After several acclaimed jazz-rock trio albums, guitarist Jake Hertzog shifted to a more intimate sound with 2016’s solo electric guitar album Well Lit Shadow, followed by the duet projects Stringscapes in 2018 and A Turn of Events in 2023. With this album, he has created a large-scale work for jazz orchestra, guitar, and string quartet, inspired by renowned guitar concertos.

Hertzog’s Ozark Concerto premiered in 2024 at the UARK Jazz Festival and recorded as a ZOHO release. Featuring the 23-piece Ozark Jazz Philharmonic, conducted by Susumu Watanabe (who also arranged the pieces), this ambitious concerto showcases Hertzog’s skills on a grand orchestral scale. He has successfully created a series of songs that follow an orchestral philosophy from start to finish. It’s well worth checking out.