Local pianist Chris Rottmayer’s latest release, “Playing Favorites,” is a collection of standards. He is joined by Sauk City native, Matt Endres on bass, Clark Sommer from Chicago on bass, and Kelsey Wallner from Denver, Colorado on vocals.

If you like what you hear, head over to Bandcamp and pick up a copy.

Chris Rottmayer-Piano, Arrangements
Kelsey Wallner-Voice, Compositions, Arrangements
Clark Sommers-Bass
Matt Endres-Drumset

Released October 17, 2025

There are so many high quality jazz recordings being released by Madison artists it’s hard to keep up. Here is another: “Being” by Chris Rottmayer. Released on March 8, 2024, it ended up #87 on the year-end Roots Music Report’s 2024 Jazz Album chart.

From the liner notes:
BEING is pianist Chris Rottmayer’s fourth album. It’s a collection of original music, written as part of a study of pianist Mulgrew Miller and his recordings with the Woody Shaw Quintet. Joining him on this album are Russ Johnson on trumpet and flugelhorn, Matt Endres on drums, and jazz master Rufus Reid on acoustic bass. The skillful compositions and virtuosic performances on BEING weave an exotic and mysterious tapestry that explores Miller and Shaw’s harmonic and modal concepts.