oberlin College and the University of London. Ph.D. in philosophy from the University of Massachusetts Amherst (1971).
- Career: professor of philosophy at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County.
- Research: the philosophy of mind and of science, then dissociation, multiple personality, the unity of consciousness and mental mediumship. He was an internationally recognised researcher of parapsychology.
- Responsibilities: past president of the Parapsychological Association; for 13 years editor-in-chief of the Journal of Scientific Exploration.
- Books: seven, from ESP and Psychokinesis: A Philosophical Examination (1979) to Immortal Remains (2003), Crimes of Reason (2014) and Dangerous Pursuits: Mediumship, Mind & Music (2020).
- Other talents: a professional pianist and composer, and a prize-winning 3D photographer.
- Note: on his own website he mentions that his feet are syndactyl and tells readers to look it up.
It is hard to ignore that his last book, Dangerous Pursuits: Mediumship, Mind & Music (2020), appeared in the same year he began recording these pieces with Belgrade’s Yamara Band. His scholarship asked how many voices a single mind can hold, and what it means for several voices to produce one coherent person. A record built from a pianist, two arrangers, singers, horns and electronics, all converging on one set of tunes, makes a fitting echo of that question. I make no claim that this was intended. It is simply how the album reads when you know who wrote it.
Big Dipper (6:25 – first track), and Big Dipper – Tango Noir (3:35 – 10th and last track): The album opens and closes with the title composition, and the two versions frame the record cleverly. The first is a jazz tango of over six minutes, in which Sarah Thiele’s wordless vocal works as another instrument in the arrangement. Braude himself asked for “a rose between your teeth” when he described this piece, which tells you a lot about his sense of humour and about the swagger of the tune.
The closer, Tango Noir, is the same composition seen from the other side: shorter, darker, more provocative. It makes a bookend and also a small demonstration of how differently one piece can be heard.
Good Grooming (3:04): Here the bebop side of Braude’s writing comes out, with Charles McNeal’s saxophone, guitar and horns carrying the Latin-American rhythmic colours through the tune. Braude’s instructions to the players are said to have been equal parts discipline and comedy, including a request to play it with a little hair product added. I like that the joke and the craft share a sentence.
Cable Ready Romance (4:16), and Average Maniac in Las Vegas (3:31): These two tracks show the humorous side of the writing. Each pairs a memorable theme with its own distinctive groove, and their titles say a lot about the man who composed them. They are the album’s most light-hearted stretch, and a good place to hear how much personality the piano lines hold before any arranger adds a note.
Creepy Crawlers – Slithering Serenade (2:23): One of the most playful landscapes on the record. Unusual textures, sound effects and a 6/4 pulse reshape the piece and give it a rhythmic unease. It is also a clear case of the arrangers taking real liberties with the framework while Braude’s playing stays at the centre. At just over two minutes it ends before you want it to.
The Man Who Lost His Feet (2:27): A whimsical theme that turns into an unpredictable little journey. Given the composer’s own note about his feet, one wonders about a private joke, though that is only a guess.
Quantum Lunge (3:28): A step towards a more classically influenced direction. It is a reminder that Braude, a man at home in the history of ideas, also knew his way around a more formal musical language.
The Somber Robes of Evening (3:03): The darker, more reflective side of his writing. After so much humour, this piece has particular weight in an album made after its composer’s death.
Gary’s Tune (3:10): The last of the middle pieces moves with a confident, forward-driving strut. It restores the mood and leads naturally to the return of the title track.
The band? Belgrade, America and beyond. At the core are the two musicians of Yamara Band, from Belgrade: Buba Stojanović (keyboards, synthesizers and virtual instruments) and Miško Jovanović (acoustic and electric guitars, keyboards). They wrote the original arrangements and Stojanović, who arranged six pieces, did not live to hear the finished album. David Rodriguez added new arrangements and completed the production.
The guests widen the palette: Sarah Thiele (vocals), Charles McNeal (saxophone), Ramiro Nasello (trumpet), Derek Jones (bass) and Jeremy Klewicki (drums), with programming by Milić Jovanović.
The mastering is by six-time GRAMMY winner (!!) Michael Romanowski, with additional mastering by two-time GRAMMY (!) winner Steve Fallone. Thanks to all of them for such a great record!
A posthumous album always carries a risk. It can turn an artist into a “museum piece” but Big Dipper avoids that by letting the unfinished music keep moving. The compositions are allowed to change shape, to be reinterpreted, even to disagree with themselves, as the two title tracks do. Humour, melancholy and invention sit side by side, in the way Braude’s own life combined rigorous scholarship with a love of piano, photography and play.
At 36 minutes, the album is compact and never outstays its welcome. It is a record of ideas more than of length, and the ideas are great ones. For listeners who enjoy jazz that travels through tango, bebop, fusion and electronics without losing its tune, it is a delightful discovery. For those who know Braude only as a philosopher, it is a revelation. Big Dipper is not merely a posthumous release but the completion of a musical conversation. It deserves to be heard. A must!
Frankie Pfeiffer
Editor in chief – PARIS-MOVE
PARIS-MOVE, October 7th, 2026
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Tracklisting
- Big Dipper – 6:25
- Good Grooming – 3:04
- Cable Ready Romance – 4:16
- Average Maniac in Las Vegas – 3:31
- Creepy Crawlers – Slithering Serenade – 2:23
- The Man Who Lost His Feet – 2:27
- Quantum Lunge – 3:28
- The Somber Robes of Evening – 3:03
- Gary’s Tune – 3:10
- Big Dipper – Tango Noir – 3:35
Total running time (as given on the leaflet): 36:23
Musicians
- Stephen Braude: piano, compositions
- Ljubomir “Buba” Stojanović: keyboards, synthesizers, virtual instruments, original arrangements
- Miodrag “Miško” Jovanović: guitars, keyboards, original arrangements
- Sarah Thiele: vocals
- Charles McNeal: saxophone
- Ramiro Nasello: trumpet
- Derek Jones: bass
- Jeremy Klewicki: drums
- Milić Jovanović: programming
- Andrew Joslyn: strings
Credits:
Executive producer: Gina Ruk.
Produced and mixed by David Rodriguez, with new arrangements.
Mastered by Michael Romanowski – additional mastering by Steve Fallone.