Composer and trumpeter Ambrose Akinmusire makes his debut on Nonesuch Records with "Owl Song". The album features a trio with two musicians Akinmusire has long admired, guitarist Bill Frisell and drummer Herlin Riley. The first of two "title tracks," "Owl Song 1," is available today and can be heard below and here, where you can also pre-order the album. "This is my reaction to being inundated with information," Akinmusire says of "Owl Song". "With this record, I wanted to create a safe space. Part of the challenge was: can I create something that aligns with an open space, like some of the records I love the most do?" Of his collaborators, he says: "I had a feeling the first time we played together that I wanted to make a record with Bill - it was a duo performance, with very little rehearsal. We just played through a couple of my songs and it worked. One of Bill's special gifts is the ability to shape a piece he's just heard for the first time. He seems to know what the music wants before the first note is played. "With Herlin, you can find his commitment to beauty in the groove. I never tell the musicians too much about what I want, because it should be about what these people bring to the table ... I said, "I know you're the right person for this because of the way you approach the groove." And of course, what he did is just beautiful." He continues: "I also wanted to bring people together who at first glance didn't seem to fit together ... and it turned out they hadn't played much. So it was cross-generational, sub-genre, whatever." Akinmusire says of "Owl Song 1", "I have a special affinity for the owls. Their personality is so distinctive - always observant. I should add that the titles don't have much meaning - my process is not so literal," he adds. "I wrote these songs for the people who are going to play them. I focused on developing a set of music ... the titles were placeholders that stayed. So, 'Owl Song 1' and '2'."